John R. Cherry III Cause Of Death, Obituary, Wife, Children

John Cherry died on May 8, 2022, at the age of 73, from Parkinson’s disease.  John R. Cherry III was an American film director and screenwriter best known for creating Jim Varney’s character Ernest P. Worrell.

Cherry was married twice and had three children. Josh Davis, his son, played Corporal Davis in Ernest in the Army.

Cherry made three cameo appearances in his films: as a basketball spectator in Slam Dunk Ernest, as a customer in Ernest Goes to Africa, and as Sergeant Ben Kovsky in Ernest in the Army.

Cherry was the executive vice president and co-namesake of the Carden and Cherry advertising agency in Nashville, where the character “Ernest” was created. He based the character on a man who worked for his father and who, according to Cherry, believed he knew everything but didn’t.

Jim Varney, who was an up-and-coming stand-up comic at the time of the character’s debut, played Ernest for 15 years; after a string of successful commercials and sketches, Cherry directed a television series (Hey, Vern! Ernest) and several films.