Andy Griffith Show (DVD)
Paramount : The Complete 4th Season
APPROX. 0 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 1963 - MPA RATING: NR
" If life starts to seem a little too fast for you, I can't think of a better way to slow down than to put in a disc of The Andy Griffith Show.
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TV Guide named "The Andy Griffith Show" one of the most beloved series of all-time. It's a slice of Americana that features small-town values, endearingly flawed characters, and stories that reflect human foibles. And the number of people in America who can whistle the theme song from memory would probably astound you. The fourth season is solid, overall, but it offers a mixed bag of episodes. Some are classics, some are near-classics, and a handful are just so-so.
Welcome to Mayberry, North Carolina, where widowed Sheriff Andy Taylor (Griffith) is trying to raise his son, Opie (Ron Howard) with the help of his Aunt Bee (Frances Bavier). For comic relief there's his cousin, Deputy Barney Fife (Don Knotts), his friend and not-so-bright auto mechanic Gomer (Jim Nabors), and town drunk Otis (Hal Smith).
This was the season that began with a homily about having respect for life, and ended with goofy Gomer being inducted into the U.S. Marine Corps in what was showcased as a pilot episode for a new series. It was also the season that introduced audiences to Gomer's replacement, Cousin Goober (George Lindsey), and brought Briscoe and Charlene Darling (Denver Pyle and Margaret Ann Peterson) and the bluegrass-playing Darlings (life band The Dillards) to town on several occasions. In other words, Season 4 is a must-have for fans of the show.
1) "Opie, the Birdman"—An often-syndicated episode. After Opie kills a songbird with his slingshot, and makes amends by raising the baby birds himself.
2) "The Haunted House"—Only two people are more afraid of a local haunted house than Opie and his friends: Barney and Gomer. But Otis knows what's making those strange sounds in this near-classic episode.
3) "Ernest T. Bass Joins the Army"—It's rock-throwing time again as Bass (Howard Morris) goes ballistic when Andy puts the kibosh on his enlistment by convincing the army he's a troublemaker.
4) "The Sermon for Today"—The pastor's New York City colleague delivers a guest sermon that puts everyone to sleep and "inspires" them to reform the town band, with disastrous results. A pretty dull episode.
5) "Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee"—The Darlings come to town, which means more music and much awkwardness for Aunt Bee when Briscoe mistakes her kindness for affection.
6) "Gomer the House Guest"—It doesn't take long for Gomer to wear out his welcome after Andy and Aunt Bee give him a place to stay when he loses his job.
7) "A Black Day for Mayberry"—Barney discovers that all that glitters is not necessarily gold when the town turns out to cheer a Fort Knox shipment.
8) "Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain"—When Opie gets all A's in school, Andy's buttons pop . . . and then his lid, when he finds out the teacher really meant to give him F's.
9) "A Date for Gomer"—The only way Andy and Barney can take their dates to the big dance is if they set up Thelma Lou's cousin . . . with Gomer. And no one ends up dancing. Betty Lynn returns as Thelma Lou, and Anita Corseaut as Helen.
10) "Up in Barney's Room"—Barney has to sleep in the courthouse when he gets in an argument with his rooming-house landlady after smuggling in food. Another of the weaker episodes.
11) "Citizen's Arrest"—Classic episode finds Gomer feuding with Barney over a traffic ticket . . . that leads to Gomer making a "citizen's arrest" on Barney for a U-turn.
12) "Opie and His Merry Men"—Another syndication favorite finds Opie and his friends inspired to rob from the rich and give to the poor after they cross paths with a conniving hobo.
13) "Barney and the Cave Rescue"—Near-classic episode has Barney finding respect when he organizes a rescue party for Andy . . . a party that's almost ruined when Andy and Helen find their own way out of a cave after a cave-in.
14) "Andy and Opie's Pal"—Jealous of the attention his dad's paying a new kid in town, bandaged Opie concocts a story about a vicious fight between him and the boy.
15) "Aunt Bee the Crusader"—Aunt Bee turns activist to keep her friend, Mr. Frisby, from being evicted . . . though Andy is the one who has to serve the eviction papers.
