The Andy Griffith Show

"The Andy Griffith Show", in my opinion, will always be in the top 10 of my favorite shows, and I've watched the reruns numerous times since the first episode in 1960. I'm sure Danny Thomas has received many accolades for creating this timeless classic. My only criticism is that it stayed on the air three years too long. When Don Knotts exited, that's where it should have ended. The support characters of Goober, Howard and Emmitt never captured the comic timing or spirit of the original cast, and the storylines were bland. I especially detested Jack Burns' character Warren. He was very annoying. The last three years just weren't funny or even compelling enough to bother watching. Even Andy became more cranky and less down-home. He even lost his southern accent and laid-back ways.

The black and white episodes of this program were the best, and I don't know what it was, but when it went to color, all the "magic" the show possessed disappeared!! I can tolerate the color episodes, but I HATED Jack Burns's character of Warren. That "Huh?, Yeah, Huh?" routine was a royal pain in the neck.

And what happened to Andy in the color episodes?? He turned into a man who was always griping about something--cranky and mean. It seemed that no matter what Aunt Bee wanted to do, Andy was there to put a stop to it, or at least, he tried to. Remember the time when Aunt Bee wanted to learn how to drive a car? Wanted to learn how to fly a plane? When she wanted to wear a wig? When she wanted to open a restaurant? Andy Taylor was a very hateful character in the color episodes. They should have stopped production of the show when they changed to color.

It may be impossible to find the greatest tv series of all time, but The Andy Griffith Show is definitely in the top ten. It had the warmest most realistic characters and the best writing ever. This show created the best characters out of Andy, Barney, Opie, Aunt Bee, Otis, Floyd, Ellie, Helen and Thelma Lou. Unfortunately, it had just as many clunkers with the extremely irritating and illogical Gomer, Goober, Warren, Howard and Emmett. The best thing about the show was the camaraderie of Andy Griffith and Don Knotts; despite their fights and teasing, you knew they cared about each other. It was this kind of compassion that made everyone connect with the series. Knotts' departure from it was the removal of all the heart as during the rest of the show's run Andy went around irritated all the time. It's these color episodes that are the only thing wrong with the otherwise impeccable show. If Bewitched can be divided into two different series, one black and white, one in color, then the same ought to be done for Andy, and spare the lovers of the series from having to see the worst.

The Andy Griffith Show will always be remembered as one of the great slice of life series that ever came on television. It represented the ideal small town full of not only ordinary citizens but the crazies that inhabited it as well, especially characters like Ernest T. Bass and the Darlings. The thing that really made this show great was the relationship between the ever cool Sheriff Andy Taylor and the hyperactive Barney Fife. It was Barney as well as the characters of Aunt Bea, Floyd, Otis, Gomer, Goober and, later, Howard and Emmitt that made this show the classic that it was. Also, in later years this show was criticized for not having any black characters on it. If you think about it, this show was merely a reflection of the times that the show took place in, the early to mid 1960's. Despite that, this show will always be a classic.

Also, one of my favortite episodes will always be the bootlegging episode with the two sisters when you get to see Barney let loose and go POW, POW, POW with his trusty ax.

My favorite Andy Griffith show episode is the Christmas show when mean old Ben Weaver tries to get himself arrested. (Enter "Will Wright" in the database search box and note #6 under Notable TV guest appearances) On Christmas Eve, Ben Weaver (a legitimate liquor dealer) insists that Andy arrest a farmer for making some illegal moonshine to celebrate Christmas with. Andy brings the farmer's wife and two kids to the jail and, with Barnie, Opie, Aunt Bea, and Ellie, the whole lot of them celebrate Christmas right there in the jail. Ben becomes aware of this; feels left out; and tries to get himself arrested so he can join in the festivities. Thanks to some brilliant acting by Will Wright you start off intensely disliking Ben Weaver and end up feeling genuinely sorry for him.