Lulu Coltrane Hogg - Characters - Main Characters

Main Characters

• Luke Duke (Tom Wopat) is the dark-haired, slightly older cousin. More mature and rational than his cousin Bo, he is typically the one who thinks of the plan that will get the two out of whatever trouble they have gotten into. Luke wears a checked blue shirt (a plain blue shirt in most, though not all, second season episodes), and a denim jacket over it in first season and a few later second season episodes. He is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps and a former boxer. Luke was the first Duke to perform the "hood slide" across The General Lee, which is seen in the opening credits of the show (a shot taken from the second episode, "Daisy's Song") and later told by Tom Wopat to be an accident because his foot got caught on the side of the General Lee when he attempted to jump across the hood; he also caught his thigh on the hood's radio antenna, cutting himself, resulting in such antennas being removed from later versions of the General Lee. However, the "hood slide" quickly proved popular and became a regular feature of episodes. The only episode to directly reference the slight age difference between Luke and Bo is in the seventh season opener, the "flashback" episode "Happy Birthday, General Lee", where it is stated that Luke had already been in the Marines while Bo was in his last year at High School.

• Bo Duke (John Schneider) is the blond-haired, slightly younger Duke boy. He is the younger, wilder one of the pair. He is more of a "shoot first, ask questions later" type, and is often the one to get the duo into the various scrapes in which they find themselves, although the character did mature slightly as the seasons passed; he is also the one more likely to have his eye, or heart, distracted by a pretty girl, which proves to be the Achilles' heel that leads the Dukes into trouble in several episode plots. Bo usually wears a cream-yellow shirt; it is a stronger yellow in the first and second season, a lighter cream colour from the third season, and in the sixth and seventh season has more of a grey hue to it. (The only break from this norm is in the second episode produced and broadcast, "Daisy's Song", where Bo wears a red shirt for much of the story, and a sequence in the fifth episode, "High Octane", where he wears a light blue shirt. Many early publicity shots show the character to be wearing a dark blue denim shirt.) For the first two seasons he wears a blue t-shirt underneath (brown in the first episode); this was slowly phased out during the third season. An ex-stock car driver, Bo is the one who, in the earlier episodes at least, drives The General Lee most of the time (very early episodes suggest that it belongs solely to him; Luke is said to have a car that Cooter had wrecked shortly prior to the start of the opening episode, "One Armed Bandits"). Bo is known for his rebel yell, "Yeeeee-Haaa!". The Duke boys share the CB call sign or handle "Lost Sheep."

• Daisy Duke (Catherine Bach) is Bo and Luke's pretty, young cousin. She is honest and kind, although she can sometimes be slightly over-trusting and naïve, which leads the Duke family into trouble on a number of occasions. She sometimes aspired to be a songwriter and singer, and at other times a reporter. She raced around Hazzard with her cousins, first in a yellow and black 1974 Plymouth Road Runner (later on it was a Plymouth Satellite) and then, from the mid-second season, in her trademark white 1980 Jeep CJ-7 christened "Dixie" with a Golden Eagle emblem on the hood (and the name "Dixie" on the hood sides). Daisy worked as a waitress at the Boar's Nest, the local bar owned by Boss Hogg, as part of an agreement with Boss Hogg so that he would give Uncle Jesse and the boys a loan for a lower interest rate so the boys could purchase the entry fee for a race that they wished to race General Lee in. The arrangement was supposed to be for an indefinite time, but there were several times throughout the series that Hogg fired her. However, he always ended up rehiring her at the end of each episode because of various circumstances. Daisy often used her looks and her position at the restaurant to get insider information to help the Dukes in foiling Hogg's various schemes. Daisy also has the distinction of having her trademark provocatively high-cut jean short shorts named after her: "Daisy Dukes". Her CB handle was "Bo Peep"; occasionally the variant of "Country Cousin" would be used.

• Jesse Duke (Denver Pyle), referred to by just about everyone in Hazzard other than Boss Hogg as "Uncle Jesse", is the patriarch of the Duke clan, and the father-figure to all Dukes who stayed with him on the dilapidated "Duke Farm." Jesse apparently had no children of his own, and happily provided for his nephews and niece in the unexplained absence of all of their parents (Gy Waldron, the creator of the show, states on the DVDs that their parents were killed in a car wreck, but it was never mentioned in the show). In the third broadcast episode, "Mary Kaye's Baby", Jesse says that he has delivered many babies, including Bo and Luke. Jesse Duke, in his youth, had been a ridgerunner in direct competition with J.D. Hogg. However, while both Boss Hogg and Uncle Jesse would scowl at the mention of the other's name, the two enjoyed a lifelong "friendship" of sorts, with one helping the other when in desperate need. Jesse educated his nephews against Hogg, and often provided the cousins with inspirational sage advice. Uncle Jesse drove a white 1973 Ford F-100 pickup truck. In the barn, he also had his old moonshine-running car, called "Sweet Tillie" in its first appearance (in the first season episode "High Octane"), but referred to as "Black Tillie" in subsequent appearances. In the second season episode "Follow That Still" and the sixth season episode "The Boars Nest Bears", the marriage to and death of his wife is mentioned; he also mentions marrying her in the first season episode "Luke's Love Story". His CB handle was "Shepherd."

• Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane (James Best) is the bumbling sheriff of Hazzard County and right-hand man and brother-in-law of its corrupt county administrator, Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg ("Boss Hogg"), whom Rosco referred to as his "little fat buddy", "Little Chrome Dome", "Little Meadow-Muffin", and several other names. In the very early episodes, it was mentioned that Rosco spent the first 20 years of his career as a mostly honest lawman, but after the county voted away his pension Rosco joined Hogg in an effort to fund his retirement in his last couple of years as Sheriff. As the series settled down and found its footing, this was soon dropped into the background, and by the end of the first season had been virtually forgotten (and his role as Sheriff appeared to be open ended). He is also the younger brother of Lulu Coltrane Hogg, Boss Hogg's wife. Rosco frequently initiated car chases with Bo and Luke Duke (whom Hogg wanted to get rid of due to them constantly exposing his corrupt schemes), but the Duke boys were usually able to easily elude Rosco by outwitting him, with him usually meeting some accident in his patrol car as a result (from which he would nearly always escape uninjured - only two episodes, the fourth season's "Coltrane Vs. Duke" and season six's "Too Many Roscos" toy with the concept of him being hurt during one of these escapades). These chases were often the result of Rosco setting up illegal speed traps such as a false or changing speed limit signs and various other trickery, which would evolve into being increasingly more cartoonish and far-fetched as the seasons passed. While he enjoyed "hot pursuit" much like a little boy playing with toy cars would, he (and Boss Hogg as well) never intended for anyone to get seriously hurt. His middle initial, 'P', was added at the start of the second season, and only one episode (the third season's "Mrs. Rosco P. Coltrane", in which he is subject to a scam marriage) revealed his middle name, 'Purvis'. Rosco also had a soft spot for his dog Flash, introduced at the start of the third season. His radio codename was "Red Dog". When James Best briefly boycotted the show during the mid-second season, he was temporarily replaced several "one off" Sheriffs, the longest standing being Sheriff Grady Bird, played by Dick Sargent, who appeared in two episodes ("Jude Emery" and "Officer Daisy Duke").

• Boss Jefferson Davis "J.D." Hogg (Sorrell Booke) is the wealthiest man in Hazzard County (except in a 4th season episode, "Ten Million Dollar Sheriff", in which Rosco allegedly inherits $10 million), and owns most of its property and businesses — whether directly or by holding the mortgages over the land. Usually dressed in an all-white suit, he was the fat, greedy, corrupt County Commissioner with visions of grandeur, a voracious appetite for fatty foods, and constantly orders his bumbling sheriff, Rosco, to "Get them Duke Boys!" Boss Hogg was also married to Rosco's fat sister, a point that did not always sit well with either Boss Hogg or Rosco; Hogg often claimed that Rosco was indebted to him because of it. His vehicle was a white 1970 Cadillac Coupe de Ville convertible, with bull horns on the hood. In the first couple of seasons, he was almost always driven around by a chauffeur; from the fourth season onwards, he usually drove himself. His old moonshine-running car was called the "Grey Ghost".

• Cooter Davenport (Ben Jones) is the Hazzard County mechanic, nicknamed "Crazy Cooter". In the very early episodes, he was a wild man, often breaking the law (such as stealing the Sheriff's patrol car for impounding his in "One Armed Bandits", reportedly borrowing Luke's car prior to the same episode and using it to "run the sheriff off the road to make him mad" to facilitate the aforementioned theft of the sheriffs car, running moonshine for Boss Hogg in "Mary Kaye's Baby", seemingly breaking into Boss Hogg's home to retrieve a trophy for an upcoming race in "Luke's Love Story", and 'borrowing' the President's Limousine for a joy-ride in "Limo One Is Missing"). By the end of the first season, he had settled down and become an easy going good ol' boy. Although not mentioned in the first couple of episodes, by the mid-first season, he owned "Cooter's Garage" in Hazzard County Square, directly across from the Sheriff's Department. Cooter was an "Honorary Duke", as he shared the same values and often assisted the Dukes in escaping Rosco's clutches, or helped them to foil Boss Hogg's schemes. During the second season, Ben Jones left the series for a few episodes due to a dispute over whether the character should be clean shaven or have a full beard. In his absence, Cooter's place was filled by several of Cooter's supposed cousins who were never mentioned before or since. Jones returned when the dispute was solved—Cooter would be clean shaven (although, for continuity reasons, with the episodes being broadcast in a different order to that which they were filmed, he was not clean shaven until the third season onwards). Cooter drove a variety of trucks, including Fords, Chevys, & GMCs. His CB handle was "Crazy Cooter" and he often started his CB transmissions with "Breaker one, Breaker one, I might be crazy but I ain't dumb, Craaaazy Cooter comin' atcha, come on."
• Deputy Enos Strate (Sonny Shroyer) (1979–80; 1982–85) is generally a friend of the Dukes, but, working under Rosco and Boss was often forced into pursuing the Dukes and/or arresting them on trumped up charges. In the very early episodes, Enos was shown to be a rather good driver (and respected as such by Bo and Luke), but by the end of the first season, he was shown to be as incompetent a driver as Rosco (and later Cletus). When he returned from his stint in Los Angeles, he seemed to be able to stand up to Boss and Rosco slightly more, and sometimes refused. In the very early episodes, Rosco frequently called him "Jackass", which soon evolved into the more family friendly "dipstick" as the show become a hit with younger viewers (though Boss Hogg, who would also use the term "Jackass" of Sheriff Rosco, would occasionally return to calling him this in later seasons). Enos had a crush on Daisy Duke that she often used to the Dukes' advantage in unraveling Hogg and Rosco's schemes. Enos is very much in love with Daisy, and although Daisy is indicated to love him back, it is only as a close friend. In the penultimate episode, "Enos and Daisy's Wedding", the two plan on getting married, only to have Enos call it off at the last minute due to an attack of hives, brought on by the excitement of possibly being married to Daisy. Later, in the first Reunion movie, Enos and Daisy become a pair again and plan to get married — but this time Daisy backs out at the last minute, upon the unexpected sight of her ex-husband. Enos' radio code name was "Blue Fox". However, he frequently got both his own and Rosco's codes confused, saying instead "Hound Dog", "Red Fox" or other variations.

