- Home
- Denver Pyle
Denver Pyle
Known for: ActingFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor. He was known for portraying Briscoe Darling Jr. in several episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, and playing Jesse Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard from 1979-85. Pyle was born in Bethune, Colorado on May 11, 1920 to farmer Ben H. Pyle and his wife Maude; His brother, Willis, was an animator known for his work with Walt Disney Animation Studios and UPA. After graduating from high school, Pyle briefly attended Colorado State University, but dropped out to enter show business, moving to Los Angeles in 1940. He worked as a drummer and band member until the United States entered World War II, when he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Pyle was wounded in action in the Battle of Guadalcanal and received a medical discharge in 1942. Near the end of the war, he served in the United States Merchant Marine. In 1955, Pyle married Marilee Carpenter, a production assistant at 20th Century Fox. They had sons David and Tony. Marilee and Denver divorced in 1970. In 1983, Pyle married Tippie Johnston. That union lasted until his death. Pyle died of lung cancer on Christmas 1997. Memorial services were held January 6, 1998, at First Baptist Church in Waxahachie, Texas. He is buried in an unmarked grave at the Forreston Cemetery in Forreston, Texas. His remains are interred beside those of his second wife's parents, J.T. Johnston and Erin Birch Johnston. CLR
Filmography 64
The Dukes of Hazzard
as Jesse Duke 
Bonnie and Clyde
as Frank Hamer 
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
as Amos Carruthers 
Maverick
as Old Gambler on Riverboat 
The Great Race
as Sheriff 
The Dukes
as Uncle Jesse (voice) 
The Alamo
as Thimblerig (the Gambler) 
Escape to Witch Mountain
as Uncle Bene 
Geronimo
as Senator Conrad 
Run for Cover
as Harvey 
Please Murder Me
as Det. Lt. Bradley 
5 Card Stud
as Sig Evers 
Bandolero!
as Muncie Carter 
Cahill: United States Marshal
as Denver 
Ride Clear of Diablo
as Reverend Moorehead 
Rage at Dawn
as Clint Reno 
Return from Witch Mountain
as Uncle Bene 
The Horse Soldiers
as Jackie Jo 
Mutiny
as Gunner / Mutineer (uncredited) 
The Left Handed Gun
as Ollinger 
Too Late for Tears
as Young Man at Union Station (uncredited) 
To Hell and Back
as Thompson 
Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson
as The Indian Agent (McLaughlin) 
The Rounders
as Bull 
Gunpoint
as Cap 
The Man from Colorado
as Easy Jarrett 
Winterhawk
as Arkansas 
Jet Pilot
as Mr. Simpson 
Shenandoah
as Pastor Bjoerling 
Incident at Phantom Hill
as 1st Hunter 
Welcome to Hard Times
as Alfie - Stage Driver 
Mail Order Bride
as Preacher Pope 
Something Big
as Junior Frisbee 
Good Day for a Hanging
as Deputy Ed Moore 
The Lonely Man
as Brad, Red Bluff Sheriff 
Welcome to L.A.
as Carl Barber 
Cast a Long Shadow
as Preacher Harrison 
The Lone Hand
as Regulator (uncredited) 
The Dukes of Hazzard: Reunion!
as Uncle Jesse Duke 
7th Cavalry
as Dixon 
Drums in the Deep South
as Union Soldier Breaking Window (uncredited) 
The Big Wheel
as Track Intern 
Column South
as Confederate Spy in Yankee Uniform (uncredited) 
Hellfire
as Rex 
Red Canyon
as Hutch 
Gun Duel in Durango
as Ranger Captain 
Tammy and the Millionaire
as Grandpa Mordecai Tarleton 
The Naked Hills
as Bert Killian / Narrator 
Rim of the Canyon
as Cash Collins (uncredited) 
The Command
as Infantryman (uncredited) 
Fort Massacre
as Collins 
China Doll
as Col. Wiley 
Singing Guns
as Richards Henchman 
Man from the Black Hills
as Glenn Hartley 
El Paso
as Vigilante (uncredited) 
Gunsmoke
as Greasy (uncredited) 
The Boy Who Talked to Badgers
as Ben as an Adult 
Captain China
as Steve 
Fort Vengeance
as Rider Warning About Wagon Train (uncredited) 
I Killed Wild Bill Hickok
as Jim Bailey 
Father and Scout
as George Rosebrock 
Black Like Me
as Man in pick-up truck 
Legend of the Northwest
as Abner 
Top Gun
as Hank Spencer (uncredited)