June 7, 2024 • 10 mins
On this episode of Our American Stories, before he was a television star, James Best was orphaned at the age of three. During WWII he served with the Military Police in war-torn Germany.
He became one of the hottest acting coaches in Hollywood training the likes of Clint Eastwood, Burt Reynolds, Glen Campbell, Quentin Tarantino, and Regis Philbin. He's here to tell his story!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
And we continue with our American stories. Born in Kentucky,
James Best was orphaned at the age of three and
eventually adopted after high school. He joined the United States
Army Air Corps during World War Two in July of
nineteen forty four and served with the military police in
war torn Germany. He founded the James Best Theater Center
(00:31):
in Los Angeles, becoming one of the hottest acting coaches
in Hollywood, training the likes of Clinicewood, Burt Reynolds, Glenn Campbell,
Quentin Tarantino, and Regis Philman. Best than his wife, actually
gave the young Tarantino a place to sleep while he
struggled to make it in Hollywood, just before landing his
role as Roscoe P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard.
(00:54):
Best taught drama for two years at the University of
Mississippi or Ole, miss right year where we broadcast in Oxford, Mississippi.
Here's James Best with his story.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
After the war, there was what they call werewolf gangs
in Wiesbad, Germany, and they were teenagers that had actually
been trained by the SS and actually some a lot
of them fought in the war. They were like twelve
year old. They'd get on a bicycle with a baa
in fight the Russians with tanks. Uh, I said, they
were rough. Well, we had to clean up the town
being back. So I was getting shot at more than
(01:35):
most people did in the war, you know. And I
was going up to get a cup of coffee and
a donut at the PX and a girl walked down
the steps and she had a green uniform on with
c at on her shoulder. I said, come into hell bit,
I said, come here please, and German and she she said,
I beg your pardon. I said, are you an American?
(01:56):
And she said yes, And I said, what's going on?
I said, what is the ch tea? He said a
civilian actress, technician. And I said, well it's that I'm
an old country boy. I've got from that much about anything.
I had never seen a play. She said, well, we're
doing a play at the Beesbaden Opera House. I said,
oh great. I said, I'll pick up after the play.
(02:18):
So she said, well, I won't go out with you
and come see the play. I said, I don't want
to see the play. I'll pick up after it. She said, no,
wait to go to work. So I go over to
see the play. I'm sitting in the audience, old country boy.
The curtain goes up and I am like a kid
in Disneyland, and I could not believe this. This was
(02:40):
like Comet of the World. I go back to the
age to pick up the young lady and here's g
I is getting dressed out of them from the show.
I said, wait a minute, I'm a sergeant. What are
these guys? What are they? And they said, they're in
the show, but they tour. They're treated like officers, and
we tour around the French, British American zone. I said,
wait a minute, I'm gonna start. I'm getting shot at
(03:02):
every night, and these guys are traveling around with you
pretty girls. I'm in the wrong outfit. So I went
to my commanding altar, and through certain circumstances, I had
a pretty good record there, and so they transferred my
transferred me into special service. I started acting, and I
acted with these professional people and learned my craft. So
(03:26):
later on, when I came back to the States, I
hitchhicked in New York to be an actor. I had
that experience, and so I spent about three years in
New York, did a Broadway show in Summer Stock within
the Stock and then put under contract Universal nineteen forty
nine and I was there for two years. So that
started my career. I've counted over six hundred television shows.
(03:49):
I'm very fortunate because I got to work back in
those days, the golden days, when they used talent instead
of reality stars. I really have a little sick coming
out of Hollywood. You know, they're doing remake of things
that we did forty years ago. Only only one thing
that it's different is that they used four letter words
every other word and body parts. And it's funny. I
(04:09):
worked with Gene Audrey and I Belong Cassidy and five Movies,
Jimmy Stewart, and I worked with Bouguard and Charles Heston,
so they were all these wonderful people, Clint Eastwood, Burt Reynolds.
It's funny. We didn't have to have body parts fly.
We didn't need four letter words. Till the guy we
hated him, we knocked, just knocked him on his backside.
I'd put a little chocolate syrup called my shirt fall
(04:31):
off my horse. You knew I was dead. You didn't
have to see my spine go fly across the room.
You know. I did Kate Mutiney with the Boguard. I
did Naked and Dead, you know. And Jimmy Stewart with
my oncon. I did five movies with him. I did China, Noah,
Fire Creek, Mountain Road, Hawkins Centers, Fella and so forth.
