This portly country comedian actually had a number of careers, including a stint as a stock car driver before entering show business at forty, after claiming he had caught a world-record bass in Lake Lanier. The resulting publicity, courtesy of the Fish and Game Warden sent to verify the claim, brought him fame. He recorded a comedy track that became a hit on country music station in 1967.

In 1969 the producers of Hee-Haw offered him a role on the new CBS show, which he gladly accepted. For the next 14 years Junior created a mumbling, bumbling persona that caused fans of the show to howl while critics generally scratched their heads. Junior Samples died of a heart attack. He is buried at Sawnee View Gardens in Cumming, Georgia