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Lester was born in Laurel, Mississippi.
In 1948, he became a born-again Christian, and became involved in the Baptist church. At that time he said he thought the Lord's plan for his life would deliver him to Hollywood, California, to embark on an acting career. He discussed his plans and his dream of becoming an actor with his parents.
After he graduated from Laurel High School, he attended the University of Mississippi, where he received a B.Sc. degree in chemistry and biology. He briefly attended graduate school at the University of Southern Mississippi, but acting became his main interest.
After moving to Hollywood, Lester met radio and character actress Lurene Tuttle, who became his friend and acting coach. She suggested he begin work in the Little Theater, which he did, acting in showcases at the North Hollywood Playhouse.
In the early 1960s, Lester appeared in a play with CBS producer Paul Henning's daughter Linda Kaye Henning (Betty Jo Bradley of Petticoat Junction), and Lester soon found himself auditioning for the role of Eb Dawson, farmhand to Oliver Wendell Douglas (played by Eddie Albert) on Green Acres. Lester beat around 400 other actors to play the character after a screen test.
Lester later said he won the role because he was the only actor who auditioned who knew how to milk a cow since he grew up on a farm in Mississippi. His recurring role soon became a regular character due to the character's and the show's popularity, which made Lester a household name.
As several Green Acres characters also appeared in episodes of two other CBS series - Petticoat Junction and The Beverly Hillbillies - Lester, as Eb Dawson, also occasionally appeared on those shows. Even during the height of Green Acres' popularity, Lester lived modestly in a small apartment over a garage in the San Fernando Valley. Each year during the show's summer hiatus he would travel the country and speak at churches, youth rallies and revival meetings and at one time worked for the Reverend Billy Graham's organization.
Lester appeared in nearly every Green Acres episode between 1965 and 1971, with the exception of the first half in the 1967-68 season when he was ill with mononucleosis. The show's explanation for Eb's absence was that he had eloped and was on his honeymoon. After six seasons, Green Acres was cancelled in 1971 as part of CBS's "rural purge".
After Green Acres, Lester was typecast as Eb Dawson. In 1990, he reunited with Albert and Eva Gabor to reprise his role in Return to Green Acres.
He returned to his parents' home in Laurel, Mississippi, but continued to do an occasional movie or TV role. During the mid-1970s to early 1980s, his roles included guest spots in Little House on the Prairie, Marcus Welby, M.D., Knight Rider and Love, American Style. In 1991 he played the adult Pete Maravich in the film about the future basketball hall-of-famer's youth, The Pistol: The Birth of a Legend.
On April 20, 2020, Lester died from complications of Parkinson's disease. He was 81. tom lester