Earlier than Andy Griffith rubbed elbows with rising and established Hollywood stars on Matlock, he did so on his unique small-screen declare to fame, The Andy Griffith Present.
On that CBS sitcom — a derivative of The Danny Thomas Present — Griffith performed Andy Taylor, the widowed sheriff of the fictional Mayberry, North Carolina. Ron Howard, in the meantime, performed Andy’s son, Opie; Frances Bavier performed his aunt, Bee Taylor; and Don Knotts performed his deputy, Barney Fife. The present ran for eight seasons from 1960 to 1968, ending its run at No. 1 and provoking the spinoffs Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. and Mayberry R.F.D.