#ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW TV#

that she struck him over the head with her umbrella. George Lindsey recounted in his memoir that Bavier once grew so distressed with his cursing during an episode of the Griffith spinoff Mayberry R.F.D. Her rapport with Griffith himself was particularly prickly, although they patched things up before her death in 1989, according to surviving cast and crew. She was not one to dance and sing with her colleagues, and she disliked practical jokes and coarse language. Off stage, though, she seldom joined Andy and the others in their daily antics. Onscreen, BeeвЂ™s domestic pampering provided the perfect complement to AndyвЂ™s fatherly gravitas and BarneyвЂ™s childlike vulnerability. A consummate professional, Bavier played her part to perfection and became the only Griffith cast member other than Knotts to win an Emmy for her work, in 1967. Perhaps the only cast member who didnвЂ™t appreciate the frivolity was Frances Bavier, the veteran New York actress who played Aunt Bee. Griffith ran the Griffith Show set like a big ole family picnic, joining his cast-mates in song, dance, laughter and general merriment when the camera was off.

Had they known what electricity the couple would spark, surely they would have chosen a more alluring name than Helen Crump. Producer Aaron Ruben took him aside afterward and said, вЂњHal, this might develop into quite a part for you.вЂќ In season three, actress Aneta Corsaut so impressed producers as OpieвЂ™s earnest schoolteacher that they developed her character into AndyвЂ™s steady girlfriend.

Likewise, when Hal Smith arrived to play the part of town inebriate Otis Campbell in the second Andy Griffith episode, вЂњManhunt,вЂќ he was assured of only a single appearance. For Don, that changed after the very first day of shooting: Executive Producer Sheldon Leonard was so moved by the chemistry between Andy and Don that he offered the deputy a one-year deal, later lengthened to five years. Several beloved characters, including Barney Fife himself, joined the ensemble without a firm offer of continued employment. Photo: CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images Don might have lasted just one episodeДЇew Andy Griffith cast members arrived in Mayberry with contracts in hand. They bronzed it and returned it to Andy at the seasonвЂ™s end.ДЄndy Griffith and Don Knotts shoot their first scene on 'The Andy Griffith Show.' The production was supposed to revolve around Andy but once producers saw the magic between Andy and Don, they set about reordering the show around their relationship. Some of the high jinks came at AndyвЂ™s expense: Once, the cast made off with one of AndyвЂ™s moccasins, forcing him to go home wearing his Andy Taylor wardrobe shoes. George вЂњGooberвЂќ Lindsey once awoke from his own slumber to find Andy had strung duck guts around the dressing room. He sometimes interrupted DonвЂ™s nap by dropping a metal film canister onto the floor. For all his manic on-screen energy, Don Knotts was surprisingly dignified and reserved off-camera, and Andy delighted in shattering his friendвЂ™s calm.

In fact, Andy teased Don daily simply by calling him вЂњJess,вЂќ which was short for Jesse, DonвЂ™s first name, because he knew Don didnвЂ™t like it. And he loved to stage practical jokes, particularly when they targeted Don Knotts. Andy loved practical jokesДЄs the undisputed boss of the Griffith Show,В Andy Griffith set a festive, frolicsome tone.

#ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW TV#

Andy griffith show