As a widower sheriff in the tiny town of Mayberry, North Carolina, Andy Griffith starred in this ‘60s sitcom as Andy Taylor. Running from 1960 until 1968, its opening sequence featured its famous whistled theme song (actually called The Fishin’ Hole) while Andy and his on-screen son walking through a wooded area with fishing poles. This intro set the tone for the innocent, home-town feel of the show. The easy-going and unpretentious Andy lived with his young son, Opie– played by now-Oscar-winning director, Ron Howard (then credited as Ronny Howard)– and his stern but sweet Aunt Beatrice (played by Frances Bavier). His deputy and cousin, the neurotic and paranoid Barney Fife, was played by Don Knotts. With little crime to fight, Andy spends much of his days conversing with Barney, friends, and townsfolk, settling domestic disputes, and imparting nuggets of wisdom while raising Opie. From 1962 through 1964, the show also featured Jim Nabors as the bone-headed gas attendant, Gomer Pile. When the Gomer Pyle character was given its own series (Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C.), Nabors’ character was written out and replaced by his very similar cousin, Goober Pyle, played by George Lindsay. The show also spawned the spin-off, Mayberry R.F.D. Many of the show’s characters were “country bumpkin” types. Howard McNear played town barber, Floyd Lawson, while Emmett Clark, the fix-it shop owner, was portrayed by Paul Hartman. Betty Lynn played Barney’s girlfriend, Thelma Lou, and Hal Smith played town drunk, Otis Campbell. Other regular characters included Hope Summers as Clara Edwards, Aneta Corsaut as Andy’s schoolteacher girlfriend, Helen Crump, Jack Dodson as county clerk, Howard Sprague, and Elinor Donahue as the town druggist, Ellie Walker. The show received consistently high ratings throughout its run and never placed lower than the number 7 spot in the Neilsen ratings. Knotts won an impressive five Emmys for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Comedy for Barney, taking home the statuette in 1961, 1962, 1963, 1966, and 1967. Bavier also won the supporting actress Emmy in 1967 for her role as Aunt Bee. Guest stars included Jack Nicholson and Barbara Eden, star of I Dream Of Jeannie. When it ended in 1968, the show was number one in the Nielsen ratings. In 2002, TV Guide ranked The Andy Griffith Show ninth on its list of the 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. The Andy Griffith Show was filmed at the Desilu productions lot in Hollywood and appears in reruns on the TV LAND network.
