Q. My family and I have enjoyed the "Ernest" movies. I would like to know who is Ernest P. Worrell? How did he break into show business? Has he done anything other than "Ernest"? Does he plan to do any more movies? - L.S., Salt Lake City, Utah.
A. Actor Jim Varney, 43, plays Ernest, a character invented by a Nashville, Tenn., advertising man for an amusement park TV commercial. Soon, bumpkin Ernest P. Worrell was selling everything from natural gas to ice cream on TV spots. Born in Lexington, Ky., Varney studied acting in New York while working in comedy clubs. He has appeared in "Operation Petticoat," "Alice" and "The Rousters." Currently, he can be seen as Jed Clampett in the movie version of "The Beverly Hillbillies" and "Ernest Rides Again."Q. The late Raymond Burr performed under his real name. Who are the others in the entertainment field who chose to use their birth names? - H.L., Rancho Cordova, Calif.
A. That's an impossible order. More entertainers use real names than use stage names. These days, younger players rarely change names unless there is a compelling reason. The Screen Actors Guild rules forbid two actors using the same name. The late Stewart Granger had to drop his real name, James Stewart. In years past, actors changed to avoid names that were too ethnic, e.g. Ramon Estevez became Martin Sheen.
Q. I remember a 1958 version of "A Farewell to Arms" with Jennifer Jones and Rock Hudson. I would like to show high school students this version after they have read the novel but can only find the Gary Cooper-Mary Pickford version which is too dated to be taken seriously by today's students. Can you help me find the 1958 film? - S.C., Decorah, Iowa.
A. The 1932 version of "Arms" co-starred Helen Hayes, not Pickford, and Cooper. Critics note that while it is dated, it is far superior to the 1957 Jones-Hudson version. It was nominated for the 1932-33 best picture Academy Award and did win an Oscar for cinematography. Both versions are on tape.
Q. I have often wondered what happened to Leo Gorcey of the Bowery Boys. Gorcey made me laugh so much when I was young and I still get a kick out of him when I see the reruns. - J.R., Southgate, Mich.
A. Gorcey died in 1969. He was 54.
Q. When will the miniseries "The Killer Angels" be shown on TV? It is about the Civil War. - B.B., Winter Park, Fla.
A. Ted Turner decided to turn Walter Shaara's novel into a four-hour feature film titled "Gettysburg." It's now in theaters but will be edited into a longer mini for telecast sometime in 1994.
Q. The one-armed man in the TV "Fugitive," is he still alive? Did he really have only one arm? What's his name? Is Barry Morse, Lt. Gerrard, still alive? - J.W., Las Vegas, Nev.
A. Bill Raisch, who played the one-armed man, did indeed have only one arm. He died in 1984 at age 79. Morse, 74, is still active, usually in his native England or in Canada.
Q. I'm a fan of "Mad About You" and my favorite character is Fran. Tell me about her. - R.T., Jersey City, N.J.
A. Leila Kenzle (Fran) was born on Long Island and grew up in Rutherford, N.J. She was pushed into acting by her mother. After graduating from Rutgers, Kenzle worked as a telephone operator before landing in an off-Broadway play. She's been seen in "Princesses" and in guest roles on "The Golden Girls," "thirtysomething" and "The Cosby Show."
Q. As the years go by, I remember a series called "Webster." Who played Webster and what happened to him after the show? - L.K.K., Las Vegas, Nev.
A. Emmanuel Lewis, 23, was Webster. Lewis attended college in Georgia and now is in private life with no show business plans.
Q. Tell me about Josie Bissett of "Melrose Place." - K.B., Youngstown, Ohio.
A. Bisset, 23, was born in Seattle, Wash. She started out modeling and in commercials, then spent two seasons in "The Hogan Family." Her other TV credits include "Parker Lewis," "Doogie Howser," "Quantum Leap" and TV movies "Danielle Steele's Secret" and "Posing." Movie credits include "The Doors" and "Mikey." She's married to TV star Rob Estes.
Q. I saw a note that Chekov from "Star Trek," had a heart attack. Can you tell me more? - L.F., Garden Grove, Calif.
A. According to a recent USA Today article, Walter Koenig, who played Chekov, had a successful heart bypass operation July 30 and was in physical therapy recovering and working on several projects, including a possible pilot for a comedy sci-fi TV series. He is 56.
Q. Is Belinda Montgomery Dinah Shore's daughter? I don't think so. My friends does. Set us straight. - H.S., Westminster, Calif.
A. Shore's daughter is Melissa Ann Montgomery, 45, who's not in show business.
Q. Tell me where I can get tickets to David Letterman's new show. - M.W., Tucson, Ariz.
A. Write: Letterman Tickets, CBS-TV, 51 West 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019.
Q. Tell me where to write Jay Leno of "The Tonight Show." - P.L., Scranton, Pa.
A. NBC-TV, 3000 West Alameda Ave., Burbank, CA 91523.
Q. For years, we've been trying to think of series in which Paul Sorvino played a deaf detective. It ran about the time of "Streets of San Francisco." - B.A.B., Collinsville, Pa.
A. Sorvino's played a cop in three series: "Bert D'Angelo, Superstar," set in San Francisco, which lasted half a season in 1976; "The Oldest Rookie," 1987-88; and "Law and Order," 1991-92. But he wasn't a deaf cop in any of them. You may have mixed the cop show with a TV movie, 1979's "Dummy," in which Sorvino played a deaf lawyer who defended a deaf-mute young man played by LaVar Burton.
Q. In the early '60s, there was a detective series called "The Branagan Brothers." I was wondering why no network has chosen to rerun this series; it was a big hit at the time. - T.K., Valrico, Fla.
A. There aren't any reruns because there isn't any record of a show of that title in the TV reference books or in the Broadcast Information Bureau's catalog of available programming.
Q. I've been watching reruns of "Gloria." Tell me what happened to the cast. - Mrs. B.W., Buffalo, N.Y.
A. Sally Struthers does an occasional TV movie and a lot of TV commercials. Burgess Meredith still does voice-overs for commercials. Lou Richards has been in "She's the Sheriff' and "Just the Ten of Us." Jo DeWinter and Christian Jacobs haven't had any TV credits since the 1982-83 series.
Q. I think it is an insult that a German actor is playing Jethro in the "The Beverly Hillbillies" movie. Couldn't they find an American? - J.L K., Atlanta, Ga.
A. Diedrich Bader, 26, is an American, born in Virginia, raised in Washington D.C. Says Bader, "Ancestors from Baden-Baden (Germany), sure, but my family's been American for generations. A great grandfather was mayor of Atlantic City. It's just that my father got more and more dramatic naming us kids as the family grew. I'm the fourth child and I got the name Karl Diedrich."