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Hillbilly Music #449: Perry Botkin Papers

Composer Perry Botkin was responsible for much of the incidental music for the 1960s hit television show The Beverly Hillbillies. The program follows the life of Jed Clampett and his family, impoverished hillbillies from the Ozarks. After oil is discovered on Clampett’s land, he becomes a multimillionaire. Flush with cash, the family relocates to a mansion in Beverly Hills, California.

Listen to this sound clip known as “Elly May’s Theme”, which Botkin wrote for scenes with Clampett’s daughter Elly May:

Hillbilly Music clip1.mp3

Perry Botkin also penned the notes for this piece that played each time the Clampetts visited their Beverly Hills bank:

Hillbilly Music clip2.mp3

See scripts and photos from The Beverly Hillbillies in the Perry Botkin papers at UW’s American Heritage Center.

For more information, visit the American Heritage Center site.