Earl Eugene Scruggs ( January 6 , 1924 -- March 28 , 2012 ) was an American musician noted for popularizing a three-finger banjo picking style , now called `` Scruggs style '' , that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music . Scruggs ' career began at age 21 when he was hired to play in a group called `` Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys '' . Scruggs ' banjo instrumental called `` Foggy Mountain Breakdown '' , released in 1949 , became an enduring hit , and had a rebirth of popularity to a younger generation when it was featured in the 1967 film Bonnie and Clyde .
Earl Scruggs was an actor