Celebraties turned Politicians

July 19, 2004 8:42 PM

Top 25 Celebrities Turned Politicians
posted by Rastafari (8 comments total)

From the comments: Don't forget Cooter, from Dukes of Hazzard. Ben Jones served two terms in Congress from Georgia as a Democrat (1989-1993). He also tried to run again in Virginia in 2002, but lost.

Whoa. Sweet link, although I'm not sure Pete Coors is really a "celebrity". And yes, I still have rather fond memories of Oklahoma having two former football players as congressmen at once.
posted by Ufez Jones at 8:50 PM on July 19, 2004

I didn't know Barnum was a mayor--cool!
posted by amberglow at 8:53 PM on July 19, 2004

Wasn't there some election when Miss Hathaway and Jed Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies ran against one another?
posted by orange swan at 10:13 PM on July 19, 2004

There's also Jerry "The Iceman" Butler, who's had a bunch of R & B hits as a solo artist and as a member of The Impressions. He's now a Cook County (IL) board member, and has been for a while.
posted by SisterHavana at 10:46 PM on July 19, 2004

Also Sebastian Coe, Glenda Jackson and Screaming Lord Sutch.
posted by plep at 10:57 PM on July 19, 2004

As expected, about 25% of them are from CA, where entertainment is a major industry. While I do appreciate the interplay between being a media personality and being a politician.... is it any less appropriate for an ex-sitcom star to run for office in CA than it would be for an ex cheese rancher to run in Wisconsin?
posted by scarabic at 11:27 PM on July 19, 2004

plep, how could you forget Robert "I'm not racist but..." Kilroy-Silk
posted by etc at 2:42 AM on July 20, 2004

plep, how could you forget Robert "I'm not racist but..." Kilroy-Silk

Interestingly, he was a politician before he was a celebrity (Labour MP iirc).
posted by bifter at 4:08 AM on July 20, 2004