In The Dukes of Hazzard, Deputy Cletus Hogg spent most of his time chasing the Duke boys’ orange Dodge Charger and ending up in a ditch. Rick Hurst, who played the good-natured, slow-witted deputy, died on the morning of Thursday, June 26, 2025. He was 79. His first wife, Candace Kaniecki, said his death was unexpected and that the cause was not known. Ben Jones, who played Cooter on the show, confirmed his death to The New York Times.
Cletus
Hurst was born in Houston, Texas, in 1946 and began acting on stage before moving into television in the 1970s, including a starring role in the prison sitcom On the Rocks. He joined The Dukes of Hazzard in 1980 as Cletus, a cousin of the corrupt Boss Hogg, who served as a deputy under Sheriff Rosco P. Coltrane. The character was often the comic sidekick in the show’s car chases, and Hurst played him for three seasons. The Dukes of Hazzard was one of the most-watched shows in America at the time.
A character actor
Hurst’s career included guest appearances on Little House on the Prairie, M*A*S*H and The Wonder Years, and film roles in Steel Magnolias, Earth Girls Are Easy and The Karate Kid Part III. He was survived by his son, the actor Ryan Hurst, known for playing Opie Winston in Sons of Anarchy and Beta in The Walking Dead.
Cletus was rarely the hero of an episode of The Dukes of Hazzard, but he was the deputy viewers liked, and the role followed Hurst for the rest of his career.