Services Set For Actor Buck Ford

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Jeffrey “Buck” Buckner Ford

A celebration of life for Nashville actor Jeffrey “Buck” Buckner Ford is slated for Saturday, Aug. 29 at Ruby Nashville.

Ford appeared in more than 20 films and in hundreds of television and radio commercials. He was the son of Country Music Hall of Fame member Tennessee Ernie Ford (1919-1991).

The actor was cast in character parts and/or supporting roles in Living Proof: The Hank Williams Jr. Story (1983), What Comes Around (1985), The Last Days of Frank & Jesse James (1986), King Kong Lives (1986), Ernest Goes to Camp (1987), Nashville Beat (1989), Ernest Goes to Jail (1990), The Firm (1993), The Client (1994), Big Dreams & Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story (1995), Last Dance (1996), Pirates of the Plains (1999), Country Strong (2010), Blue Like Jazz (2012), and other feature films and made-for-TV movies.

Ford was a regular on the CBS TV series Christy in 1994-95. He had roles on In the Heat of the Night, I’ll Fly Away, Walker Texas Ranger, The Forgotten, and other TV series. He was variously billed as “Jeffrey Ford,” “Jeffrey Buckner Ford” or “Buck Ford.”

He inherited his father’s resonant speaking voice and was in demand for voice-over work. Buck Ford narrated audio books, did radio commercials, and acted in video games. He was noted as a local acting coach/teacher and mentor to countless pupils.

He was also a screenwriter and the author of River of No Return: Tennessee Ernie Ford & the Woman He Loved – A Memoir (2008). He cared for his family’s legacy as the manager of Tennessee Ernie Ford Enterprises. His father scored more than 20 big country hits in the 1940s and 1950s, notably the million-selling miners’ saga “Sixteen Tons.” Tennessee Ernie Ford starred in his own NBC-TV series in 1956-61. His boyhood home is a tourist attraction in Bristol, Tennessee.

Jeffrey Buckner Ford passed away at age 76 on June 21 while in hospice care in Nashville. He is survived by sons Tucker Ford and James Ford, daughter Jesse Harbison, their mother Murphy Ford, and by grandson Lee. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Alive Hospice Residence Nashville.

The memorial celebration on Saturday will begin with visitation at 11 a.m. and services at 1 p.m. Ruby Nashville is located at 2411 Blakemore Ave., Nashville, TN 37212. For more information, contact Tucker Ford: tuckerford@gmail.com.

Robert K Oermann
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