Question: Beginning with the "Convicts at Large" episode in season 3, full width window boxes appear at the bottom of both front windows on the inside of the Sheriff's Office. Prior to this episode, they did not exist. Window boxes are often used to display decorative plants but I don't see any plants. And if they were supposed to partially block the background, the blinds were long enough to accomplish that. I find it hard to believe that the producers would spend additional money (for material and labor) for something that seems to serve no purpose. So why were they added?
Answer: As noted in the previous answers, in real life, things like this provided wind and/or rain deflection, and also maintained a bit of privacy when blinds were raised somewhat. The interior courthouse set was located in the studio, so the "outside" Main Street didn't exist. I believe these things were added to the courthouse windows for practicality, to avoid some crew movement being visible on the opposite side of those windows. These are not "window boxes" to hold anything, as they're actually bottomless; we can see the Venetian blind's long pull cords under them. They're made of plywood and simple to build, so the "material and labor" was inexpensive. Similar variations made of different materials are in other movies/shows. In 1957's "12 Angry Men," textured chicken wire glass panels are in the jury room windows, and in "Jesse Stone: Night Passage" another type is in Jesse's office windows.
Answer: I suspect these were common, as to block the wind from blowing the blinds and papers on the desk.
Question: Who was Ralph Henderson?
Answer: In S3 x E11 Convicts-at-Large, there is a character named Big Maude Tyler, who is the leader of three female escaped convicts. Andy listens to the radio as the news announcer says that Big Maude's aliases include Clarice or Annabelle Tyler and also one amusingly named Ralph Henderson.
Question: Why is it when they were on the show the Darling sons never spoke? Would they be paid more if they did, or was this some sort of joke?
Answer: It was a joke. They were supposed to be dumb hillbillies.
Both. According to later interviews with both Andy and the Dillards band (the real name of the band that played the parts of the Darling children, of which Charlene (Maggie Peterson - Mancuso was also a member) the reason the Darling boys never had any lines was because they would've had to have been paid if they spoke. In return for appearing without lines or pay, Andy promised to get as much of their music onto the show as possible which, he did. This obviously gave them a lot of exposure.
Question: In what episode was the tune that became the theme for Mayberry RFD originally used? I remember it was B/W and had something to do with a bank robbery and the old guard Acer.
Answer: The episode with the bank robbery and old guard named Asa is from season 3, episode 13 "The Bank Job," but the music can be heard much earlier than that. The theme music for Mayberry RFD is named "The Mayberry March" and a few bits here and there can be heard in several episodes of season 1, such as "Bringing Up Opie, " however, in season 2, episode 4 "Mayberry Goes Bankrupt" about half a minute of the music is heard while Frank's house is being renovated.
Question: When Peggy is mad at Andy and storms away she gets into a car with the steering wheel on the right side. I'm just curious as to why?
Answer: Steering wheel looked like it was on the right hand side. Maybe the car was an import from England.
Answer: From what I see, the steering wheel is on the left hand side. She just happens to get in on the passenger side, to avoid going around the car into the street or the bushes were blocking her way.
Answer: I answered a similar question about this show, and I'll repost what was from the Internet as a possible reason: This could be production-related in setting up the shot. For example, getting in on the passenger side can be shot as a locked-down tripod shot. Getting in on the driver side means the character has to walk around the car, requiring at minimum a pan/tilt/zoom and probably a dolly shot to make it look good (they didn't have Steadicams back then, so any time the camera had to move, a dolly track had to built for it to roll on). That would add expense and time to what was really just an establishing shot. This was a low-budget, weekly TV show, and scenes would shot in the easiest, fastest, and most economical way possible, even if it seems somewhat illogical.
Except the way the shot was set up, the camera wouldn't have had to follow her walking around the car. Being equipment-related is the least likely reason.
Question: Whose car were Barney and Floyd driving in this episode? If this was Floyd's car, why was he not driving?
Answer: When Floyd and Barney have run out of gas, Barney chides Floyd by saying, "Why didn't you put gas in this car? If you're gonna drive through the country, you're supposed to make sure the tank is filled." This suggests it's Floyd's car. Since Barney insisted he knew a shortcut, Floyd let him drive the car.
Barney and the Governor - S3-E15
Question: Who was the young man standing in courthouse with the governor when he shook Barney's hand?
