Technically, The Andy Griffith Show is turning 60 years old. But Mayberry is timeless. No matter how many times you watch, the sitcom always makes you laugh and smile.
And, decades later, there are still things to discover. In fact, there is even a big mystery that remains to this day! (See item 21 for more on that.)
To toast Andy, Opie, Barney, Bee and all the merry Mayberry denizens, here are 60 things you might not know about The Andy Griffith Show. We look forward to telling you many more in the years to come…
1. The Andy Griffith Show creator wanted to take Andy's name off the series title.
Griffith said that creator Sheldon Leonard at one point regretted that they named the show after the actor. He wanted to call to simply call it Mayberry.
2. At first, Mayberry had a totally different name.
The town was actually called Mt. Pilot before it became Mayberry! Andy himself confirmed this fact.
3. Andy's real-life wife Barbara had a tiny role on The Andy Griffith Show.
You can spot her in "Barney and the Choir."
4. Joanna Moore was the first woman to wear pants on The Andy Griffith Show.
Between Ellie Walker and Helen Crump, Peggy is the overlooked lover of Sheriff Andy. She does have one claim to fame, however. She was the first female character wearing pants, as seen in "Opie's Rival."
5. Aneta Corsaut named a character "Phil Sunkel" and the real Phil Sunkel sued.
One of the visiting musicians in "The Mayberry Band" is a certain breed of beatnik jazz head. This trumpet player sports a Van Dyke goatee and spouts lines like, "Don't worry about it, daddy." The name of this hornblower is Phil Sunkel. Aneta Corsaut, who played Helen Crump on the show, named the character. She suggested the name to screenwriter Jim Fritzell in tribute to a friend of hers. Corsaut happened to know a cool jazz horn player named Phil Sunkel. Sunkel sued The Andy Griffith Show for $20,000 for using his name without permission.