There is a string of episodes in which Jethro is absent or only makes a brief appearance. Sometimes he has a beard and his hair is noticeably longer as well. Was Max Baer, Jr. involved with another project that could account for these anomalies?
shareI don't remember him with a beard, but I did notice in the later BH years he had a more stylish haircut (for the early 1970s) and sideburns. I don't think Granny would have approved of his hair like that, or his uncle Jed giving him the money to get a stylish haircut. Anyway I assume he just wanted to look more like he wanted to look.
shareThe only episode that I remember being the way you described was the FINAL episode, in which Jethro had run away from home, for some reason ~I forget~ Granny was still cooking his food and leaving it on the front walk for him to pick up and go away again. At one point Jethro DOES return and he has a beard. But this was only 1 episode, and was the final one.
shareYou are probably correct. Perhaps it was two episodes - one in which Jethro wasn't seen (he had gone into hiding because he thought Louellen - an unattractive childhood crush had arrived in California to marry him. I think he was unaware that Louellen was now a stunning blonde.) The second (last of the series) episode was with the beard (at least for a scene or two). Perhaps the beard was part of the plot as he was apparently living off the land (except for the bucket of vittles, which on one occasion was a pail of mortar).
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