posty 2,702 Posted June 20 https://www.tmz.com/2025/06/20/gailard-sartain-dead-hee-haw-tulsa-oklahoma/ Gailard Sartain -- the beloved Southern character actor from "Hee Haw," "Mississippi Burning," and "Fried Green Tomatoes" -- has died at 78, TMZ has confirmed. Teresa Knox, CEO of The Church Studio in Tulsa, Oklahoma, tells TMZ Gailard passed away Tuesday after a long decline in health. No official cause of death has been revealed. The Church Studio -- where Sartain's wife Mary Jo volunteered -- is remembering him as "an extraordinary actor, artist, and comedian." Victoria Hallman, who played Miss Honeydew on the TV show "Hee Haw," tells TMZ Gailard was like a big brother to her and made everyone on set laugh so hard, they had to redo takes. She added, "I knew he wasn't in good health and hadn't been for a while. We always fool ourselves that people will hang on. I wasn't expecting to find out in the wee hours of the morning." Gailard got his start in the early '70s as the wild-eyed Dr. Mazeppa Pompazoidi on the local late-night sketch show "Uncanny Film Festival and Camp Meeting," which aired on KOTV in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He joined the comedy variety show "Hee Haw" in '72 -- and never looked back, racking up over 60 film and TV credits, including three 'Ernest' movies, "The Outsiders," and "The Buddy Holly Story." He was 78. RIP Share this post Link to post Share on other sites