Topic: Andy Griffith has died.

[K-man]

I spent many afternoons of my childhood tuning into The Andy Griffith Show in syndication.  For people like me, the show tugged at your nostalgia-ridden heartstrings and made you long for an era you weren't even part of (and some would say never really existed in the first place).  Ultimately that is the role that would define him.  My great-uncle costarred with him in Elia Kazan's "A Face in the Crowd", which is a film I cannot recommend enough.  It is the only time I've ever seen Griffith play a bad guy, and he does a masterful job at it.  The film is also very, very relevant to today's society.

He lived a long and fruitful life, so it's certainly not a tragic death.  But it is sad.  His impact on Americana was huge.

[angrykeebler]

fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck

[idolminds]

Yeah, its sad. Except I didn't really like that show and got annoyed when it was on instead of cartoons.

[Cobra951]

It did exist, though of course it was not all monochrome-rosy like that.  Simpler time when the rules were clear and all was well with my family and with my world.  But I was a kid at the time, so I'm sure there's a lot I wasn't exposed to.

RIP, Andy.  And thanks.

Who is your great-uncle, K-man?

[K-man]

Grover "Big Jeff" Bess.

He's the sheriff in this scene.  He was married to Tootsie Bess, and they owned Tootsie's Orchid Lounge here in Nashville.  He was a somewhat large player in Nashville country music back in the day.  Had his own radio show and house band.  I only got to meet him once.  He came to visit my grandfather after he had his stroke.  By then diabetes had gotten the better of him.  He'd had some of a leg removed and he had to breathe using a permanent tracheotomy. 

[W7RE]

I actually live about 20 miles outside of Mount Airy, which is the town Mayberry was based on. There's still an Aunt Bee's resteraunt chain, I think there's still a Floyd's Barber shop, and you can still take a ride in Andy's police car. I'm not sure how much of these are cash ins on the show, or actually just still around from what the show was based on.

I never really liked the show, but I appreciate the impact it has had and the generally moral and family-friendly nature of it, and of Andy Griffith himself. I heard he wanted a low fuss and semi-private funeral, and so he was buried on private land within a few hours of passing. I love the humility that evokes.