Answer: Right before Barney and Andy walk into the courthouse to meet Governor Ed, his chauffeur (played by Rance Howard) is standing beside the Governor's car. In the next shot inside the courthouse, when Governor Ed shakes Barney's hand, I'm presuming the young man with the Governor is his aide or personal assistant. The young man is carrying an attache case which likely belongs to the Governor, and earlier the Governor told Andy that he had some business in the vicinity.
Answer: I heard that that man was also Ron Howard's real father. Is that true?
Yes. The governor's chauffeur was played by Rance Howard (Ron Howard's father).
Question: The star on the uniform patch (right sleeve) has five points and the star on the patrol car has five points but the actual badge has six points. Why the discrepancy?
Answer: There's probably no known reason for the discrepancy, and it's unlikely related to the story line. It may simply be that the show's props department were lax about small details like that. It could also be explained that Mayberry being such a small town with a limited budget may have acquired surplus badges and other second-hand equipment from some other town's police department.
Question: In "Barney's First Car", what was the thing that came out of the steering wheel?
Answer: It is supposed to be part of the steering column. It was actually put there for comic relief.
Question: Why did they always get in and out of the passenger side of the car on the Andy Griffith show?
Answer: Back in the 50's and early 60's it was a law that you had to get into and out of your car from the sidewalk side, so I assume they were following that procedure.
Answer: I found this online, as apparently others wondered the same thing. It is only one explanation but it seems plausible: (paraphrased) It could be equipment-related. Getting in on the passenger side can be shot as a locked-down tripod shot. Getting in on the driver side means the guy has to walk around the car, requiring at minimum a pan/tilt/zoom and probably a dolly shot to make it look good (they didn't have Steadicams back then, so any time the camera had to move, a dolly track had to built for it to roll on). That would add expense and time to what was really just an establishing shot. This was a low-budget TV show, and it was cheaper to shoot it that way.
The Guitar Player Returns - S1-E31
Question: The type of sports car Jim Lindsey drives is not shown in this episode - what car is it? (00:02:30 - 00:03:30)
Answer: The car appears to be a Mercedes-Benz 190 SL. I cannot tell which year.
Chosen answer: It is only mentioned as being a "red sports car." The Andy Griffith show was made long before "product placement" became common in movies and TV shows, and brand names were rarely identified.
Not true. Ford provided the cars and the squad cars were all Ford Galaxies. That would explain not showing the badge on any non-Ford car.
Question: When Andy and Karen are competing at the skeet shoot, Andy fires his last shot and Barney states "he missed." If you look closely, several pieces of the skeet actually break off the skeet, but the primary skeet is missed. Not knowing the details of skeet shooting, how much of the skeet must be destroyed for a successful "hit"? (00:19:50)
Answer: Even a chip, if it's visible to the scorer, is a broken target. There are no minimums.
High Noon in Mayberry - S3-E17
Question: When Luke Comstock called Andy to let him know he was coming over, why did Andy choose not to keep himself armed in the event Luke's intentions proved sinister? Andy had no way of knowing ahead of time if Luke was coming back to seek revenge on him. Barney even said that the person matching Luke's description was seen carrying a shotgun. Luke was armed, so Andy should have been just in case Luke tried anything.
Answer: Throughout the show, it is established multiple times that Andy doesn't use firearms. (At least not for police work.) He has the ability to de-escalate most situations without resorting to force or the threat of violence.
Question: In the first episode Barney and Andy are cousins. Later they are friends. Are they no longer cousins? Season 2 "The Clubmen" Andy references Barney as his friend.
Answer: The first episode was the pilot and like all first episodes, it was something to show the network executives. Once it was picked up they fine tuned the show and the characters.
Question: Were black actors ever shown in the black and white versions of the Andy Griffith show?
Answer: I believe Rockne Tarkington (from season 7) was the only black person with a speaking line in the entire show, which is what I'd say qualifies someone to be an actor in the show. That being said, there were at least a handful of black and white episodes (season 1-5) where black extras were used and seen on screen. For example, "Barney Gets His Man" (season 1) and "Opie and the Carnival" (season 5). But none of them had any lines and weren't credited for their appearance.
Answer: Those "boxes" are valences that used to be very common, before air conditioning. They allow for windows to be open during rain storms. They permit air circulation, without letting the rain in.