Ben Jones was born on August 31 in Tarboro, North Carolina and was raised in Portsmouth, Virginia. He was living in Rutledge Georgia when he got the role of Cooter Davenport. On "The Dukes of Hazzard" he played the part of a good ol'boy who would never walk away from a fight. He was always right in the middle of the Boar's Nest brawls. Cooter became a senator in "Reunion in Hazzard" and from 1988 to 1992, Ben Jones was a Georgia congressman. He lost to Newt Gingrich in the 1994 election. Ben was also in "Primary Colors" with John Travolta. Ben was recently seen an an episode of "Sliders" on the Sci-Fi Channel.
Ben just recently opened up a "Dukes of Hazzard" museum/store in Sperryville, Virginia called Cooter's Place which he runs with his wife. You can see his original Cooter costume there on display and there's a General Lee replica parked outside. Cooter's Place is open Thursday through Sunday 11AM to 7PM. Fellow Dukes cast members also drop in to see him. Sonny Shroyer and James Best was already there and John Schneider will be performing at Cooter's Place October 23-24! He will soon be selling his Dukes products in cyberspace at his website Cooter's Place.
