The Andy Griffith Show
The Andy Griffith Show | |
---|---|
Genre | Sitcom |
Created by | Sheldon Leonard |
Starring | |
Theme music composer | |
Opening theme | "The Andy Griffith Show Theme" |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 8 |
No. of episodes | 249 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | |
Production locations |
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Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 25–26 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | CBS |
Release | October 3, 1960 April 1, 1968 | –
Related | |
The Andy Griffith Show is an American
The series originated from an episode of
The series was never placed lower than seventh in the
After the eighth season, when Griffith left the series, it was retitled
Origin
Sheldon Leonard—producer of The Danny Thomas Show—and Danny Thomas hired veteran comedy writer Arthur Stander (who had written many of the "Danny Thomas" episodes) to create a pilot show for Griffith, featuring him as justice of the peace and newspaper editor in a small town.[7] At the time, Broadway, film, and radio star Griffith was interested in attempting a television role, and the William Morris Agency told Leonard that Griffith's rural background and previous rustic characterizations were suited to the part.[7] After conferences between Leonard and Griffith in New York City, Griffith flew to Los Angeles and filmed the episode.[7] On February 15, 1960, The Danny Thomas Show episode "Danny Meets Andy Griffith" aired.[7] In the episode, Griffith played fictional Sheriff Andy Taylor of Mayberry, North Carolina, who arrests Danny Williams (Thomas' character) for running a stop sign. Future players in The Andy Griffith Show, Bavier and Howard, appeared in the episode as townspeople Henrietta Perkins and Opie Taylor (the sheriff's son), respectively.[7] General Foods, sponsor of The Danny Thomas Show, had first access to the spin-off and committed to it immediately.[7] On October 3, 1960, at 9:30 p.m., The Andy Griffith Show made its debut.[8]
Production
The sitcom's production team included producers
Griffith's development of Andy Taylor
Initially, Griffith played Taylor as a heavy-handed country bumpkin, grinning from ear to ear and speaking in a hesitant, frantic manner. The style recalled that used in the delivery of his popular monologues such as "What It Was, Was Football." He gradually abandoned the "rustic Taylor" and developed a serious and thoughtful characterization. Producer Aaron Ruben recalled:
He was being that marvelously funny character from No Time for Sergeants, Will Stockdale [a role Griffith played on stage and in film] ... One day he said, "My God, I just realized that I'm the straight man. I'm playing straight to all these kooks around me." He didn't like himself [in first year reruns] ... and in the next season he changed, becoming this Lincolnesque character.[7]
As Griffith stopped portraying some of the sheriff's more unsophisticated character traits and mannerisms, it was impossible for him to create his own problems and troubles in the manner of other central sitcom characters such as Lucy in I Love Lucy or Archie Bunker in All in the Family, whose problems were the result of their temperaments, philosophies, and attitudes. Consequently, the characters around Taylor were employed to create the problems and troubles, with rock-solid Taylor stepping in as problem solver, mediator, advisor, disciplinarian, and counselor.[7]
Premise and characters
The series revolves around
Andy's friends and neighbors include, at various times, barber
Ernest T. Bass made his first appearance in episode #94 ("Mountain Wedding"), as well as four later episodes. The actor who portrayed him, Howard Morris, also played George, the television repairman in episode #140 ("Andy and Helen Have Their Day") and two uncredited voice roles, as Leonard Blush and a radio announcer. Morris also directed a total of eight episodes of the show, none while portraying Ernest T. Bass.
Unseen characters such as telephone operator Sarah, and Barney's love interest, local diner waitress Juanita Beasley, as mentioned in the first season, are often referenced. The show's announcer for the first five seasons, Colin Male, portrayed Game Warden Peterson in Episode #140 ("Andy and Helen Have Their Day").
In the series' last few episodes, farmer Sam Jones (Ken Berry) debuts and later becomes the lead of the retitled show, Mayberry R.F.D.[7] Don Knotts, Aneta Corsaut, Jack Dodson, and Betty Lynn also appeared on Griffith's later show Matlock.
