Attention all fans of Andy, Barney, Opie, Otis and the rest as a new bill introduced in the North Carolina State House seeks to settle the matter once and for all by declaring ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ as the official television show of the State of North Carolina. Sorry ‘Lizard Lick Towing,’ better luck next time.
“An Act Adopting ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ as the Official Television Show of the State of North Carolina,” or House Bill 557, was introduced by Rep. Kyle Hall (District 91 — Forsyth, Stokes) and cosponsors including Surry County’s own Rep. Sarah Stevens and Rep. Neal Jackson (R — District 78) and Rep. Brian Biggs (R — District 70).
The bill was introduced to the North Carolina State House on March 27 and was referred to the House Standing Committee on State and Local Government for further consideration on Monday.
In his bill, Hall gives a brief biography of Mount Airy native son Andy Griffith noting his birth on June 1, 1926, and graduation from Mount Airy High School in 1944. He left for college at UNC Chapel Hill and earned his degree in music before putting his degree to good use.
Hall said that Griffith is worthy of recognition for his seven-decade career in music and television as a singer, comedian, producer and writer. “Griffith celebrated his native state of North Carolina with iconic comedy tracks including ‘North Carolina, My Home State’ and ‘What It Was, Was Football.’”
“He took his celebration of North Carolina to Hollywood where he starred in ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ for a run of 249 episodes from 1960 to 1968,” Hall wrote in his bill. That is an average of more than 30 episodes per season.
Part of the reason for Hall’s bill is to honor the exposure that the show brought to North Carolina. “Performing as Andy Taylor, Griffith highlighted people, places, and attitudes from North Carolina that brought an awareness and fondness for the Old North State on a television show that dominated that national television ratings and ended its final season as the number one show in America,” he wrote.
The show inspired spin off television shows and a budding tourism industry for the City of Mount Airy that continues to this day with Mayberry Days bringing in loads of visitors each year.
Hall said more than the tourism boost, Andy Taylor imparted folksy wisdom and displayed “positive character values” that continue to resonate with fans of all ages even to this day.
For folks around this part of the state, his bill might be preaching to the choir, but Hall said that North Carolinians should know the location of Old Man Kelsey’s Woods or how to avoid a loaded goat, or how to “delicately navigate a situation involving Aunt Bea’s Pickles.”
“It is fitting to recognize the positive impact of ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ on our state and nation by adopting the show as the official television show of the state of North Carolina,” he concludes.
A member of Rep. Hall’s staff said he was out of the country and unavailable to offer comment on his bill.
