Season 6 saw major changes to The Andy Griffith Expose. The main changes were that the shows were aired for the first time in color, Barney Fife was no longer a regular character, and characters Warren Ferguson (briefly) and Howard Sprague (`til the demolish of series and Mayberry RFD) would produce their entrance. Many fans do not consume the color seasons (some even refuse to ogle them) . I want to consume this review and the reviews for seasons 7 and 8, to stick up for these seasons. For this review, I want to particularly defend a character who is often maligned: Deputy Warren Ferguson. He replaced Barney Fife for 11 episodes in season six until he was written out of the series (with no explanation) and never replaced. He was played by a very underrated actor, Jack Burns, who went on to be a variety indicate staple through the slack 1960s and early 1970s as allotment of the comedy duo Burns and Schreiber (having their absorb indicate in 1973), and later was head writer for The Muppet Explain and script supervisor and co-producer for Fridays in the early 1980s. I conception his Warren character was an qualified addition to the cast and had a main role in a few of my well-liked color episodes (A Warning From Warren, Aunt Bee Takes a Job, Girl-Shy, and Otis the Artist) . He was also very easy on the eyes for us female fans. The criticism about his “huh-huh-huh” gimmick (primitive in his routines with Avery Schreiber) is blown up a bit as he didn’t say it that often on TAGS. He archaic it the most in his first episode The Bazaar, where his character was being introduced. If you do a web search for “The Revenge of Warren Ferguson,” you will accept a tribute I created for him. Give Warren a chance. Now for the season six episodes:
Buy,Download, Or Stream The Andy Griffith Show - The Complete Sixth Season! Click Here
“Opie’s Job”: Another season begins with an Opie ep. Opie competes with another boy for a grocery job. Andy is disappointed when he finds out his son gave up on the job, until he hears Opie’s reason.
“Andy’s Rival”: It is time for Andy to be jealous for a change. Helen begins working with a splendid teacher who seems the advantageous to Andy in every blueprint.
“Malcolm at the Crossroads”: The last episode for Malcolm Merriweather and Ernest T Bass (I’m not a Ernest T fan, so this was OK by me) . When the bicycling Englishman takes Bass’ crosswalk job, Ernest T wants to fight him.
“Aunt Bee, the Swinger”: Bee wants to effect an dilapidated beau who became a politician, and runs herself used trying to retain up with, what she believes, is the swiftly poke he is passe to.
Buy,Download, Or Stream The Andy Griffith Show - The Complete Sixth Season! Click Here
“The Bazaar”: Warren’s first episode. Warren arrests the ladies’ auxiliary for illegal gambling (bingo) and the husbands are exasperated with Andy because who’s going to fix them dinner? (can you enjoy that?! It’s called cereal, milk, a spoon, and a bowl) .
“A Warning From Warren”: Warren believes he has ESP and senses difficulty lurks for Andy and Helen’s planned picnic at Myer’s Lake.
“Off to Hollywood”: Andy gets a $1,000 check for a movie that is being made about his sheriff without a gun myth. Aunt Bee, Opie, and Helen convince him to employ the funds on a scuttle to Hollywood and the townsfolk support asking Andy for favors (autographs, etc.) .
“Taylors in Hollywood”: One of the funniest color eps. On site in Hollywood, Andy, Opie and Aunt Bee spy the filming of the movie about them and, Aunt Bee is not delighted with how they and the town are portrayed. Gavin McLeod (Fancy Boat Captain) plays Andy, and boy is he laughable!
“The Hollywood Party”: A Helen blow-up episode. Helen sees a publicity photo of Andy (composed in Hollywood) and an actress and goes off.
“Aunt Bee on TV”: Aunt Bee is a winner on a tv game indicate while in Hollywood and, when she gets succor to Mayberry, her friends procure tired of hearing about all the prizes she won.
“The Cannon”: A site mobile museum comes to Mayberry for Founders’ Day. Warren is in charge of guarding it, but is more enthusiastic in the former town cannon nearby.
“A Man’s Best Friend”: Maybe the silliest TAGS ep. Opie and a fresh friend (a exact sarcastic kid) consume walkie talkies to convince Goober that his dog can talk.
“Aunt Bee Takes a Job”: Aunt Bee gets a job at a print shop and doesn’t realize her employers are counterfeiters. This is one of my popular color eps. Mr. Clark is a very silly villain (”we’re adopting a kid”) and Warren trying to dislodge the getaway car from the bumper of the squad car while explaining the benefits of advertising-that’s classic!
“The Church Organ”: After the church organ goes flat during her rendition of “Worship Lifted Me,” Clara refuses to play the obsolete organ and Andy, Warren and a group of businessmen try to establish a fund together to bewitch another organ. Things hit another sour designate when Andy can’t accept on the pledges.
“Girl-Shy”: Another classic Helen blow-up episode. Warren is haunted around women until he is sleepwalking. In a somnambulistic spot, he gets unusual with Helen. Dreadful travel! Hell hath no fury like Helen!
“Otis, the Artist”: Another accepted of mine. Warren thinks mosaics might be an appropriate safety valve for Otis to discontinuance his drinking. Give Warren credit; his view almost works but, for once, Andy gets in the map of success.
“The Return of Barney Fife”: Don’t trouble, Barney appears in this season! In fact, Don Knotts won an Emmy for this episode. He returns for a class reunion and learns something plain about Thelma Lou.
“The Myth of Barney Fife”: Warren thinks Barney is a living anecdote but his hero esteem is keep to the test when Barney appears a coward when a convict he managed to pick escapes.