Episodes
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Rank | Rating | Viewers (millions) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | ||||||
Intro | 1 | February 15, 1960 | — | — | — | ||
1 | 32 | October 3, 1960 | May 22, 1961 | 4 | 27.8 | 13.12[15] | |
2 | 31 | October 2, 1961 | May 7, 1962 | 7 | 27.0 | 13.10[16] | |
3 | 32 | October 1, 1962 | May 6, 1963 | 6 | 29.7 | 14.93[17] | |
4 | 32 | September 30, 1963 | May 18, 1964 | 5 | 29.4 | 15.17[18] | |
5 | 32 | September 21, 1964 | May 3, 1965 | 4 | 28.3 | 14.91[19] | |
6 | 30 | September 13, 1965 | April 11, 1966 | 6 | 26.9 | 14.48[20] | |
7 | 30 | September 12, 1966 | April 10, 1967 | 3 | 27.4 | 15.10[21] | |
8 | 30 | September 11, 1967 | April 1, 1968 | 1 | 27.6 | 15.64[22] |
The show comprises eight full seasons and 249 episodes[7]—159 episodes in black and white (seasons 1–5) and 90 in color (seasons 6–8). Griffith appears in all 249 episodes with Howard appearing in 202, Bavier appearing in 175, and Knotts appearing in 141. Only Griffith, Howard, Bavier, Knotts and Hope Summers appeared in all eight seasons. Knotts left the show at the end of season five to pursue a career in films (on the show, it is explained that he takes a job as a detective with the Raleigh Police Department) but returned to make five guest appearances as Barney in seasons six through eight. His last appearance is in the final season, in a story about a summit meeting with Soviet dignitaries "ranked eleventh among single comedy programs most watched in television between 1960 and 1984, with an audience of thirty-three and a half million."[7]
Reruns, spinoffs and reunions
In 1964, daytime
At the end of season four (May 1964), the
In the last episodes of the eighth season, as Griffith was preparing to leave, the character Sam Jones, played by Ken Berry, was introduced as the new star and the series was retitled Mayberry R.F.D. Most of the cast members continued their original roles, with Bavier becoming Sam's housekeeper. To create a smooth transition, Andy and Helen were married in the first episode with the new title and remained for a few additional episodes before leaving with a move to Raleigh, effectively ending their appearances.
After RFD's cancellation in 1971, George Lindsey played Goober for many years on the popular country-variety show Hee Haw.
Goober, Barney and Emmett all made appearances in the series premiere of The New Andy Griffith Show, which starred Griffith as a similar but canonically different character, Mayor Andy Sawyer. All three characters treated Sawyer as if he were Andy Taylor. The series only lasted ten episodes.[24]
In 1986, the reunion
Griffith and Howard reprised their roles a final time for a Funny or Die skit supporting the 2008 presidential campaign of Barack Obama.[25]
In 1993, The Andy Griffith Show had a Reunion Special which featured Andy Griffith, Don Knotts, Ron Howard, Jim Nabors, George Lindsey, and Jack Dodson.[26]
In 2003, four surviving cast members (Griffith, Howard, Knotts, and Nabors) came together for a reunion special that featured the actors reminiscing about each other's time on the show. The production was interspersed with archival footage and short filmed interviews with some of the other surviving cast members. This special was called The Andy Griffith Show: Back to Mayberry.[27][28]
Reception
Ratings
The Andy Griffith Show was a top ten hit through its entire run, never ranking lower than seventh place in the yearly ratings.[29] A Nielsen study conducted during the show's final season (1967–68) indicated the show ranked number one among blue collar workers followed by The Lucy Show and Gunsmoke. Among white collar workers, the show ranked third, following Saturday Movies and The Dean Martin Show.[7] The final season of The Andy Griffith Show was the number one ranked show on television.[30] Other shows to have accomplished this include I Love Lucy[31] and Seinfeld.[32] In 1998, the year Seinfeld ended, more than five million people a day watched the show's reruns on 120 stations.[33]
Awards and nominations
Emmys
1961
- Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor or Actress in a Series: Don Knotts – Won
- Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Humor – Nominated (Winner: The Jack Benny Program)
1962
- Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor: Don Knotts – Won
- Outstanding Program Achievement in the Field of Humor – Nominated (Winner: The Bob Newhart Show)
1963
- Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role by an Actor: Don Knotts – Won
1966
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Comedy: Don Knotts for "The Return of Barney Fife" – Won
