When Griffith came aboard for a sixth season, Knotts agreed to do the same — But of course, there was more to the story.
Andy revealed to Don’s manager decades later, after Don’s death, that in a private meear changed his delivery of dialogue for Floyd from fast-paced to slower and slower as time went on. Floyd also became meting midway through season five, Don told Andy he would return to the sitcom — but only if he could have an ownership stake in the production. Andy and his manager owned more than half of the Griffith Show, while Don owned none of it; he was just a salaried employee. As much as Andy loved working with Don, he denied his friend’s request and Don did not return to the show.
Barney Had Multiple Middle Names
Since the series had several writers, some continuity slip-ups are to be expected. An example of this is with the various middle names given for both Barney and Andy.
If you pay close attention, you’ll notice that a wide range of middle names are given to Barney throughout the show. In the episode "Class Reunion", Barney's middle name is Milton, though at other times he is called "Bernard P. Fife". In another episode, where he believes he is the descendant of Nathan Tibbs, a Mayberry Revolutionary hero, he says his name is "Barney 'Tibbs' Fife". Andy jokingly says, "I thought your middle name was Oliver." A similar problem exists with Andy's middle name, which was Jackson on the show (which we see on his high school photo). However, his newborn son's name was Andrew Samuel Taylor Jr. on Mayberry RFD (given to him during a christening).
Griffith Paid Homage To His Real Father In The Intro
When you watch the theme-song reel at the beginning of the show, Andy and his son, Opie, walk to the edge of the lake. This is where Andy gives a nod of approval when the boy throws a rock into the water (which has a secret of its own that you’ll find out about later).
This simple gesture means so much more than meets the eye. As it turns out, Andy Griffith’s actual father would shake his head in the same manner when he showed approval towards Andy. Isn’t that sweet?
Griffith And Knotts Were Opposite Of Their Characters In Real Life
Griffith and Knotts were real-life country boys who had made it to fame as humorists in the 1950s, doing stand-up comedy and eventually working together in the Broadway hit “No Time for Sergeants.” On The Andy Griffith Show, they became a comedy duo for the ages, playing off each other with perfect timing in a series of running gags built on Knotts’s celebrated neuroses, with Griffith as his foil. Andy Griffith was known to be more reserved compared to Barney, who was a goofball half the time (or more).
However, Griffith and Knotts’ off-screen personalities were very different from what people saw on the show. Knotts was actually a pretty serious guy — hard to imagine, right?
One Of The Show’s Biggest Mysteries
Opie is a 6-year-old when the series opens, who lives in the fictional and idealized small, sleepy southern community of Mayberry, North Carolina, with his widowed father, Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith), the sheriff of Mayberry County, and his father's spinster aunt, Beatrice "Aunt Bee" Taylor.
Opie’s mom is mentioned only one time during the entire series. In an episode titled “Wedding Bells for Aunt Bee,” Andy becomes nostalgic and he tells Opie how much he had loved the boy’s mother. Viewers never hear anymore about her or even see a photograph. However, in an episode of ‘The Danny Thomas Show’ (which spawned The Andy Griffith Show), Andy relates that she died when Opie was just “the least little speck of a baby.”