The Wholesome Andy Griffith Show Quiz

A sign at the entrance to Mayberry reads “Welcome to Mayberry, The Friendly Town.” Mayberry is a fictional town, but in the show characters occasionally mention Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina.

The Fishin’ Hole is played during the opening and closing credits. Although the song has lyrics, the show features a version in which the lyrics are replaced with skillful whistling. During the opening, Andy and Opie carry fishing poles, and Opie tosses a stone in the water.

The character Sheriff Andy Taylor is introduced on The Danny Thomas Show in 1960, in an episode called Danny Meets Andy Griffith. Note that even then, in the title, the character Andy Taylor is overshadowed by the actor Andy Griffith.

Beatrice Taylor is Andy’s aunt—the famous Aunt Bee. She raised Andy, and now she is helping to raise Andy’s son, Opie. Andy is a widower in the show.

Because Ford was a show sponsor, the sheriff always drives a Ford Galaxie. The Galaxie was produced in the U.S. for model years 1959 to 1974.

Aunt Bee is a great cook, but she never mastered the art of pickling. The guys call her pickles “kerosene cucumbers,” in fact. They substitute her terrible homemade pickles with some store-bought ones to spare her feelings, but their plan backfires when she decides to enter that jar in a contest at the county fair.

Floyd the Barber was famous for trimming sideburns unevenly, but somehow he stayed in business. Howard McNear, the actor who portrayed Floyd, suffered a stroke during the series’ run. Afterward, his speech patterns changed and he had to sit or lean against something in all of his scenes.

Sheriff Andy and Ellie the pharmacist fake a robbery at her drugstore so Barney can come to the rescue. Andy also encourages Barney to ask out a shy woman named Rosemary.

Rockne Tarkington appeared as Flip Conroy, Opie’s football coach, in the episode Opie’s Piano Lesson. Tarkington had recurring roles on Daktari and The Banana Splits Adventure Hour.

The poster above the bookcase is a Woman’s Day Chart of Presidents of the United States, published in 1952. The most recent president in the poster is Eisenhower, who served from 1953 to 1961.

Andy is looking forward to an evening home alone, but Goober comes over and makes spaghetti. Then Goober reminds Andy that he is supposed to have dinner at Howard’s. Andy goes there and finds out that Howard was not expecting him, but nevertheless he has more spaghetti. Finally, they figure out that dinner is at Helen's. She’s mad that he is so late, but she still serves him spaghetti.

The mysterious Mr. Schwamp casually appears in 26 episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, perhaps sitting on a bench or meandering in the background, but he never speaks. Andy and Barney both mention his name. He also appears in Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., which is set across the country in California.

Barney is suspicious of a new farmer in town, Sam Becker, because he buys a lot of medical supplies and stays close to his home. Barney gets Andy to investigate, and Andy ends up helping to deliver Sam’s wife’s baby.

Actor Andy Griffith wears a cast while portraying Andy Taylor because he sprained it when he punched a wall. Look for the cast in episodes Aunt Bee the Warden and The County Nurse.

Emmett Clark is a handyman, and he owns Emmett’s Fix-It Shop. His shop replaces Floyd’s Barber Shop when Floyd decides to retire.

Frankie Flint is a shy farmer’s daughter who works on the farm and has little chance to be feminine. Her father resents Ellie’s efforts to help Frankie by giving her makeup because his daughter is the only help he has on the farm. In a sexist resolution suitable for the early 1960s, Andy convinces the farmer that his daughter could be made more useful by attracting a husband, i.e., a strong farmhand.

Ron Howard played Richie Cunningham on Happy Days from 1974 to 1984. After that, he transitioned into directing, producing, and writing. His films include Splash, Cocoon, Apollo 13, The Da Vinci Code, and Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Andy Taylor is a fairly serious, homespun character who keeps everyone in Mayberry on the straight and narrow. “ .. And loving it” is a phrase used by Maxwell Smart in the show Get Smart.

Barney Fife has different middle names, depending on the episode and the current writer’s whim. In A Plaque for Mayberry, Barney’s name may be Tibbs or Oliver. In Class Reunion, his middle name is Milton. Additionally, sometimes he has the middle initial P. So who knows?

Both Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. and Mayberry R.F.D. are spinoffs. An episode of The Andy Griffith Show titled Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. served as a pilot for the Pyle show. In the final season of the Griffith show, a new character, Sam Jones, was introduced, and he later starred in the spinoff/sequel Mayberry R.F.D.