1967
- Outstanding Comedy Series – Nominated (Winner: The Monkees)
- Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Comedy: Don Knotts for "Barney Comes to Mayberry" – Won
- Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Comedy: Frances Bavier – Won
TV Land Awards
- Favorite Second Banana: Don Knotts – Won (2003)
- Single Dad of the Year: Andy Griffith – Won (2003)
- Legend Award – Won (2004)
Other accolades
- In 1997, the episode "TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.[34]
- In 2002, TV Guide ranked The Andy Griffith Show ninth on its list of the 50 Best Shows of All Time.[4]
- Bravo ranked Andy Taylor 63rd on their list of the 100 greatest TV characters.[35]
- In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Andy Griffith Show number 15 on their list of the 60 Greatest Shows of All Time.[5]
Merchandise and pop culture
Very little merchandise was produced for The Andy Griffith Show during its original run, a peculiarity for a hit TV show in the 1960s. One theory for the lack of merchandise is that the show's producers, Griffith in particular, wanted to protect its image as a realistic and thoughtful offering and keep the public's focus on the show itself rather than its branding.[36] Among the handful of merchandise released during the show's first run, Dell Comics published two The Andy Griffith Show comic books, one drawn by Henry Scarpelli, the other by Bill Fraccio.[36][37] In 2004, copies in near-mint condition were priced in excess of $500 each.[38] There was also a soundtrack album, two coloring books, and a 1966 Grape-Nuts cereal box with a photo of Griffith in character as Sheriff Andy Taylor beside a lemon pie recipe on the back.[36] The show's enduring popularity has spawned considerable merchandise during the decades following its cancellation,[36] including board games, bobblehead dolls, kitchenware, and books. In 2007, a line of canned foods inspired by the series was made available in grocery stores across America.
Griffith's hometown of Mount Airy, North Carolina, annually hosts a week-long "Mayberry Days" celebration featuring concerts, parades and appearances by the show's players.
In 2003, the country band
The cable television network TV Land erected bronze statues of Andy and Opie in Mount Airy and Raleigh, North Carolina (see: Pullen Park).[39]
The Taylor Home Inn in Clear Lake, Wisconsin, is a bed-and-breakfast modeled after the Taylor Home.[40] The Mayberry Cafe in Danville, Indiana, features Aunt Bee's Fried Chicken and a replica of Andy's Ford Galaxie police car.
In 2021, the original feature film Mayberry Man was produced by children of actors from The Andy Griffith Show featuring Mayberry tribute artists set in a fictitious modern-day Mayberry.
Home media
In the late 1980s, Premier Promotions released various episodes on VHS. Most tapes had either two or four episodes. In the early to mid-1990s,
Starting in 2004,
DVD Name | Ep# | Release Date |
---|---|---|
The First Season | 32 | November 16, 2004 |
The Second Season | 31 | May 24, 2005 |
The Third Season | 32 | August 16, 2005 |
The Fourth Season | 32 | November 22, 2005 |
The Fifth Season | 32 | February 14, 2006 |
The Sixth Season | 30 | May 9, 2006 |
The Seventh Season | 30 | August 29, 2006 |
The Final Season | 30 | December 12, 2006 |
The Complete Series | 249 | May 29, 2007 |
The Complete Series | 249 | February 16, 2016 |
Note: The Region 1 release of The Third Season contains two episodes edited for syndication: "The Darlings Are Coming"—which had several scenes cut—and "Barney Mends a Broken Heart," which had its epilogue cut.
Notes
References
- ^ Season 4, episode 20, as stated in the script
– In season 8, episode 30 "Mayberry R.F.D." a sign says that the population of Mayberry is 5,360. - ^ "Andy Griffith & Don Knotts on The Today Show". NBC Today Show. March 4, 1996. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
- ^ Dostis, Melanie (October 15, 2015). "Looking back at 'I Love Lucy' 64 years later". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
- ^ a b "TV Guide Names Top 50 Shows". CBS News. Associated Press. February 11, 2009. Archived from the original on October 15, 2013. Retrieved July 5, 2012.
- ^ a b Fretts, Bruce; Roush, Matt. "The Greatest Shows on Earth". TV Guide. Vol. 61, no. 3194–3195. pp. 16–19.
- ^ "Mayberry Days". The Surry Arts Council Presents Mayberry Days. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Kelly, Richard. The Andy Griffith Show. Blair, 1981.
- ^ Beck, Ken, and Jim Clark. The Andy Griffith Show Book. St. Martin's Griffin, 1995.
