Rufe Davis
| Rufe Davis | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Rufus Davidson December 2, 1908 Vinson, Oklahoma, United States |
| Died | December 13, 1974 (aged 66) Torrance, California, United States |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 1937-1969 |
Rufe Davis (December 2, 1908 – December 13, 1974) was an American actor. He appeared in over 30 films between 1937 and 1969, including 14 of the Three Mesquiteers titles. Davis played railroad conductor Floyd Smoot on the CBS television series Petticoat Junction from 1963–1968 and in 1970.
Davis was raised on a farm in Vinson, Oklahoma. He was one of twelve children. He went into show business at the age of twenty, and joined the Weaver Brothers & Elviry vaudeville touring company in 1929. He sang and did impressions of animal and train sounds. He would continue to perform live throughout his career. A 1949 review of his act at the Los Angeles Orpheum says "Rufe Davis wins mitts with his rural comedy routines, imitations of instruments and train whistles." While he was in New York City in the 1930s, Davis was helpful to The Andrews Sisters at the start of their career, loaning them money and helping them obtain bookings.
Beginning in 1932, Davis starred on the radio show Rufe Davis and the Radio Rubes. Davis and the Rubes were a quartet who performed comedy sketches and music. Davis and the Rubes also starred in the 1936 comedy/musical short film The City's Slicker.
Davis is perhaps best known to modern audiences for his portrayal of Hooterville Cannonball train conductor Floyd Smoot on Petticoat Junction (and occasionally on Green Acres). Floyd Smoot is a happy-go-lucky and somewhat blockheaded character, similar to Gilligan on Gilligan's Island or Coach and Woody Boyd on Cheers. In the Green Acres episode "Never Trust a Little Old Lady", train engineer Charley Pratt says, "Floyd Smoot, you're a stubborn fool!" To which Floyd replies: "And that goes double for me!"
In 1964, Rufe Davis and Smiley Burnette released the single "Steam, Cinders and Smoke". The song was written by Burnette, who played train engineer Charley Pratt on Petticoat Junction. Davis voiced the train sounds in the song. The single was given a limited release of around a thousand copies. Davis and Burnette perform the song in the Petticoat Junction episodes "Hooterville A-Go-Go" and "The Almost Annual Charity Show". Davis performs the song solo in the episode "Last Train to Pixley", which was filmed after Burnette's 1967 death. The B-side of the single is "Clickity Clack".
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