Background
Sartain was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the son of a Tulsa fire chief
Sartain was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the son of a Tulsa fire chief
He attended Cascia Hall Preparatory School, is a 1963 graduate of Will Rogers High School in Tulsa and was a member of the Epsilon Mu chapter of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity at the University of Tulsa, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
He was a regular on the country music variety series Hee Haw. His best known role is Chuck in and as well as on Hey Vern, lieutenant"s Ernest and In 1968, Gailard moved to New York City, where he worked as an assistant to illustrator Paul Davis.
Sartain"s entry into entertainment was launched in Tulsa.
Working originally as a cameraman at a local television station, he gained notoriety through the creation of a late night off-the-wall comedy program entitled The Uncanny Film Festival and Camp Meeting. Dressed as a wizard, wearing a dark blue robe and pointed wizard"s cap, Sartain hosted the program as "Doctor Mazeppa Pompazoidi".
Other cast members included fellow Tulsans Gary Busey and Jim Millaway. The program was broadcast on the Tulsa Columbia Broadcasting System affiliate KOTV and later the American Broadcasting Company affiliate KTUL. lieutenant featured B-movies, with skits written and performed by Sartain, Busey and company between the movie segments.
Discovered by a talent scout during his stint as Mazeppa, Sartain was hired in 1972 as a regular on the television program Hee Haw.
He also served as a regular on other series including Cher (1975-1976) and Shields and Yarnell (1978). Sartain played Communicative Disorders Parker for one episode during the pilot season of Walker, Texas Ranger. He supplied the voice of a social worker in the pilot episode of the animated series King of the Hill.
Sartain also portrayed an advisor to Louisiana Governor Earl Long (played by Paul Newman) in the movie.
Sartain has appeared in more than forty motion pictures, most notably as The Big Bopper in, Sheriff Ray Stuckey in,,,, as Offensive Assistant Coach Leo Pilachowski,,,, and an uncredited role in the 1994 comedy starring John Candy and Richard Lewis. One of his most recent roles was in Cameron Crowe"son
He is also known for his role as Chuck in three of the Ernest P. Worrell films starring Jim Varney (as well as the Hey Vern, lieutenant"s Ernest! television series). He was replaced by a younger brother named Tom Tulip (Dallas native John Cadenhead) in Ernest Scared Stupid.
A successful illustrator, Sartain"s artistic credits range from record cover designs for such artists as Leon Russell (Will O" the Wisp) to illustrations for nationally published magazines.
Sartain remained as a regular cast member of the popular show for nearly 20 seasons.