“Lost and Found”: Aunt Bee loses an antique brooch and collects on the insurance, only to slay up finding the pin. Jack Dodson (later to play Howard Sprague) appears as the insurance man.
“Wyatt Earp Rides Again”: The last appearance of Warren. A fellow claiming to be a descendant of Wyatt Earp along with his big-mouth promoter comes to Mayberry and teaches the kids that “the man who can fight is the man who is proper,” noteworthy to Andy’s chagrin.
“Aunt Bee Learns to Drive”: Andy is stunned when Aunt Bee is hooked on learning to drive, especially with Goober as her instructor.
“View Paw, I’m Dancing”: Opie dreads going to a school dance because he’s got two left feet (so to stutter) . Unbeknownst to him, this predicament was passed down from his father. Eye this episode to hear some REALLY abominable music!
“The Gypsies”: A gypsy curses Mayberry with a drought after Andy forbids them to sell their wares in town (how often did it rain in Mayberry, anyway? In “Aloof Sam” and I remember Ernest T’s “Sweet Romeena” mentioned it had rained during Mrs. Wiley’s party) .
“Eat Your Heart Out”: Goober has a crush on Flora, but Flora has her sights on a definite sheriff.
“A Baby in the House”: Aunt Bee takes care of a baby and is saddened because, every time she holds the baby, it cries (maybe the baby knows something about Aunt Bee that we don’t) .
“The County Clerk”: Enter Howard Sprague. Andy and Helen try to fix Howard up with a date but his overbearing mother does not approve. One of my favorites. I like the eps with Howard’s aged bat mother.
“The Foster Lady”: Aunt Bee becomes the Foster Furniture Polish Lady. Trivia: Accurate TAGS crew members are members of the commercial crew.
“Goober’s Replacement”: Flora fills in for Goober at the filling plot and her feminine charms increase business.
“The Battle of Mayberry”: Opie tries to find info on the famed town battle and, of course, everyone thinks their relatives were the heroes. What really happened was not reach as plucky.
“A Singer in Town”: Aunt Bee and Clara write a poem “My Hometown” that they try to net situation to music.
I have to disagree, at least somewhat, with all the reviewers and fans of TAGS who constantly criticize the color episodes (seasons 6-8, episodes 160-249) . Though I have to agree the consistency of the scripts wasn’t as respectable as seasons 1-5, there are some hidden ‘gems’ in each season, beginning with season 6.
Some of my personal favorites include:
ANDY’S RIVAL (EPISODE 163) - Expansive performance by dilapidated character actor Charles ‘Wild Wild West’ Aidman as a school teacher sent to Mayberry to explain Helen about a fresh grading system. Andy does a classic boring burn in several scenes as the seeds of jealousy are gradually planted, and Goober spats the classic line ‘if you’ve seen one monster, you’ve seen them all’ when reviewing the film ‘The Monster From Mars’…
A WARNING FROM WARREN (EPISODE 169) - No, Jack Burns was no Don Knotts…not even conclude. But as Andy would say ‘let’s be exquisite about this thing’…the man was establish in an IMPOSSIBLE position. Firt off, no one but NO ONE replaces Barney Fife. Secondly, the producers and writers were obviously aloof writing for Don Knotts. That said, this was the one ‘Warren’ episode I truly enjoyed. Again, Andy gives it the ’slooooooooow burn’ until the very destroy, when he unceremoniously dumps Goober and Warren into Myers lake…
NOTE: Goober’s order from the diner: A peanut butter and tuna sandwich…with a milkshake…um um obedient.
THE Sage OF BARNEY FIFE (EPISODE 177) - ‘Big Barn’ returns to Mayberry to collect an admirer of his past heroics (Warren) and an escaped prisoner on the loose. A prisoner he once helped keep away. Objective like primitive times, its Andy to the rescue of his conventional comrade. Enormous to glance Barney in action once again, and he shows spacious class in giving the credit of the arrest to Warren.
LOOK PA, I’M DANCING (EPISODE 181) - Hey, unprejudiced the single scene where Andy and Helen ‘bust a move’ is worth the note of admission…ol’ Ange jumps and hops about like he truly has ‘ants in the pants’….Geez, and I belief I was rhythm-less.
EAT YOUR HEART OUT (EPISODE 182) - Goober falls in esteem with Flora, but Flora falls for Andy. Helen stews at Andy while Goober is oblivious until Floyd ’spills the beans’ about seeing Flora kiss Andy. Goober confronts Andy, who eventually convinces Flora that its the Goob she ought to be crazy about.
Welcome to ‘Days of Our Lives’, Mayberry style. NOTE: Have to admit, that ‘meatloaf plate’ looked resplendent noble.
THE COUNTY CLERK (EPISODE 185) - Introduces everyone’s current ‘mama’s boy’, Howard Sprague, Mayberry County Clerk. Nasal, whiny, and under constant surveillance by a mother that can only be described as ‘Ultra-controlling’, Howard is brilliantly played by Jack Dodson, who would later characterize ‘Ralph Malph’s dad on ‘Happy Days’.
Again, are these episodes as consistently expedient as the dark and white shows? No. Does the demonstrate miss the tedious and Grand Don Knotts’ once-in-a-lifetime portrayal of Bernard P. Fife? Of course. Then again, as someone has earlier stated, I contemplate the worst color episode of Andy Griffith better than the complete garbage being offered on today’s network and cable ’sitcoms’, who seem to revel in insults and bodily functions.
Bottom line: Mayberry is mild a gigantic position to visit…even in color!
I’ll happily add seasons 6-8 to my DVD collection, and hope we discover a few extras tacked on.