Whether or not you were a big fan, you likely know all about The Andy Griffith Show, the hit 1960 sitcom that featured the lovable Sheriff Andy Taylor, keeping the peace in rural Mayberry with his hilarious deputy Barney Fife and caring for his adorable son, Opie. However, even fans may not recall that in 1971, three years after the original series went off the air, Griffith tried to recapture the magic of the ’60s show with The New Andy Griffith Show — and failed miserably. The new show confusingly featured many actors from the original Andy Griffith Show — but while some played their old characters, others played brand-new parts.
Why was The New Andy Griffith Show created?
After The Andy Griffith Show ended and Griffith had a tough time trying to become a big screen star, he decided to head back to TV. He reportedly wanted to “keep [his] old fans and add some younger ones” with a new story that combined comedy and drama. At first, he tried a new show called Headmaster, where he starred as the headmaster of a private California school. The show tried to confront edgier, more contemporary issues than The Andy Griffith Show ever did, but it did not do well in ratings and was almost immediately cancelled.
Griffith said at the time, according to MeTV, “I felt uncomfortable, out of my bag, playing a school teacher, though I used to be one. The first day of the second show, when I sat down on the couch in the headmaster’s house, I felt a physical reaction. I was really nervous, as if I was a kid again in my professor’s house and unprepared. I was always uneasy in school— grammar school, high school, college. Whenever I went to class I felt I wanted to die; I always wanted to get behind someone tall. There wasn’t a prayer that I’d stand at the front.”
So, he tried again with The New Andy Griffith Show, which premiered on CBS in 1971. In a January 8, 1971 interview promoting the show for the Anaheim Bulletin, Griffith said, “From now on, I’m going to stick to comedy. That’s what I know best, that’s what I do best, and thats what I’m most comfortable doing.”
According to an interview around the same time with The Houston Post, Griffith said that during his time on Headmaster, “I talked to a lot of people about it, and almost everyone agreed that I liked familiar things and I should stick with them.” As Headmaster struggled in the ratings, Griffith connected with Andy Griffith Show writer Aaron Ruben, and thought about sending his Headmaster character to a Southern environment, where Griffith might feel more comfortable. Instead, the network suggested he come up with an entirely new show. Griffith estimated that they came up with the show and pulled together the cast in roughly three weeks.
Perhaps that abbreviated time frame was why the show was so head-scratching. This time, Griffith played Andy Sawyer, the mayor of a small North Carolina town, which he described to the Anaheim Bulletin as “a role I can feel comfortable in.” To help lure fans of the original series, the show even brought back familiar Mayberry faces in guest spots, including Don Knotts, George Lindsey and Paul Hartman — though some played their original characters, which was confusing for viewers, as Griffith no longer played Sheriff Andy Taylor but Mayor Andy Sawyer, and was no longer a loving single father to Opie, but was now married to Lee Meriwether, with a whole new brood of kids.
Unfortunately, the approach backfired. Rather than seeing it as a fresh start, many fans felt confused by the recycled characters in new roles, and critics pointed out the lack of originality. The series only lasted a few weeks before CBS pulled the plug, canceling it after just 10 episodes. At the time, CBS was also undergoing its famous “rural purge,” dropping shows that were seen as too old-fashioned or small-town in favor of urban and youth-oriented programming.
Griffith rarely mentioned the show in the years that followed, though in an interview with the Television Academy about the years following his original show, he briefly commented that the New Andy Griffith Show “didn’t go anywhere.”
Do you remember these short-lived shows? Let us know in the comments.
Whether or not you were a big fan, you likely know all about The Andy Griffith Show, the hit 1960 sitcom that featured the lovable Sheriff Andy Taylor, keeping the peace in rural Mayberry with his hilarious deputy Barney Fife and caring for his adorable son, Opie. However, even fans may not recall that in 1971, three years after the original series went off the air, Griffith tried to recapture the magic of the ’60s show with The New Andy Griffith Show — and failed miserably. The new show confusingly featured many actors from the original Andy Griffith Show — but while some played their old characters, others played brand-new parts.
Why was The New Andy Griffith Show created?
After The Andy Griffith Show ended and Griffith had a tough time trying to become a big screen star, he decided to head back to TV. He reportedly wanted to “keep [his] old fans and add some younger ones” with a new story that combined comedy and drama. At first, he tried a new show called Headmaster, where he starred as the headmaster of a private California school. The show tried to confront edgier, more contemporary issues than The Andy Griffith Show ever did, but it did not do well in ratings and was almost immediately cancelled.
Griffith said at the time, according to MeTV, “I felt uncomfortable, out of my bag, playing a school teacher, though I used to be one. The first day of the second show, when I sat down on the couch in the headmaster’s house, I felt a physical reaction. I was really nervous, as if I was a kid again in my professor’s house and unprepared. I was always uneasy in school— grammar school, high school, college. Whenever I went to class I felt I wanted to die; I always wanted to get behind someone tall. There wasn’t a prayer that I’d stand at the front.”
So, he tried again with The New Andy Griffith Show, which premiered on CBS in 1971. In a January 8, 1971 interview promoting the show for the Anaheim Bulletin, Griffith said, “From now on, I’m going to stick to comedy. That’s what I know best, that’s what I do best, and thats what I’m most comfortable doing.”
According to an interview around the same time with The Houston Post, Griffith said that during his time on Headmaster, “I talked to a lot of people about it, and almost everyone agreed that I liked familiar things and I should stick with them.” As Headmaster struggled in the ratings, Griffith connected with Andy Griffith Show writer Aaron Ruben, and thought about sending his Headmaster character to a Southern environment, where Griffith might feel more comfortable. Instead, the network suggested he come up with an entirely new show. Griffith estimated that they came up with the show and pulled together the cast in roughly three weeks.
Perhaps that abbreviated time frame was why the show was so head-scratching. This time, Griffith played Andy Sawyer, the mayor of a small North Carolina town, which he described to the Anaheim Bulletin as “a role I can feel comfortable in.” To help lure fans of the original series, the show even brought back familiar Mayberry faces in guest spots, including Don Knotts, George Lindsey and Paul Hartman — though some played their original characters, which was confusing for viewers, as Griffith no longer played Sheriff Andy Taylor but Mayor Andy Sawyer, and was no longer a loving single father to Opie, but was now married to Lee Meriwether, with a whole new brood of kids.
Unfortunately, the approach backfired. Rather than seeing it as a fresh start, many fans felt confused by the recycled characters in new roles, and critics pointed out the lack of originality. The series only lasted a few weeks before CBS pulled the plug, canceling it after just 10 episodes. At the time, CBS was also undergoing its famous “rural purge,” dropping shows that were seen as too old-fashioned or small-town in favor of urban and youth-oriented programming.
Griffith rarely mentioned the show in the years that followed, though in an interview with the Television Academy about the years following his original show, he briefly commented that the New Andy Griffith Show “didn’t go anywhere.”
