Comedian Jim Nabors, who rose to fame in the 1960s playing bumbling Gomer Pyle on two hit sitcoms, has died at the age of 87.
Nabors died around 3 a.m. at the Honolulu home he shared with his husband, Stan Cadwallader, his partner of 38 years, according to Hawaii News Now.
Nabors was born in Sylacauga, Alabama, and began acting while attending the University of Alabama.
After graduation, he moved to Los Angeles, partially for his asthma and also to pursue show business aspirations.
While working at a Hollywood nightclub, Nabors developed an act that showcased a wide-eyed rube character who spoke in a high-pitched voice that contrasted with Nabors baritone voice.
Nabors became famous when he turned the character into Gomer Pyle on the CBS sitcom The Andy Griffith Show during that shows third season.
Advertisement
The Pyle characters catch phrases, including Gawwllleee! and Surprise! Surprise! Surprise! became so popular that in 1964, Nabors got his own series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. That show ran for five years until he pulled the plug so he could try new things.
It got down to what you think you want to be, an actor or an entertainer. I want to entertain, Nabors said in 1969, according to The Hollywood Reporter. I dont think Im much of an actor. The only part I ever played was Gomer. Im the most surprised person around that Im successful anyway.
Besides acting, Nabors also released numerous albums showcasing his baritone voice, which was also featured on TV shows like Gomer Pyle, as the clip below demonstrates:
Advertisement
","type":"video","meta":{"author":"Ga8torFan","author_url":"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-zHxbmjEIH6N4zeRNU7bhw","cache_age":86400,"description":"Jim Nabors as Pfc Gomer Pyle and Carol Burnett as Sgt. Carol sing a medley of several songs. The clip is from Gomer Pyle USMC season 5, Episode 28 - \"Showtime with Sgt. Carol\"","provider_name":"YouTube","thumbnail_height":360,"thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/i-cXessab-I/hqdefault.jpg","thumbnail_width":480,"title":"Jim Nabors & Carol Burnett singing a medly","type":"video","url":"https://action.news/watch?v=i-cXessab-I","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"mobile","editionInfo":{"id":"us","name":"U.S.","link":"https://action.news","locale":"en_US"},"originalEdition":"us","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"5a204612e4b0392a4ebc2713","entryPermalink":"https://action.news/entry/jim-nabors-dead-87_n_5a204612e4b0392a4ebc2713","entryTagsList":"us-news,entertainment,jim-nabors,@health_erectile,@health_ibs,@health_models","sectionSlug":"entertainment","deptSlug":"entertainment","sectionRedirectUrl":"https://action.news/entertainment","subcategories":"queer-voices","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"us.entertainment","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf","overrides":{"front_page_top_videos":{"desktop":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","mobileweb":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d"},"top_media":{"desktop":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","mobile":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"anthology":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"content":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"}},"playerUpdates":{"5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81","5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f":"60b8e355cdd90620331ba185","58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895":"60b64316b171b7444beafdb2","58b74698f78ced31417819ae":"60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52","58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1":"60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5","58cff690d85a100b9992bc39":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7":"60b643c82e76be41f112735c","592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","5b35266b158f855373e28256":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a":"60b64440b171b7444beb040b","5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9":"60b646102e76be41f1127ffc","5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","5c477987a6b48b35f164773d":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371":"60b8e747cdd90620331bb861","5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2":"60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b","5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6":"60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9","58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321":"60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c","58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3":"60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0","58cff8eccebcea42931e0436":"60d0e005b627221e9d819d44","592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b":"60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf","58cff72fd85a100b9992c112":"60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da","56b4d34fe4b022697697c400":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b","clickToPlayPlayer":"d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0","videoPagePlayer":"f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145","verticalPlayer":"e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065","stickyPlayerControl":"52ea1755-d601-4ad1-bccc-d8cce3f0e5da","stickyPlayerON":"8055e9e5-3bda-4933-8d45-9ad814fb6e22"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":4},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":1},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"5a204612e4b0392a4ebc2713","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"mobile","page_edition":"en-us"},"tags":[{"name":"U.S. News","slug":"us-news","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/us-news","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/us-news","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/us-news"},"relegenceSubjectId":981465,"department":{"name":"Latest News","slug":"politics-news"},"section":{"title":"World News","slug":"world-news"},"topic":{"title":"United States","slug":"united-states","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/news/topic/united-states"},{"name":"entertainment","slug":"entertainment","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/entertainment","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/entertainment","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/entertainment"},"relegenceSubjectId":6325647,"department":{"name":"Entertainment","slug":"entertainment"},"section":{"title":"Celebrity","slug":"celebrity"},"topic":{"title":"Celebrities","slug":"celebrities","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/entertainment/topic/celebrities"},{"name":"Jim Nabors","slug":"jim-nabors","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/jim-nabors","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/jim-nabors","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/jim-nabors"},"relegenceId":6038649,"url":"https://action.news/topic/jim-nabors"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["\r\n\r\n","\r\n\r\n","\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false,"enhancements":{}}">
_(720p).jpg)
 OFFICIAL HD MUSIC VIDEO.jpg)
.jpg)
