Devoted to show business and the entertainment industry

Donna Douglas, who was born Dorothy Smith in Louisiana, comments in an interview recently “I was the only girl in a family of boys, so I was raised a tomboy.”

Douglas says about her big break with "The Beverly Hillbillies" in 1962 “No one ever had to tell me how to play Elly May when that part came along,” Douglas said. “They asked me if I could milk a goat and I said ‘sure!’ I knew everything about her. When I got that part, I thought my little heart would pop open.”

The show itself was America's number one show for two years and one of the longest-running comedies produced by CBS. She also starred with Elvis Presley in "Frankie and Johnny" in 1966.

Douglas who is now 72, gives credit for her success to her lifelong faith in God. In the excesses of Hollywood and show business it kept her anchored and rooted within what she calls her “moral boundaries.”

“I’ve had men who wanted to keep me in penthouse apartments and give me yachts — but I wasn’t raised that way,” Douglas said.

“I always believed that God would take care of me, and I didn’t get involved in any of that (Hollywood) stuff.”

Douglas has been a Christian motivational speaker, author and musician now for a while since her acting day. She is a regular speaker to various groups, churches and shows, where she sells her country music and gospel albums, her children's book and signs pictures for her many fans.

Although life in Hollywood can be glamorous and even decadent, “it  really wasn’t a struggle for me along those lines,” Douglas said during a short interview. “I never compromised what I believed in. My walk was my talk and my talk was my walk.”
 
She still talks like the feisty Elly May.