Andy Griffith Net Worth

Andy Griffith's Quotes

• [on his off-camera relationship with Frances Bavier, who played Aunt Bee] There was just something about me she did not like.
• [How he valued Don Knotts as an actor/best friend]: I loved Don. There was no one like him.
• [For making Chapel Hill, which is where he went to college, proud of him]: I am proud of my connections to Carolina and pleased to know that some results from a lifetime of work on television, film, stage and recordings will have a permanent home in Chapel Hill.
• I was baptized alongside my mother when I was 8 years old. Since then, I have tried to walk a Christian life, ... And now that I'm getting older, I realized that I'm walking even closer with my God.
• I still play that guitar. It's a Martin D-18 with a clear pick guard. I've played that guitar on and off my TV shows for nearly 50 years.

Interesting Facts about Andy Griffith

1. Suffered from Guillain-Barre Syndrome and couldn't walk for 7 months. [1983].
2. His son, Andy Griffith Jr., died of alcoholism, in 1996.
3. His two children, Andy Griffith Jr. and Dixie Griffith, were from his first of three wives, Barbara Griffith, as they decided to be parents, by adoption.
4. In 1987, when he accepted the People's Choice Award, he said he was happy it was for Matlock (1986). He said that Matlock (1986) was his favorite character to date.
5. On May 9, 2000, he successfully underwent a quadruple bypass surgery.
6. He was the Tuesday night host for CBS Radio's "Sears Mystery Theater" (1979). He was still Tuesday's host when it became "The Mutual Radio Theater" on Mutual Radio (1980).
7. Attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he earned a Bachelor's Degree in Music in 1949. He originally attended school to study to be a Moravian preacher before he changed his major.His social life in college included: President of UNC Men's Glee Club and membership in Alpha Rho Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, the US' oldest music fraternity for men.
8. He recorded some albums of standup comedy, including one titled "Just for Laughs". Among his classic routines is "What It Was, Was Football", about a country bumpkin who witnesses his first football game.
9. Biography in: "Who's Who in Comedy" by Ronald L. Smith, pg. 195-196. New York: Facts on File, 1992. ISBN 0816023387
10. Andy Griffith's longest and most popular character role of Andy Taylor, on The Andy Griffith Show (1960), was ranked at number 8 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time", in Sunday, June 20th, 2004's issue.
11. Was twice nominated for Broadway's Tony Award: in 1956, as Best Supporting of Featured Actor (Dramatic) for "No Time for Sergeants," and in 1960 as Best Actor (Musical) for "Destry Rides Again."
12. During a 1959 performance of the Broadway musical "Destry Rides Again", in which Griffith starred opposite Dolores Gray, a small fire broke out backstage at the Imperial Theater. Although it was put out within a few minutes time, without causing any major damage, just enough smoke drifted toward the stage that there could have been a panic had not Griffith and Gray continued on with the scene as though nothing was happening. For their bravery, they were rewarded by the audience that night with a standing ovation and by the New York City Fire Comissioner with citations for heroism.
13. Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush on Tuesday November 9th, 2005. Other recipients were Frank Robinson, Muhammad Ali, General Richard Myers, Paul Rusesabagina, Carol Burnett, Aretha Franklin, Vint Cerf and his Internet co-developer Robert Kahn, Jack Nicklaus, Alan Greenspan, and former congressman Gillespie "Sonny" Montgomery.
14. Was on same stage with Elvis Presley in The Steve Allen Show (1951). It was Steve Allen's second show, after Allen piloted his debut, with more popular celebrities, Bob Hope, and others were in the debut and pilot, the previous week, and Allen's show skyrocketed in popularity.
15. The town of Mayberry on "The Andy Griffith Show" is based upon Andy Griffith's hometown Mount Airy, North Carolina. By the same token, the characters on the show will commonly mention the "sister city" of Mount Pilot. Mount Pilot does exist, but its true name is Pilot Mountain, and has the same basic geographical positioning to Mount Airy as Mayberry does to Mount Pilot. The towns in both reality and the series are about 15 miles apart. Both towns (in both universes) are north of Winston-Salem, North Carolina near the North Carolina and Virginia state borders.
16. Best known by the public for his starring roles as Andy Taylor in The Andy Griffith Show (1960) and the title character in Matlock (1986).
17. He and Don Knotts were best friends from 1955 to Friday, February 24, 2006, when Don Knotts died.
18. Was idolized by: Nancy Stafford, Clarence Gilyard Jr., Daniel Roebuck, Randolph Mantooth, Katie Couric and Matt Lauer.
19. Taught English at Goldsboro High School in Goldsboro, North Carolina for a period of time.
20. Before Andy's parents had purchased a house, he lived with relatives. Without a crib or bed, Andy slept in drawers for a few months, just a couple of years after he was born.