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MAKE ROOM FOR DADDY
July 4, 2012  | By David Bianculli

MeTV, 2:30 p.m. ET

 

Several TV networks are commemorating Andy Griffith’s death Tuesday, at age 86, by showing special programming blocks featuring the beloved actor. (For a full rundown, see Christy Slewinski’s Television & Beyond story HERE.) MeTV has a novel approach, showcasing Griffith’s guest-star appearances on other people’s shows – and this one, from 1960, is the most precious jewel in Griffith’s guest-star crown. It’s an episode of Danny Thomas’ long-running sitcom that served as a backdoor pilot for The Andy Griffith Show. Griffith plays Andy, a small-town sheriff who stops Thomas’ driving-through-town nightclub celebrity, Danny Williams, in a speed trap of sorts. Danny demands to take his case to the justice of the peace, then to the press – then finds that in this small town, they’re all the same guy, who’s also the sheriff. You can see, in this pilot, why Thomas and company wanted to build a show and a series around Griffith – and just how instantly, effortlessly charming he was.

 
 
 
 
 
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