DENVER PYLE
Name: Denver Dell Pyle
Born: 11 May 1920 Bethune, Colorado, U.S.
Died: 25 December 1997
Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and
television actor.
Pyle was born in Bethune in Kit Carson County in eastern Colorado, to farmers
Maude W. and Ben H. Pyle; he was the nephew of journalist Ernie Pyle and had
one brother, Willis. After graduation from high school, Pyle briefly attended
college before he decided to pursue a career in show business. He worked as a
drummer and band member until the start of the Second World War, when he entered
the Merchant Marines.
After the war ended, Pyle began his film career, having starred in several
motion pictures throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He made several appearances as "Briscoe
Darling", the gruff patriarch of a clan of musical hillbillies, on CBS's The
Andy Griffith Show. He also appeared in a number of Westerns by John Ford,
including The Horse Soldiers with William Holden and The Man Who Shot Liberty
Valance. One of his early roles was a villain in an Adventures of Superman TV
episode called "Beware the Wrecker".
His most known television role may have been that of Uncle Jesse Duke in the CBS
series The Dukes of Hazzard (1979–1985). In addition, Pyle played the role of
Mad Jack in the NBC series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams (1977–1978), the
antagonist in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Buck Webb (Doris Day's father) during the
first two seasons of CBS's The Doris Day Show (1968–1970), and Briscoe Darling
on The Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968).
In his later life, Pyle played mostly cameo television roles and retired from
full time acting. His last cinematic movie role was alongside Mel Gibson, Jodie
Foster and James Garner in the 1994 film Maverick. His last known acting role
was a reprisal of Jesse Duke in the 1997 made-for-TV movie The Dukes of Hazzard:
Reunion!. He frequently appeared on Gunsmoke and Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater,
Frontier Justice, all on CBS.
Name: Denver Dell Pyle
Born: 11 May 1920 Bethune, Colorado, U.S.
Died: 25 December 1997
Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and
television actor.
Pyle was born in Bethune in Kit Carson County in eastern Colorado, to farmers
Maude W. and Ben H. Pyle; he was the nephew of journalist Ernie Pyle and had
one brother, Willis. After graduation from high school, Pyle briefly attended
college before he decided to pursue a career in show business. He worked as a
drummer and band member until the start of the Second World War, when he entered
the Merchant Marines.
After the war ended, Pyle began his film career, having starred in several
motion pictures throughout the 1950s and 1960s. He made several appearances as "Briscoe
Darling", the gruff patriarch of a clan of musical hillbillies, on CBS's The
Andy Griffith Show. He also appeared in a number of Westerns by John Ford,
including The Horse Soldiers with William Holden and The Man Who Shot Liberty
Valance. One of his early roles was a villain in an Adventures of Superman TV
episode called "Beware the Wrecker".
His most known television role may have been that of Uncle Jesse Duke in the CBS
series The Dukes of Hazzard (1979–1985). In addition, Pyle played the role of
Mad Jack in the NBC series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams (1977–1978), the
antagonist in Bonnie and Clyde (1967), Buck Webb (Doris Day's father) during the
first two seasons of CBS's The Doris Day Show (1968–1970), and Briscoe Darling
on The Andy Griffith Show (1960-1968).
In his later life, Pyle played mostly cameo television roles and retired from
full time acting. His last cinematic movie role was alongside Mel Gibson, Jodie
Foster and James Garner in the 1994 film Maverick. His last known acting role
was a reprisal of Jesse Duke in the 1997 made-for-TV movie The Dukes of Hazzard:
Reunion!. He frequently appeared on Gunsmoke and Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater,
Frontier Justice, all on CBS.