Trying to get anyone to remember Green Acres at this point and time is akin to asking someone to crack open a history book, they might look at you funny and ask why you don’t just Google it to see what it’s all about. At one time though the show and one of its stars, Tom Lester, were household names that just about everyone knew. Even those of us who were growing up in the 80s, well after the show had been cancelled, managed to pick up a few reruns here and there as the show is still held in some regard by the older generations that are still around today. Tom Lester passed on just recently, the cause being from complications arising from Parkinson’s disease, an ailment that a few stars have had to deal with throughout the years. The one thing we can say with any definitive voice is that he did not pass from any complications arising from COVID-19, as has become far too prevalent and in some cases a little questionable given that some folks who are said to pass away from it have had underlying conditions that they’ve been dealing with for years. At that age of 81 though Tom had lived a rather full and invigorating life that he’d picked for himself more often than not and that he followed in his own way and on his own terms.
A very religious man, Tom believed that the lord had a plan for him to make his way to Hollywood and start up a career, and whether a person wants to believe that or not it did happen since he managed to beat out roughly 400 other individuals that were auditioning for the role he earned on Green Acres. It’s widely believed that one of the main reasons he got the role is that he actually knew how to milk a cow, seeing as he’d done this same thing in his younger years. It does help to have some experience now and again when you’re auditioning for certain roles, though as we’ve seen it, being able to act does have its benefits as well. Thankfully Tom had no problem getting in front of the camera and letting his personality roam as he took on the role of Eb Dawson, who he would play for a majority of the show’s time on the air. He did have to bow out for one season due to mononucleosis, though the writers managed to explain this away by his character eloping and being on his honeymoon for a while.
Following Green Acres he did manage to appear on several other shows and in a few movies throughout his career, but to say that he was a typical actor wouldn’t really do the man a lot of justice. He was pretty much typecast as Eb after his role in Green Acres, and eventually he did move back to Mississippi and lived on the family farm. He wasn’t married until the age of 68 and it would turn out to be his first and last marriage. One might wonder why he waited so long but there are those individuals that either don’t want to be tied down or have just never found the right person for them for one reason or another. For all intents and purposes though Tom went back to farming and had a fulfilling life up until the end when his Parkinson’s became too much for him to withstand. The disease that has taken hold in a few celebrities throughout the years is one that a lot of folks keep hearing about now and again, either because it’s become a little more prominent or because the awareness of it has been raised thanks to the efforts of those such as Michael J. Fox, who also has the disease. Those who have been around it know that it can differ a bit from person to person, but that some of the symptoms are fairly obvious since the uncontrollable shaking and that feeling that the individual is slowing down in a way, both in how fast they move and even in how fast their thought processes work. The hope is that Tom managed to live a decent and happy life up until the end and that he didn’t regret leaving show business when he did.
Somehow it feels that he did what he needed to for himself and didn’t feel the need to look back, which is a great deal more comforting than wondering if he passed with any regrets. Obviously a lot of people are going to have some regrets whether they’re small or great. We’re human, it happens, sometimes there are things we wish would have done differently. But Tom truly appears to be one of those individuals that didn’t look back unless it was to savor the memories. That’s a great example to follow. Rest in peace sir.
