He also wasn’t a fan of Petticoat Junction!
Andy Griffith was a creator and performer with discerning taste. So while he didn’t write every episode of The Andy Griffith Show, his sensibility guided and molded the series.
Most importantly, Griffith had a singular vision of character-based comedy. While some shows are written for the joke, The Andy Griffith Show was written with believable characters, first and foremost. Situations are funny because we know enough about Barney to know he won’t do well in crisis.
That was the fundamental difference between his show and others, at least according to co-star Ron Howard. All grown up now, in 2024, Howard appeared as a guest on the podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.” The interview allowed Howard the chance to speak on his first big acting role, and what separated that show from the rest of TV history.
“They were always stressing character. And Andy used to kill jokes if they were too broad. And he just kept saying, ‘The South is plenty funny on its own, without having to reach for it, and do slapstick.'”
That’s one of the fundamental changes the series underwent as it grew through its first season. While there are classics in each of the show’s first couple of years, The Andy Griffith Show really found its footing as it pushed through its first thirty or so episodes, allowing Griffith to breathe and not be the focal point of every laugh.
“He didn’t like Petticoat Junction and Hillbilly Ele- no, not Hillbilly Elegy, that’s a movie I directed. He didn’t like Beverly Hillbillies. Because they were doing sketch, basically. He didn’t like Li’l Abner. As a result, I don’t know that there have been other single-camera shows that held that tone. Maybe Real McCoys, you know, but they didn’t have Don Knotts.”