(04:55):
I was doing Mountain Road. And mister Stewart in real
life flew twenty three combat missions in World War Two.
And while we were up there an Act of Congress
they made mister Stewart a general. And I'm back there.
I'm bored, I bore easy. I like actually, so I
called down the room service and I said, uh, room service,
(05:18):
and they said yes. He said, well, this is mister Stuart. Yes,
this is mister Stewart. Let me ask you. Do you
have any wine? And they said, well, yes, sir, we
have one. He said, well, I don't mean just any
any old wine. French. The French have good wine. He said, yes,
we have some very fire friends. Shut the bottle up
(05:40):
to mister best sweet may make it two. Well, mister
Stewart came back and I said, General. He wasn't used
to that, and he said, well, I said, missus Stewart.
I used your your voice to get two bottles of
very fied French wine taste, and he said, who's going
(06:01):
to pay for that? Yes? God love him. He he
loved for me to imitate him. He'd always pretend like
he was upset, but he wanted that doll. He wanted
me to do it, get me in a position where
I would have to try to imitate him, you know.
God love him. He was marvelous. I was doing Hooper
with Bret Reynolds, and I had written the script and
(06:23):
performed on it, and then my agent call and said,
I want to send you over on a on a series.
I said, and it says called Duke's. I said, I
don't want to do a gang thing. I really don't.
They said, no, no, no, no, this is a good
old boy thing and they're going to shoot it in Conye, Georgia.
And they said, I said, you're gonna shoot it in Connor, Georgia.
The fishing is good, the people are nice, and they're
(06:44):
gonna shoot the whole series in And they said yeah.
I said, I'm going to go over and see about that.
So I go over there and here is the producer
and the director and the writers in the inquisition. They're
sitting there in a bunch of chairs, and they had
one chair sitting out in front, and I sat down
on that and they said, I said, now what is
this and it's a sheriff and I said, how do
(07:06):
you want me to playing? They said, well, we would
like for him to be amusing, he found funny. And
I said, well, I've played a lot of heavies, but
I did. I started with Jerry Lewis in a movie, Orielnicallity.
I said, I can do comedy. I did that at
the summer start. So I thought, what am I going
to do? Because I do not want to embarrass the
sheriffs in this world, because I have too much respect
for the fire department and the sheriffs in the military.
(07:30):
So I said, I'll play him like a twelve year
old who likes hot pursuit. So what I did when
I said, let me read the script. I read the script,
and when I'm reading it, I did what I used
to do with my little girls when they were little,
and I seek chasing them eye, going get you here
a little rusk. Well, they fell off their chair and
they signed me. I was the first one they put
(07:51):
under contract. I've just caught the Duke Boys going a
half mile over the speed limit with my new radar.
Good and we shot five episodes down in Congress, Georgia,
and then they moved it back to that cesspool called
l A. Whoa look at their fat No there, I
(08:17):
love it. I love it. It's hot. In Pursuit of
Time Flies, my name is Jefferson Davis Hall.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
Oh if to g.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Until too, might you be boss? You know who I am?
Speaker 3 (08:38):
Rush Cool, Rush Cope, Coltrane.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Something wrong with his eyes? It's his head insanity is
suffering from a temporary case of amnia. Oh who is
this lovely lady? Oh? Luke, that's your wife? Yeah? Uh,
(09:03):
that's you in the picture, though, ain't it? You should
have shot the other side the profile. You much? God?
You're arm right around my wife. I love her very
what's going on between the two of you? We mean, boss,
she's your wife, but she's my sister. Ooh your sister.
Now wait a minute, what that makes you my brother
in law? Judge? I had no idea how low I'd
(09:26):
really sunk.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
The comedy team with Saw and I came about actually
at first played such a heavy in the series played
plus a mean guy that so I went through the
powers of being said, you know, it should be a
nice relationship with Sorel, and I would can do sort
of a modern day Laurel Hardy type of thing. And
(09:49):
if Roscoe likes boss Hog, there may be other people
will like him too.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
And it did.
