Ben L. Jones

Infobox actor
name = Ben Jones

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caption = Ben Jones and the General Lee, taken outside his store "Cooter's Place" in Sperryville, Virginia in 1999
birthdate = birth date and age|1941|8|30|mf=y
birthplace = Tarboro, North Carolina, U.S.

Ben Lewis Jones (born August 30, 1941) is an American actor, politician, playwright and essayist, probably best known for his role as Cooter Davenport in "The Dukes of Hazzard".

Political career

Following the end of "The Dukes of Hazzard", Jones entered the political arena as a Democrat. In 1986, he ran unsuccessfully against Pat Swindall for a seat in the United States House of Representatives from Georgia. He ran again against Pat Swindall in 1988, this time winning a seat. He was re-elected in 1990, but was defeated in 1992. In 1994, he ran against House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich, who would serve as Speaker of the House for four years after that election. Jones received 35% of the vote in the 1994 election. Jones has since returned to acting, as well as becoming a well-known writer — having penned many political essays, and one play. In 1998, he broke away from most Democrats by asking President Bill Clinton to resign during his trial and impeachment. Jones is still active in the Democratic Party. In 2002, he ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the United States House of Representatives representing Virginia against Republican incumbent Eric Cantor, thus becoming one of very few recent American politicians to seek elective office in more than one state. [ [http://archives.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/11/05/elec02.house/index.html Republicans projected to retain House] ]

Jones is a 1959 graduate of Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth, Virginia. Ben has one daughter, Rachel, and one son, Walker. He is a long time friend of Cincinnati Reds announcer Marty Brennaman.

External links

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* [http://www.cootersplace.com/ Welcome to Cooters place, Gatlinburg, Tennessee and Nashville, Tennessee]
* [http://www.tvdads.com/tvdcoot.shtml Ben Jones interview] at [http://www.tvdads.com TVDads.com]