Max Baer, Jr.

In late 2003, Baer began developing an empty Walmart building and its property at the south end of Carson City into a Beverly Hillbillies-themed hotel and casino called Jethro's Beverly Hillbillies Mansion & Casino, which has yet to open. He was knighted in 1992 for his services to acting. He began to see it as a good marketing opportunity toward the gambling and hotel industry and began acquiring the contracts necessary to obtain the rights for marketing his latest idea. His only serious relationship with a woman seems to have been with the actress, Capucine, though he had many female friends. A lot of people think of him as "Jethro Bodine" from The Beverly Hillbillies, he came to terms with that. For many years he shared a home with a male friend, but repeatedly denied that their relationship was anything other than platonic. Baer decided if tourists would pay to see a ranch because of a well known series, then surely they would gladly pay "nothing" to see something dealing with the series The Beverly Hillbillies, whose TV audience was much larger than that of Bonanza. Bogarde never married and, even during his lifetime, was reported to be homosexual.

Once inside, all there was to see was a working ranch, but people enjoyed it mostly because of the Bonanza connection. During the 1960s and 1970s, Bogarde gradually abandoned his heart-throb image for more challenging parts, such as the ex-Nazi in The Night Porter (1974), a bored University professor in Accident (1967), and, most notably, as Gustav von Aschenbach in Death in Venice (1971). He also noticed that tourists would pay $5.00 to $6.00 admission to tour the "Ponderosa Ranch," which was the site of location filming on some episodes of TV's Bonanza. He quickly became a matinee idol. In 1985, Baer began studying the gambling industry. George Dixon in The Blue Lamp launched him as a lead player, but it was the comedy, Doctor in the House (1954), that made him a star. He directed the comedy Hometown USA (1979), then retired to his home at Lake Tahoe, Nevada, making occational guest appearances on TV. His 1950 appearance as the criminal who shot P.C.

When ABC tried to prevent him from making the movie, he sued and won a judgment of over $2,000,000. He joined the army and served in World War II, after which his good looks helped him begin a career as a film actor. Baer later decided to pursue the rights to the 1984 song Like a Virgin by Madonna. Bogarde was born in the London suburb of Hampstead, of mixed Dutch-British ancestry. Since the success of Ode to Billy Joe, the first movie based on a popular song, the motion picture industry has capitalized on the trend, producing over 100 song title movies. Derek Jules Gaspard Ulric Niven van den Bogaerde (March 28, 1921 - May 8, 1999), better known by the stage name Dirk Bogarde, was an actor. It was made for $1.1 million and grossed $27,000,000 at the box-office, plus earnings in excess of $2.65 million in the foreign market, $4.75 million from television and $2.5 million from video. Dirk Bogarde: The Complete Career Illustrated w/Robert Tanitch.

Bear produced the drama Ode to Billy Joe (1976), which turned a big profit. Dirk Bogarde: The Complete Autobiography. Baer then conceived the idea of using the title of a popular song to make a movie and acquired the rights to a 1967 Bobbie Gentry hit. An Orderly Man. He wrote, produced and directed the drama The Wild McCullochs (1975), in which he also played Culver Robinson. A Postilion Struck by Lightning. Made for $110,000, it grossed almost $25,000,000 at the box-office. Victim (1961).

It was the largest grossing movie per dollar invested of all time. Song Without End. Baer wrote and produced the drama Macon County Line (1974), in which he also played Deputy Reed Morgan. A Tale of Two Cities (1958). After The Beverly Hillbillies went off the air in 1971, he made several more guest appearances on TV, but his major contribution to the entertainment industry was in the field of feature motion pictures. The Spanish Gardener (1956). He has had one wife, Joanna Hill (married 1970-divorced 1971). The Blue Lamp (1950).

During the nine year run of the show, he also appeared on Vacation Playhouse and Love, American Style, and in the Western movie A Time for Killing. In 1962, Baer was cast in the role of doltish Jethro Bodine on the TV sitcom The Beverly Hillbillies, which he played with comidic mastery. His acting career began in 1960 at Warner Bros., where he appeared on TV programs that included Maverick, Surfside 6, Hawaiian Eye, Cheyenne and 77 Sunset Strip. He attended Santa Clara University, where he received a bachelor's degree in business administration with a minor in philosophy.

Max Baer, Jr., grew up in Sacramento. He was born Maximilian Adalbert Baer, Jr. in Oakland, California, the son of legendary boxing champion Max Baer and Mary Ellen Sullivan. His brother and sister are James Baer (born 1941) and Maude Baer (born 1943). Max Baer, Jr. (born December 4, 1937) is an American actor, screen writer, producer and director.