Speaker 3 (09:53):
It worked very well, and that's why we go whoo,
little fat little Buddy and Chubby Buddy, and well, it
became a wonderful relationship. I believe in having fun, and
I believe in making people laugh. I think there's not
enough laughter in this world. And if I contribute to
that the enjoyment of anything, I think perhaps maybe that
(10:15):
was my purpose, rather than digging coal in Kentucky where
my daddy and my family lived when I was a
little boy.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
And a terrific job on the production editing and storytelling
by our own Greg Hangler. And you've been listening to
James Best, the late James Best, who played Sheriff Frosco
pe Coltrane of the Dukes of Hazard here on our
American Stories.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
In the system.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Lack of two modern day Robin Hoo
And we continue with our American stories. Born in Kentucky,
James Best was orphaned at the age of three and
eventually adopted after high school. He joined the United States
Army Air Corps during World War Two in July of
nineteen forty four and served with the military police in
war torn Germany. He founded the James Best Theater Center
(00:31):
in Los Angeles, becoming one of the hottest acting coaches
in Hollywood, training the likes of Clinicewood, Burt Reynolds, Glenn Campbell,
Quentin Tarantino, and Regis Philman. Best than his wife, actually
gave the young Tarantino a place to sleep while he
struggled to make it in Hollywood, just before landing his
role as Roscoe P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard.
(00:54):
Best taught drama for two years at the University of
Mississippi or Ole, miss right year where we broadcast in Oxford, Mississippi.
Here's James Best with his story.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
After the war, there was what they call werewolf gangs
in Wiesbad, Germany, and they were teenagers that had actually
been trained by the SS and actually some a lot
of them fought in the war. They were like twelve
year old. They'd get on a bicycle with a baa
in fight the Russians with tanks. Uh, I said, they
were rough. Well, we had to clean up the town
being back. So I was getting shot at more than
(01:35):
most people did in the war, you know. And I
was going up to get a cup of coffee and
a donut at the PX and a girl walked down
the steps and she had a green uniform on with
c at on her shoulder. I said, come into hell bit,
I said, come here please, and German and she she said,
I beg your pardon. I said, are you an American?
(01:56):
And she said yes, And I said, what's going on?
I said, what is the ch tea? He said a
civilian actress, technician. And I said, well it's that I'm
an old country boy. I've got from that much about anything.
I had never seen a play. She said, well, we're
doing a play at the Beesbaden Opera House. I said,
oh great. I said, I'll pick up after the play.
(02:18):
So she said, well, I won't go out with you
and come see the play. I said, I don't want
to see the play. I'll pick up after it. She said, no,
wait to go to work. So I go over to
see the play. I'm sitting in the audience, old country boy.
The curtain goes up and I am like a kid
in Disneyland, and I could not believe this. This was
(02:40):
like Comet of the World. I go back to the
age to pick up the young lady and here's g
I is getting dressed out of them from the show.
I said, wait a minute, I'm a sergeant. What are
these guys? What are they? And they said, they're in
the show, but they tour. They're treated like officers, and
we tour around the French, British American zone. I said,
wait a minute, I'm gonna start. I'm getting shot at
(03:02):
every night, and these guys are traveling around with you
pretty girls. I'm in the wrong outfit. So I went
to my commanding altar, and through certain circumstances, I had
a pretty good record there, and so they transferred my
transferred me into special service. I started acting, and I
acted with these professional people and learned my craft. So
(03:26):
later on, when I came back to the States, I
hitchhicked in New York to be an actor. I had
that experience, and so I spent about three years in
New York, did a Broadway show in Summer Stock within
the Stock and then put under contract Universal nineteen forty
nine and I was there for two years. So that
started my career. I've counted over six hundred television shows.
(03:49):
I'm very fortunate because I got to work back in
those days, the golden days, when they used talent instead
of reality stars. I really have a little sick coming
out of Hollywood. You know, they're doing remake of things
that we did forty years ago. Only only one thing
that it's different is that they used four letter words
every other word and body parts. And it's funny. I
(04:09):
worked with Gene Audrey and I Belong Cassidy and five Movies,
Jimmy Stewart, and I worked with Bouguard and Charles Heston,
so they were all these wonderful people, Clint Eastwood, Burt Reynolds.
It's funny. We didn't have to have body parts fly.
We didn't need four letter words. Till the guy we
hated him, we knocked, just knocked him on his backside.
I'd put a little chocolate syrup called my shirt fall
(04:31):
off my horse. You knew I was dead. You didn't
have to see my spine go fly across the room.
You know. I did Kate Mutiney with the Boguard. I
did Naked and Dead, you know. And Jimmy Stewart with
my oncon. I did five movies with him. I did China, Noah,
Fire Creek, Mountain Road, Hawkins Centers, Fella and so forth.
(04:55):
I was doing Mountain Road. And mister Stewart in real
life flew twenty three combat missions in World War Two.
And while we were up there an Act of Congress
they made mister Stewart a general. And I'm back there.