• Deputy Cletus Hogg (Rick Hurst) (1979–82), Boss Hogg's second cousin twice removed, is also generally friendly and dim-witted. Like Enos, Cletus would often be forced by Rosco and Hogg to chase the Dukes on trumped up charges. While Cletus was generally good-hearted, and sometimes resentful of having to treat the Dukes in such way, he was generally more willing to go along with Hogg and Rosco than Enos. Cletus had a crush on Daisy and was even convinced she wanted to marry him. Like Enos, Cletus often ended up landing in water when pursuing the Duke boys in a car chase. Cletus made his first appearance as the driver of a bank truck, part of Hogg's latest get-rich-scheme, in the first season episode "Money To Burn", and became temporary deputy while Enos was away in the second season episodes "The Meeting" and "Road Pirates". Leaving a job at the local junkyard, he became permanent deputy in the third season's "Enos Strate to the Top" when Enos left for California. When Enos returned at the start of the fifth season the pair both served as deputies and shared the same patrol car for five episodes before Cletus disappeared (his last appearance being in the episode "Big Daddy"), said to have gone on vacation, never to return (until 1997's Reunion movie after Enos' apparent return to California after the series). Each of the Hazzard County Sheriff's Department officers drove various mid to late '70s Chrysler mid-size B body patrol cars, most often a Dodge Monaco or Plymouth Fury.
• Coy Duke (Byron Cherry) (1982–83), the replacement for Bo, is another blond-haired cousin who moved to Uncle Jesse's farm along with cousin Vance after Bo and Luke left Hazzard to join the NASCAR circuit. Supposedly, with cousin Vance, Coy had previously lived on the Duke farm until 1976, before the series had started.
• Vance Duke (Christopher Mayer) (1982–83), an obvious replacement for Luke, filled the void of a dark-haired Duke on the show. Like Luke, Vance was more the thinker and the planner of the duo.
• The Balladeer (voice of Waylon Jennings) sang and played the Dukes of Hazzard theme song, "Good Ol' Boys", and also served as the show's narrator. During each episode, he provided an omniscient viewpoint of the situations presented, and regularly interjected comical asides during crucial plot points (often, during a freeze frame of a cliffhanger scene right before a commercial break) and "down home" aphorisms. (Note that these freeze frame cliffhangers were often abridged in showings in some countries, such as the commercial-free BBC in the United Kingdom). After numerous requests from fans to see the Balladeer on-screen, Waylon finally appeared in one episode, the seventh season's aptly titled "Welcome, Waylon Jennings", in which he was presented as an old friend of the Dukes.
• Flash (Sandy and others) is a slow-paced Basset Hound and Rosco's loyal companion, who hated Hogg but loved the Dukes. She first appeared in the first official third season episode "Enos Strate to the Top" (season opener "Carnival of Thrills was held over from the previous season), although was not formally "introduced" in that episode. Initially referred to as a boy, Flash was later regularly a girl (despite an occasional male reference afterwards). Flash was added at the start of the third season, after James Best suggested to the producers that Rosco have a dog. Flash was portrayed by several Basset Hounds (distinguishable by different facial colors), the most regular being "Sandy". James Best bought a share of Sandy, who was rescued from an animal shelter and was trained by Alvin Mears of Alvin Animal Rentals. Sandy lived to age 14. A stuffed dog named Flush was used for dangerous work.