RIP Ben 'Cooter' Jones
Ben Jones, Cooter from ‘Dukes Of Hazzard’ And Former U.S. Rep, Dies At 84
Ben Jones, Cooter from ‘Dukes Of Hazzard’ And Former U.S. Rep, Dies At 84
(Dixie Drudge) - Last Sunday, we lost one of the better Democrats. Ben Jones, known popularly for his role as Cooter Davenport on “The Dukes of Hazzard” and a former U.S. Representative, passed away. Jones was 84 and suffered a massive heart attack. His wife, Alma Viator, announced his death, and said he died at home waiting on a Braves game.
Jones played Cooter Davenport for seven seasons from1979 to 1985. He later served two terms in Congress representing Georgia’s 4th District as a Democrat from 1989 to 1993. His second term ended when he was redistricted into facing Newt Gingrich for re-election. Jones was noted as a defender of Southern heritage and for using one of the ‘General Lee’ Dodge Chargers from the series in his political campaigns. Including after relocating, a losing bid for Virginia’s 7th district.
Born Benjamin Lewis Jones on Aug. 30, 1941, in Tarboro, NC, he had a active career, appearing in over 30 screen roles, including “Moonrunners,” the movie which inspired the Dukes series. He also appeared in “Primary Colors,” and voiced Cooter in “Dukes of Hazzard” video games. Jones also published a memoir, Redneck Boy in the Promised Land: The Confessions of “Crazy Cooter.”
In 2015, Jones announced his support of the Confederate battle flag, which can be seen on the exterior top of The Dukes of Hazzard signature car, the General Lee. His defense of the flag served as his response to Warner Bros.’ decision to no longer manufacture any merchandise that featured the flag, such as the General Lee, and the discontinuation of reruns of the show after the Dylann Roof murders. He called for dialogue between both sides of the Confederate battle flag issue, he dismissed any association between the Confederate battle flag and slavery as a “wave of political correctness” and called it a “cultural cleansing.”
