Ellie Comes to Town

Town pharmacist and owner of the town drugstore, Fred Walker, has been ailing for awhile, so he gets his niece, Ellie (Eleanor Donahue), a recently graduated pharmacist, to come help him out for awhile.

Her entry is rough from the start when she finds Andy and Aunt Bea in what she was expecting to be a locked and closed drugstore and thinks them to be burglars. She's just not expecting the town sheriff to find a poorly hidden key to the place, let himself in, help himself to what he wants, and then leave the amount due in the cash register.

Things get even rougher when Mrs. Brand comes in and demands her pills that she's been getting for years, without a prescription, and for ten cents. Ellie refuses to refill her pills without a prescription. Pharmacists have a license from the state and are sworn to follow the law, but Andy just sees her as a big meanie who won't let an ailing old woman have the pills that relieve her suffering. Complications ensue.

Rather than try to ratchet up the tension on both sides of this argument, somebody MIGHT have suggested talking to Ellie's uncle and find out just why exactly he's been breaking the law for years with this one patient. But for some reason the ordinarily wise citizens of Mayberry don't think to do this.

Meanwhile, southern hospitality is on full display with Mrs. Brand laying on her couch, thinking that she is dying, surrounded by pork roast, fried chicken, casseroles, cakes, and various soups, all brought by the concerned neighbors. Cheerio Meridith is a delight as Mrs. Brand. She absolutely steals every scene unless Don Knotts is around.

This was a cute episode about an interloper coming to town, bringing all her high-falutin' diploma and education stuff (Ph.G.? really Andy?) and disrupting the peaceful status quo of Mayberry.

But it was also the earliest discussion of the placebo effect I have seen in classic TV. A serious young woman with a degree in pharmacy attempts to engage with a local hypochondriac. Apparently the local woman has had different treatment from the previous pharmacist. She's displeased with the new management, of course. And the tension ensues. Who will prevail--our eager young pharmacist, or the beloved senior resident? Or is there a way they both win?

** (2 out of 4 Stars) I love The Andy Griffith Show. It's one of my favorite TV shows, if not my absolute favorite (at least for the show's first five seasons where it featured Don Knotts and was in black and white). I've toured the Andy Griffith Museum in Mount Airy, North Carolina. I love the first three episodes of the show. And Elinor Donahue was a fine actress and a very pretty lady. But IMHO her character Ellie never worked on the show and her relationship with Andy always came across as awkward, uncomfortable and forced. In their scenes together, the tension is almost palpable. And, unfortunately, this seemed to match the reality of the situation, as Donahue was only on the show for one season and only twelve episodes at that.

Much effort was put here into introducing the Ellie character and the drugstore set. Ellie even had her own little short cheerful musical theme on the show which I've always loved. Cheerio Meredith as the elderly lady sugar pill addict is the highlight. There are some laughs and I don't feel like this is a terrible episode, but for me it is just okay, I guess in large part due to the chemistry, or lack thereof, between Andy and Ellie.

But, what do I know? This episode at the time of writing my review has a rating on IMDB of 8.1 out of 10, so a lot of people must really like it. I very much respect that, and as the character Briscoe Darling said in a later episode, "More power to you." Unfortunately, it was just a fair, passable episode to me-2 stars out of 4.

Andy Griffith never liked having Miss Donahue as his early love interest in this series. He rightfully felt that America would have a hard time seeing this lady who grew up on "Father Knows Best" being kissed by anyone--let alone a significantly older Griffith. However, in spite of this odd chemistry between them, this is a great episode...one of my favorites.

The old druggist has retired and his young niece has moved to town to take his place. However, the town is shocked by how young and pretty she is--including Andy. Because of this, there is some mild tension at first, but the problem becomes particularly serious when a cute old lady (Emma) runs afoul of Donahue--as she won't give the lady her 'medicine' without a prescription. While none of this sounds very funny, it sure is--as Cheerio Meredith (Emma) is a hilarious character. Plus, once again, the show emphasized character development over laughs--managing to do both and resulting in a very pleasing show.

"Bad Sheriff!!!"

Emma Brand (Cheerio Meredith) highlights a very good episode. Can't picture anyone playing her part any better. Elinor Donahue brightens up the screen as Ellie Walker. The pill bit was probably pretty realistic in some cases. The plot was funny even though very predictable. Barney's (Don Knotts) funny classic routine about faulty memory skills is done for the first time. Andy Griffith's overdone southern accent can be quite annoying. Emma's out of town home from "The Manhunt" now is near Andy's home in town. Elinor Donahue is a little too young to be a prospective girlfriend for Andy and is quite awkward.