James Best

Known For: Acting
Born: July 26, 1926
Place of Birth: Powderly, Kentucky, USA
Died: April 6, 2015

James Best

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 Randolp…

Filmography

Hollywood in the Atomic Age: Monsters! Martians! Mad Scientists!

2021 · Self

Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia

2013 · Self (archive footage)

The Sweeter Side of Life

2013 · Paddy Kerrigan

Return of the Killer Shrews

2012 · Thorne Sherman, Writer

Moondance Alexander

2007 · McClancy

Hot Tamale

2006 · Hank Larson

CMT: Inside Fame

2005

The Men Who Made the Movies: Samuel Fuller

2002 · Sgt. David Brent (archive footage) (uncredited)

The Dukes of Hazzard: Hazzard in Hollywood

2000 · Rosco P. Coltrane

The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!

1997 · Boss / Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane

E! True Hollywood Story

1996

Death Mask

1995 · Wilbur Johnson, Writer

B.L. Stryker

1989

In the Heat of the Night

1988

The Dukes

1983 · Rosco Coltrane (voice)

Enos

1980

The Dukes of Hazzard

1979 · Rosco P. Coltrane, Director

Centennial

1978

Hooper

1978 · Cully, Co-Writer

The End

1978 · Pacemaker Patient, Associate Producer

Rolling Thunder

1977 · Texan

Nickelodeon

1976 · Jim

The Savage Bees

1976 · Pellegrino

Gator

1976 · Production Assistant

Ode to Billy Joe

1976 · Dewey Barksdale

The Runaway Barge

1975 · Bingo Washington

Savages

1974 · Sheriff Bert Hamilton

The Manhunter

1974

Hawkins

1973 · Sheriff John Early

Sounder

1972 · Sheriff Charlie Young

The Brain Machine

1972 · Rev. Emory Neill

Run, Simon, Run

1970 · Henry Burroughs

Lancer

1968

The Mod Squad

1968 · Clay Lynch

Firecreek

1968 · Drew

The Guns of Will Sonnett

1967

First to Fight

1967 · Sergeant Carnavan

Felony Squad

1966

The Green Hornet

1966 · Yale Barton

Hawk

1966

Three on a Couch

1966 · Dr. Ben Mizer

Honey West

1965 · Vince Zale

Shenandoah

1965 · Carter, Rebel Soldier

Black Spurs

1965 · Ralph Elkins

Daniel Boone

1964 · Jethro Wyatt

Flipper

1964

The Quick Gun

1964 · Scotty Wade

Shock Corridor

1963 · Stuart

Redigo

1963

Burke's Law

1963 · Tucson, 'The Cowboy'

Temple Houston

1963 · Gotch

The Fugitive

1963 · Dan Murray

The Gallant Men

1962

Combat!

1962 · Trenton

General Electric True

1962

The Alfred Hitchcock Hour

1962 · Tom Carmody

The Virginian

1962 · Curt Westley

Black Gold

1962 · Jericho Larkin

Ben Casey

1961

Whispering Smith

1961

Surfside 6

1960

Stagecoach West

1960

The Andy Griffith Show

1960 · Jim Lindsey

Michael Shayne

1960

The Barbara Stanwyck Show

1960 · Joe

The Mountain Road

1960 · Niergaard

Aftermath

1960 · Hardy Coulter

Pony Express

1960 · Bart Gentry

Overland Trail

1960

Hawaiian Eye

1959

Startime

1959 · Duke

The Rebel

1959 · Ted Evans, Abel Waares

The Twilight Zone

1959 · Jeff Myrtlebank, Billy-Ben Turner

Men Into Space

1959

Lock-Up

1959

The DuPont Show with June Allyson

1959 · Jovan Wilanskov

Laramie

1959

The Man and the Challenge

1959

Bonanza

1959 · Sheriff Vern Schaler

Cast a Long Shadow

1959 · Sam Mullen

The Killer Shrews

1959 · Thorne Sherman

The David Niven Show

1959 · Boland

Verboten!

1959 · Sgt. David Brent

Ride Lonesome

1959 · Billy John

Black Saddle

1959 · Ben Travers

Rawhide

1959 · Willie Cain, Brock Quade

77 Sunset Strip

1958

Bat Masterson

1958 · Joe Best, Danny Dakota

Behind Closed Doors

1958 · Webb

The Rifleman

1958

The Texan

1958

Bronco

1958

Wanted: Dead or Alive

1958 · Stoner, Luke Perry

The Naked and the Dead

1958 · Rhidges

The Left Handed Gun

1958 · Tom Folliard

Cole Younger, Gunfighter

1958 · Kit Caswell

Man on the Prowl

1957 · Doug Gerhardt

Tombstone Territory

1957

Trackdown

1957

Perry Mason

1957 · Allan Winford, Martin Potter

Have Gun, Will Travel

1957

Richard Diamond, Private Detective

1957 · Jack Milhoan

Last of the Badmen

1957 · Ted Hamilton

Hot Summer Night

1957 · Kermit

The Rack

1956 · Millard Chilson Cassidy

West Point

1956

Calling Homicide

1956 · Det. Arnie Arnhoff

Gaby

1956 · Jim

Forbidden Planet

1956 · Crewman (uncredited)

Come Next Spring

1956 · Bill Jackson

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

1955 · Norman Frayne, Hennessy, Bish Darby

Frontier

1955

Cheyenne

1955

Gunsmoke

1955 · Beal, Charlie Noon

Top of the World

1955 · Col. French's Orderly (uncredited)

Seven Angry Men

1955 · Jason Brown

Buffalo Bill Jr.

1955

The Millionaire

1955 · Fred Morgan

They Rode West

1954 · Lt. Finlay (uncredited)

Climax!

1954 · Shag

The Lineup

1954

The Raid

1954 · Lt. Robinson

Return from the Sea

1954 · Barr

The Caine Mutiny

1954 · Lt. JG Jorgensen

The Yellow Tomahawk

1954 · Private Bliss

Stories of the Century

1954

Riders to the Stars

1954 · Dr. Sidney K. Fuller

Skip Taylor

1953

City of Bad Men

1953 · Deputy Gig (uncredited)

Column South

1953 · Primrose

Seminole

1953 · Corp. Gerad

General Electric Theater

1953 · Hardy Coulter

Flat Top

1952 · Radio Operator

Cavalcade of America

1952 · , Harry, Slate Morley

Hopalong Cassidy

1952

Ma and Pa Kettle at the Fair

1952 · Marvin Johnson

Francis Goes to West Point

1952 · Corporal Ransom

The Battle at Apache Pass

1952 · Cpl. Hassett

Steel Town

1952 · Joe Rakich

The Cimarron Kid

1952 · Bitter Creek Dalton

Hallmark Hall of Fame

1951

Schlitz Playhouse of Stars

1951

The Adventures of Kit Carson

1951

Apache Drums

1951 · Bert Keon

Air Cadet

1951 · Jerry Connell

Target Unknown

1951 · Sgt. Ralph Phelps

Kansas Raiders

1950 · Cole Younger

Lux Video Theatre

Lux Video Theatre

1950 · Clem Wallace

The Gene Autry Show

1950

Winchester '73

1950 · Crater

Peggy

1950 · Frank Addison

I Was a Shoplifter

1950

Comanche Territory

1950 · Sam

One Way Street

1950 · Driver (uncredited)

James Best · Virelixia