Frances Bavier wasn’t Andy Griffith’s choice for Aunt Bee
On The Andy Griffith Show, Andy Griffith and Frances Bavier are like kin. The pair had believable family chemistry, realistically portraying the dynamic between the aging matriarch and protagonist lawman. But when the cameras weren’t rolling, the truth wasn’t quite as picture-perfect, as Griffith and Bavier struggled to get along.
Don Knotts’ brother-in-law, Daniel de Visé, published one of the definitive volumes on the subject with Andy and Don: The Making of a Friendship and a Classic American TV Show.
The book characterizes Frances Bavier’s presence on the set as steady and cool. She didn’t partake in any of the practical jokes the cast played and refrained from all the singing and dancing others enjoyed.
This all reflected Aunt Bee’s place on the show. While every other character on the show got to go for a laugh, Aunt Bee was frequently the voice of reason. Andy, who played that role to Barney, got to shrug the responsibility onto Bavier in scenes they shared. Aunt Bee was always being upstaged by Andy, Barney, or Opie.
“I’ve had to take a backseat and watch others get the laughs,” Bavier told TV Guide in January of 1964. The article noted she’d been attending “analysis” due to her relegated role in the show.
That growing dissatisfaction seemed to be a two-way street, according to sources close to the show.
Griffith “seemed to bear some kind of resentment toward Frances,” said Rance Howard. In addition to being Ron Howard’s father, Rance appeared on four episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, playing four different characters over three years.
“I think she was Sheldon Leonard’s choice [for the role of Aunt Bee],” said the elder Howard. “And she may not have been Andy’s choice.”
Jim Nabors, by contrast, got along swimmingly with Bavier.
“I remember we were walking back from a table reading on our way to the soundstage,” said Rance Howard. “And I heard Jim [Nabors] say, not loudly, but he said, ‘Andy, she’s a good actress. You be nice to her.’ And Andy had no reply for that.”
