Barnes & Noble

The Andy Griffith Show disproves the old adage that you can't go home again. Although many familiar faces are gone (most prominently Jim Nabors's Gomer and Howard Morris's Ernest T. Bass), Mayberry is still as inviting as ever in its penultimate season, and Barney Fife (the inimitable Don Knotts) even pops in for two episodes. In "A Visit to Barney Fife," Andy helps his former sidekick, as hapless as ever, redeem himself in the Raleigh Police Department. In "Barney Comes to Mayberry," Barney's homecoming is bittersweet when he is reunited with a former flame who has become a famous movie star. Town drunk Otis Campbell (Hal Smith) is still stumbling about, and helps rescue a captured Andy in "Otis the Deputy." And the backcountry Darling Family (featuring the legendary bluegrass group the Dillards) stirs up more romantic ruckus in "The Darling Fortune." Series newcomer Howard Sprague (Jack Dodson), the county clerk, is not the liveliest of wires, but in "Howard the Comedian," he surprisingly proves himself to be "the merry madcap of Mayberry" when he jests about his fellow Mayberrians on a televised amateur talent contest ("Aunt Bea's family came over on the Mayflower. Of course, in those days, the immigration laws weren't so strict!"). Opie (future Oscar winner Ronny Howard) is growing apace and maturing gracefully, losing none of his endearing naturalism. And Andy? Well, he's a little less patient and quicker of temper than in earlier seasons. The old Andy would have found a more understanding way to deal with Goober (George Lindsey) when, in "Goober Makes History," the local yokel becomes an annoyance after a new beard inspires the confidence to impose himself as the town "thinker" and "philosopher." The new Andy loses his patience and reads him the riot act. This seventh season may not rank among the series' very best, but The Andy Griffith Show is the essence of comfort television. As a former convict tells an escapee on the lam in "The Barbershop Quartet": "Mayberry? Well, well. Sheriff Taylor still over there? He's a good guy. I like him." Donald Liebenson

All Movie Guide

Proof positive that The Andy Griffith Show had been on the air for seven seasons by the fall of 1966 was offered in the season opener, "Opie's Girlfriend," in which Opie Taylor (Ronny Howard), all of six years old when the series started, has entered the dating scene! In a related development, it is clear that Opie's dad, Mayberry sheriff Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith), is very, very serious about his longtime sweetheart Helen Crump (Aneta Corsaut), though wedding bells would not ring for at least another year. The basic cast lineup at this point includes Andy Griffith, Ronny Howard, Aneta Corsaut, Frances Bavier as Aunt Bee, George Lindsey as gas station attendant and erstwhile sheriff's deputy Goober Pyle, Jack Dodson as mother-dominated town clerk Howard Sprague, and Hal Smith as town drunk Otis Campbell. Also still on hand is Howard McNear as barber Floyd Lawson, but in a diminished capacity. Having suffered a serious stroke, actor McNear was unable to walk or to move his left arm. In a sweet, sentimental gesture, Andy Griffith insisted that the stricken actor remain on the series as long as he was able, seeing to it that Floyd's scenes were written so that he could remain seated and gesture only with his "good" arm. Having left the series as a regular at the end of season five, Don Knotts makes two more return appearances as Andy's former deputy in the episode "A Visit to Barney Fife" and "Barney Comes to Mayberry." This last-mentioned episode would earn Knotts another Emmy Award -- his fifth for playing the same role! Some viewers felt that The Andy Griffith Show had grown tired and predictable by the time its seventh season rolled around, with Andy Griffith's enthusiasm obviously waning. Other viewers didn't feel that way at all, as witnessed by the fact that the series closed out season seven as America's third highest-rated program. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 097360706420
• Source: PARAMOUNT
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: B&W, Pan & Scan
• Time: 12:44:00
• Sales Rank: 3,920

This set contains DVDs which may be available separately:

• The Andy Griffith Show: Opie's Girlfriend
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Lodge
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Barbershop Quartet
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Ball Game
• The Andy Griffith Show: Aunt Bee's Crowning Glory
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Darling Fortune
• The Andy Griffith Show: Mind Over Matter
• The Andy Griffith Show: Politics Begin at Home
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Senior Play
• The Andy Griffith Show: Opie Finds a Baby
• The Andy Griffith Show: Big Fish in a Small Town
• The Andy Griffith Show: Only a Rose
• The Andy Griffith Show: Otis the Deputy
• The Andy Griffith Show: Goober Makes History
• The Andy Griffith Show: A New Doctor in Town
• The Andy Griffith Show: Don't Miss a Good Bet
• The Andy Griffith Show: Dinner at Eight
• The Andy Griffith Show: A Visit to Barney Fife
• The Andy Griffith Show: Barney Comes to Mayberry
• The Andy Griffith Show: Andy's Old Girlfriend
• The Andy Griffith Show: Aunt Bee's Restaurant
• The Andy Griffith Show: Floyd's Barbershop
• The Andy Griffith Show: The Statue
• The Andy Griffith Show: Helen the Authoress
• The Andy Griffith Show: Goodbye Dolly
• The Andy Griffith Show: Opie's Piano Lesson
• The Andy Griffith Show: Howard the Comedian
• The Andy Griffith Show: Big Brother
• The Andy Griffith Show: Opie's Most Unforgettable Character
• The Andy Griffith Show: Goober's Contest

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