CineScope
James Best picture

James Best

Acting
Known For

88 Years Old

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia James Best (born Jewel Franklin Guy; July 26, 1926 – April 6, 2015) was an American television, film, character, voice, and stage actor, as well as a writer, director, acting coach, artist, college professor, and musician, whose career spanned seven decades of television. He appeared as a guest on various country music and talk shows. One of the busiest actors in Hollywood, who began his contract career with Universal Studios in 1949, where he met unfamiliar actors Julie Adams, Piper Laurie, Tony Curtis and Rock Hudson. Best's long career began in films in 1950. He appeared primarily in Westerns, playing opposite Audie Murphy in Kansas Raiders (1950), The Cimarron Kid (1952) and The Quick Gun (1964), Raymond Massey in Seven Angry Men (1955), George Montgomery in Last of the Badman (1957), Frank Lovejoy in Cole Younger Gunfighter (1958), and Randolph Scott in Ride Lonesome (1959). He also starred in the science fiction cult movie, The Killer Shrews (1959) and its sequel, Return of the Killer Shrews (2012). He is most known for playing bumbling Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane in the action/comedy Dukes of Hazzard, a role that he revised in The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! (1997) as his character was now "boss" of Hazzard County as well as sheriff, and again in The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood (2000).

Born

Powderly, Kentucky, USA on 26th July 1926

Died

6th April 2015

All Credits

Ben Casey Image
Ben Casey
The Andy Griffith Show Image
The Andy Griffith Show
Jim Lindsey
Laramie Image
Laramie
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour Image
The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
Tom Carmody
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The Rifleman
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Surfside 6
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Hawaiian Eye
Bonanza Image
Bonanza
Sheriff Vern Schaler
Trackdown Image
Trackdown
Perry Mason Image
Perry Mason
Martin Potter
Perry Mason Image
Perry Mason
Allan Winford
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The Gene Autry Show
Have Gun, Will Travel Image
Have Gun, Will Travel
The Mod Squad Image
The Mod Squad
The DuPont Show with June Allyson Image
The DuPont Show with June Allyson
Jovan Wilanskov
Rawhide Image
Rawhide
Brock Quade
Rawhide Image
Rawhide
Willie Cain
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Combat!
Trenton
The Rebel Image
The Rebel
Abel Waares
The Rebel Image
The Rebel
Ted Evans
The Twilight Zone Image
The Twilight Zone
Billy-Ben Turner
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The Twilight Zone
Jeff Myrtlebank
The Dukes of Hazzard Image
The Dukes of Hazzard
Rosco P. Coltrane
The Texan Image
The Texan
The Manhunter Image
The Manhunter
Daniel Boone Image
Daniel Boone
Jethro Wyatt
Bat Masterson Image
Bat Masterson
Danny Dakota
Bat Masterson Image
Bat Masterson
Joe Best
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The Barbara Stanwyck Show
Joe
Cheyenne Image
Cheyenne
The Adventures of Kit Carson Image
The Adventures of Kit Carson
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Lock-Up
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Tombstone Territory
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West Point
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Lancer
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General Electric True
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Wanted: Dead or Alive
Luke Perry
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Wanted: Dead or Alive
Stoner
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Michael Shayne
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Black Saddle
Ben Travers
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Hopalong Cassidy
Honey West Image
Honey West
Vince Zale
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Climax!
Shag
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The Gallant Men
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Flipper
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The Fugitive
Dan Murray
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Frontier
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The Guns of Will Sonnett
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Overland Trail
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Lux Video Theatre
Clem Wallace
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Bronco
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77 Sunset Strip
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Richard Diamond, Private Detective
Jack Milhoan
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Stagecoach West
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Hallmark Hall of Fame
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Felony Squad
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B.L. Stryker
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Gunsmoke
Charlie Noon
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Gunsmoke
Beal
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Buffalo Bill Jr.
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The Millionaire
Fred Morgan
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The Virginian
Curt Westley
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Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Bish Darby
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Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Hennessy
Alfred Hitchcock Presents Image
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Norman Frayne
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The Green Hornet
Yale Barton
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Centennial
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The Lineup
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Behind Closed Doors
Webb
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Whispering Smith
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Pony Express
Bart Gentry
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Stories of the Century
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Startime
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Burke's Law
Tucson, 'The Cowboy'
