The Opening Scene’s Backstory
The Andy Griffith Show’s opening scene showcases Andy Taylor, portrayed by Andy Griffith himself, shaking his son, Opie Taylor’s head as a sign of approval. In an interview, it was revealed that Griffith really wanted to make the opening scene like that in order to remember his father and how he used to shake Andy’s head when he was at Opie’s age. That is really a touching fact, isn’t it?
A Secret That Andy Had Kept
When he was torn between choosing either staying in The Andy Griffith Show or signing a contract with Universal Pictures, Don Knotts offered Andy Griffith a deal saying that he would stay if he would give him a cut and a slot in the production team wherein half of the earnings were Andy’s. However, Griffith rejected him. Well, it turned out that Andy was actually getting more than half of the show’s earnings and that was why he didn’t want anyone to take away some of that money from him.