 James Best was born in 1926 in Kentucky ; at the age of three he went to an orphanage , then was adopted and was raised in Corydon . He joined the Army after World War II . In the 1950s he became an actor , appearing first in a western and then in a variety of film genres . He also appeared many times as a guest star in various television shows including The Andy Griffith Show and The Twilight Zone . He is best known for his role as Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard . 