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The David Niven Show
Boland
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The Man and the Challenge
Hawk Image
Hawk
Redigo Image
Redigo
In the Heat of the Night Image
In the Heat of the Night
The Dukes Image
The Dukes
Rosco Coltrane (voice)
Men Into Space Image
Men Into Space
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Enos
CMT: Inside Fame Image
CMT: Inside Fame
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Cavalcade of America
Slate Morley
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Cavalcade of America
Harry
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Cavalcade of America
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E! True Hollywood Story
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General Electric Theater
Hardy Coulter
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Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
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Forbidden Planet
Crewman (uncredited)
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Hawkins
Sheriff John Early
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The Caine Mutiny
Lt. JG Jorgensen
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The 50 Worst Movies Ever Made
Thorne Sherman (archive footage)
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Hot Tamale
Hank Larson
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Winchester '73
Crater
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Rolling Thunder
Texan
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Savages
Sheriff Bert Hamilton
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Hooper
Cully
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The Killer Shrews
Thorne Sherman
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Shenandoah
Carter, Rebel Soldier
The Left Handed Gun Image
The Left Handed Gun
Tom Folliard
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Sounder
Sheriff Charlie Young
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Firecreek
Drew
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Ride Lonesome
Billy John
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Nickelodeon
Jim
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The Raid
Lt. Robinson
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Shock Corridor
Stuart
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Seminole
Corp. Gerad
Comanche Territory Image
Comanche Territory
Sam
The Quick Gun Image
The Quick Gun
Scotty Wade
The Rack Image
The Rack
Millard Chilson Cassidy
Verboten! Image
Verboten!
Sgt. David Brent
The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion! Image
The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!
Boss / Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane
One Way Street Image
One Way Street
Driver (uncredited)
Cole Younger, Gunfighter Image
Cole Younger, Gunfighter
Kit Caswell
The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood Image
The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood
Rosco P. Coltrane
The End Image
The End
Pacemaker Patient
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The Mountain Road
Niergaard
Moondance Alexander Image
Moondance Alexander
McClancy
The Battle at Apache Pass Image
The Battle at Apache Pass
Cpl. Hassett
Return of the Killer Shrews Image
Return of the Killer Shrews
Thorne Sherman
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The Savage Bees
Pellegrino
The Cimarron Kid Image
The Cimarron Kid
Bitter Creek Dalton
Gaby Image
Gaby
Jim
The Sweeter Side of Life Image
The Sweeter Side of Life
Paddy Kerrigan
Peggy Image
Peggy
Frank Addison
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Apache Drums
Bert Keon
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Riders to the Stars
Dr. Sidney K. Fuller
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Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia
Self (archive footage)
Come Next Spring Image
Come Next Spring
Bill Jackson
First to Fight Image
First to Fight
Sergeant Carnavan
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Black Spurs
Ralph Elkins
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Cast a Long Shadow
Sam Mullen
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Calling Homicide
Det. Arnie Arnhoff
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Three on a Couch
Dr. Ben Mizer
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I Was a Shoplifter
Seven Angry Men Image
Seven Angry Men
Jason Brown
They Rode West Image
They Rode West
Lt. Finlay (uncredited)
Kansas Raiders Image
Kansas Raiders
Cole Younger
Francis Goes to West Point Image
Francis Goes to West Point
Cpl. Ransom
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Column South
Primrose
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Death Mask
Wilbur Johnson
Hot Summer Night Image
Hot Summer Night
Kermit
Hollywood in the Atomic Age: Monsters! Martians! Mad Scientists! Image
Hollywood in the Atomic Age: Monsters! Martians! Mad Scientists!
Self
The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller Image
The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller
Sgt. David Brent (archive footage) (uncredited)
Steel Town Image
Steel Town
Joe Rakich
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair Image
Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair
Marvin Johnson
Ode to Billy Joe Image
Ode to Billy Joe
Dewey Barksdale
The Runaway Barge Image
The Runaway Barge
Bingo Washington
Run, Simon, Run Image
Run, Simon, Run
Henry Burroughs
Last of the Badmen Image
Last of the Badmen
Ted Hamilton
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The Yellow Tomahawk
Private Bliss
The Naked and the Dead Image
The Naked and the Dead
Rhidges
Black Gold Image
Black Gold
Jericho Larkin
City of Bad Men Image
City of Bad Men
Deputy Gig (uncredited)
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Air Cadet
Jerry Connell
The Brain Machine Image
The Brain Machine
Rev. Emory Neill
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Return from the Sea
Barr
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Top of the World
Col. French's Orderly (uncredited)
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Target Unknown
Sgt. Ralph Phelps
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Man on the Prowl
Doug Gerhardt
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Skip Taylor
No Image
Aftermath
Hardy Coulter