I'm bored, I bore easy. I like actually, so I
called down the room service and I said, uh, room service,
(05:18):
and they said yes. He said, well, this is mister Stuart. Yes,
this is mister Stewart. Let me ask you. Do you
have any wine? And they said, well, yes, sir, we
have one. He said, well, I don't mean just any
any old wine. French. The French have good wine. He said, yes,
we have some very fire friends. Shut the bottle up
(05:40):
to mister best sweet may make it two. Well, mister
Stewart came back and I said, General. He wasn't used
to that, and he said, well, I said, missus Stewart.
I used your your voice to get two bottles of
very fied French wine taste, and he said, who's going
(06:01):
to pay for that? Yes? God love him. He he
loved for me to imitate him. He'd always pretend like
he was upset, but he wanted that doll. He wanted
me to do it, get me in a position where
I would have to try to imitate him, you know.
God love him. He was marvelous. I was doing Hooper
with Bret Reynolds, and I had written the script and
(06:23):
performed on it, and then my agent call and said,
I want to send you over on a on a series.
I said, and it says called Duke's. I said, I
don't want to do a gang thing. I really don't.
They said, no, no, no, no, this is a good
old boy thing and they're going to shoot it in Conye, Georgia.
And they said, I said, you're gonna shoot it in Connor, Georgia.
The fishing is good, the people are nice, and they're
(06:44):
gonna shoot the whole series in And they said yeah.
I said, I'm going to go over and see about that.
So I go over there and here is the producer
and the director and the writers in the inquisition. They're
sitting there in a bunch of chairs, and they had
one chair sitting out in front, and I sat down
on that and they said, I said, now what is
this and it's a sheriff and I said, how do
(07:06):
you want me to playing? They said, well, we would
like for him to be amusing, he found funny. And
I said, well, I've played a lot of heavies, but
I did. I started with Jerry Lewis in a movie, Orielnicallity.
I said, I can do comedy. I did that at
the summer start. So I thought, what am I going
to do? Because I do not want to embarrass the
sheriffs in this world, because I have too much respect
for the fire department and the sheriffs in the military.
(07:30):
So I said, I'll play him like a twelve year
old who likes hot pursuit. So what I did when
I said, let me read the script. I read the script,
and when I'm reading it, I did what I used
to do with my little girls when they were little,
and I seek chasing them eye, going get you here
a little rusk. Well, they fell off their chair and
they signed me. I was the first one they put
(07:51):
under contract. I've just caught the Duke Boys going a
half mile over the speed limit with my new radar.
Good and we shot five episodes down in Congress, Georgia,
and then they moved it back to that cesspool called
l A. Whoa look at their fat No there, I
(08:17):
love it. I love it. It's hot. In Pursuit of
Time Flies, my name is Jefferson Davis Hall.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
Oh if to g.
Speaker 2 (08:29):
Until too, might you be boss? You know who I am?
Speaker 3 (08:38):
Rush Cool, Rush Cope, Coltrane.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
Something wrong with his eyes? It's his head insanity is
suffering from a temporary case of amnia. Oh who is
this lovely lady? Oh? Luke, that's your wife? Yeah? Uh,
(09:03):
that's you in the picture, though, ain't it? You should
have shot the other side the profile. You much? God?
You're arm right around my wife. I love her very
what's going on between the two of you? We mean, boss,
she's your wife, but she's my sister. Ooh your sister.
Now wait a minute, what that makes you my brother
in law? Judge? I had no idea how low I'd
(09:26):
really sunk.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
The comedy team with Saw and I came about actually
at first played such a heavy in the series played
plus a mean guy that so I went through the
powers of being said, you know, it should be a
nice relationship with Sorel, and I would can do sort
of a modern day Laurel Hardy type of thing. And
(09:49):
if Roscoe likes boss Hog, there may be other people
will like him too.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
And it did.
Speaker 3 (09:53):
It worked very well, and that's why we go whoo,
little fat little Buddy and Chubby Buddy, and well, it
became a wonderful relationship. I believe in having fun, and
I believe in making people laugh. I think there's not
enough laughter in this world. And if I contribute to
that the enjoyment of anything, I think perhaps maybe that
(10:15):
was my purpose, rather than digging coal in Kentucky where
my daddy and my family lived when I was a
little boy.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
And a terrific job on the production editing and storytelling
by our own Greg Hangler. And you've been listening to
James Best, the late James Best, who played Sheriff Frosco
pe Coltrane of the Dukes of Hazard here on our
American Stories.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
In the system.
Speaker 3 (10:43):
Lack of two modern day Robin Hoo
Host
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