- ^ "Don Knotts, Andy Griffith & Jim Neighbors, The Andy Griffith Show 1960s". My Vintage Photos. Retrieved March 7, 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Clodfelter, Tim (March 28, 2020). "Ask SAM". Winston-Salem Journal. Archived from the original on March 28, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-19-061830-8.
- .
- .
- )
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1960–1961". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1961–1962". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1962–1963". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1963–1964". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1964–1965". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1965–1966". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1966–1967". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ^ "TV Ratings: 1967–1968". ClassicTVHits.com. Retrieved July 15, 2021.
- ISBN 978-0-7864-3305-6.
- ^ The New Andy Griffith Show, TVparty.com Archived January 28, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, retrieved February 12, 2020
- The Huffington Post. Archivedfrom the original on October 25, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2015.
- ^ Oldenburg, Ann (February 21, 2005). "Happy days for television reunions". USA Today. p. 1. Archived from the original on May 29, 2007. Retrieved June 8, 2009.
- ^ "The Andy Griffith Show: Back to Mayberry". IMDb. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2009.
- ^ O'Connor, John J. (February 10, 1993). "Review/Television; A Friendly Mayberry Get-Together". The New York Times. p. 1. Archived from the original on February 9, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2009.
- ^ "ClassicTVguide.com: TV Ratings". classictvguide.com. Archived from the original on February 21, 2023. Retrieved February 27, 2023.
- ^ "ClassicTVguide.com: TV Ratings > 1960's". classictvguide.com. Archived from the original on February 21, 2023. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- ^ "ClassicTVguide.com: TV Ratings > 1950's". classictvguide.com. Archived from the original on February 21, 2023. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- ^ "ClassicTVguide.com: TV Ratings > 1990's". classictvguide.com. Archived from the original on March 20, 2023. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- ^ Ted Rueter (January 22, 1998). "What Andy, Opie, and Barney Fife Mean to Americans". The Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on May 24, 2008. Retrieved January 27, 2009.
- ^ "Special Collector's Issue: 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time". TV Guide. No. June 28 – July 4. 1997.
- ^ "The 100 Greatest TV Characters". Bravo. Archived from the original on October 15, 2007. Retrieved October 19, 2010.
- ^ a b c d Eury, Michael (Summer 2018). "Original Andy Griffith Show Collectibles". RetroFan. No. 1. TwoMorrows Publishing. pp. 59–62.
- ^ "Henry Scarpelli". lambiek.net. Archived from the original on November 17, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
- ^ Overstreet, Robert M. Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide. 34th edition. House of Collectibles, Random House Information Group, May 2004.
- ^ "Vandals toss paint on statue of Andy and Opie in N.C. (Front)". Associated Press. February 25, 2010. Archived from the original on May 13, 2014. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
- ^ "A little touch of Mayberry: B&B recreates Andy Griffith's TV show home". NBC News. Associated Press. July 27, 2006. Archived from the original on October 22, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2012.
- ^ "Winston.com". Archived from the original on August 31, 2013.
- ^ "CBS Operations Inc v. Reel Funds International Inc". gpo.gov. Archived from the original on November 16, 2018. Retrieved September 23, 2013.
Further reading
- Beck, Ken; Clark, Jim (1985). The Andy Griffith Show Book (trade paperback). New York: St. Martin's Press. ISBN 0-312-03654-X.
- Beck, Ken, and Clark, Jim. Mayberry Memories. Rutledge Hill Press, 2000.
- de Vise, Daniel (2015). Andy & Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic TV Show. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4767-4773-6.
- Fann, Joey. The Way Back to Mayberry. Broadman and Holman, 2001. ISBN 0-8054-2420-2.
- Kelly, Richard. The Andy Griffith Show (John F. Blair, 1981). ISBN 0-89587-043-6.
- McElroy, Kathleen. "Remembering Mayberry in White and Black: The Andy Griffith Show's Construction of the South," Memory Studies, 8 (Oct. 2015), 440–453.
- Pérez Firmat, Gustavo. A Cuban in Mayberry: Looking Back at America's Hometown. Austin: The University of Texas Press, 2014.
- Vaughn, Don Rodney (November 1, 2004). "Why "The Andy Griffith Show" is Important to Popular Culture". Journal of Popular Culture.