Mayberry R.F.D.
Mayberry R.F.D. | |
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Created by | Bob Ross |
Starring | |
Theme music composer | Earle Hagen |
Opening theme | "Mayberry March" |
Composers | |
Country of origin | United States |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 78 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Running time | 24 minutes |
Production company | R.F.D. Productions |
Original release | |
Network | CBS |
Release | September 23, 1968 March 29, 1971 | –
Related | |
The Andy Griffith Show |
Mayberry R.F.D. (abbreviation for
During the eighth and final season of The Andy Griffith Show, widower farmer Sam Jones (
Plot and characters
Father and son stories involving Sam and Mike Jones are reminiscent of the episodes that starred Andy Griffith. Both characters are introduced in the last season of The Andy Griffith Show (TAGS), beginning with Sam's election as head of the town council. Most of the town folk from TAGS continued their roles. Loyal Mayberry citizens Goober Pyle (George Lindsey), Clara Edwards (Hope Summers), Emmett Clark (Paul Hartman) and Howard Sprague (Jack Dodson) are seen regularly.
Sheriff Andy Taylor and his sweetheart, Helen Crump (Aneta Corsaut), marry in the new title's first episode. Both Andy and Helen make additional appearances during the first season (mostly Andy, who remains Sheriff of Mayberry in the early appearances.) Griffith and Coursaut leave the series for good in late 1969 with a move to Charlotte, North Carolina, as the explanation. Aunt Bee (Frances Bavier) becomes Sam's housekeeper but leaves after the second season to be replaced by Sam's cousin, Alice Cooper (Alice Ghostley).
A recurring African American character named Ralph (Charles Lampkin) lives with a teen daughter and pre-teen son next to the Jones farm. Mary Lansing appeared occasionally as Emmett's wife, Martha. As with its predecessor, Mayberry R.F.D. continued under the sponsorship of General Foods and its products.
Notable guest stars
- Farrah Fawcett played a showgirl in "Millie the Model" (October 20, 1969).
- Jodie Foster, sister of regular cast member Buddy Foster, played a fairy in "The Church Play" (November 18, 1968) and a little girl in "All for Charity" (October 12, 1970).
- Teri Garr played a cashier in "Miss Farmerette" (December 23, 1968).
- Will Geer played Captain Wolford in "Aunt Bee's Cruise" (part one on January 13, 1969; part two on January 20, 1969).
- Natalie Schafer played Cornelia Willoughby in "Goober the Housekeeper" (November 9, 1970).
An NBC reunion movie, Return to Mayberry, was produced in 1986 and featured many original performers from The Andy Griffith Show. Ken Berry, Buddy Foster and Arlene Golonka did not appear, nor did The Andy Griffith Show regulars Frances Bavier, Elinor Donahue, and Jack Burns. Nevertheless, Return does share continuity with the R.F.D. storyline, by maintaining that Andy and Helen are married. However, Andy and Helen's son, Andy Jr., is never mentioned.
Episodes
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Rank | Rating | ||
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First aired | Last aired | |||||
Pilot | 1 | April 1, 1968 | — | — | ||
1 | 26 | September 23, 1968 | May 12, 1969 | 4 | 25.4 | |
2 | 26 | September 22, 1969 | April 13, 1970 | 4 | 24.4 | |
3 | 26 | September 14, 1970 | March 29, 1971 | 15 | 22.3 |
Home media
In 1983, the distribution rights to Mayberry R.F.D. were acquired by
On April 8, 2014,
The complete series was released on DVD on June 13, 2023.[5]
Reception and ratings
The final episode of The Andy Griffith Show was titled "Mayberry R.F.D." and added an Italian-American family to the Sam Jones homestead. The producers chose to forgo a big overhaul and instead stuck with the winning premise of a widower, his son and the matronly Aunt Bee. Therefore, the series was much the same as The Andy Griffith Show, without Andy Taylor and son Opie.
Mayberry R.F.D. was consistently in the top ten in the
References
- ^ Mayberry RFD, TV Guide
- ^ "CBS Rural Purge". www.yourememberthat.com.
- ^ "DVD Calendar Feature Articles - Metacritic". www.metacritic.com. Archived from the original on December 13, 2013.
- ^ "DVD Calendar Feature Articles - Metacritic". www.metacritic.com.
- ^ Mayberry R.F.D.: The Complete Series DVD, retrieved 2023-08-12
- ^ Eury, Michael (Summer 2018). "Original Andy Griffith Show Collectibles". RetroFan (1). TwoMorrows Publishing: 59.
- ^ "TV's 'Rural Purge'" – via www.washingtonpost.com.
- ^ "9 iconic shows canceled due to the rural purge". Me-TV Network.
- ^ "[Article] The Rural Purge: The Year CBS Killed Everything With a Tree in It – Socionomics Institute".
Bibliography
- Fernandes, David; & Dale Robinson. A Guide to Television's "Mayberry R.F.D.", McFarland & Company, Inc, 1999. ISBN 978-0-7864-7284-0