Andy Griffith, Salvage 1, 1979. ‘I wanna build a spaceship, go to the moon, salvage all the junk that’s up there, bring it back and sell it.’
Television and film icon Andy Griffith has died at the age of 86 at his home in North Carolina. Griffith was best known for playing sheriff Andy Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show (1960-68) and defense attorney Matlock (1986-1995).
During the 1970s, Griffith appeared in a wealth of TV projects and his series included Headmaster (1970), The New Andy Griffith Show (1971) and Salvage 1 (1979). He also appeared in the TV mini-series Washington: Behind Closed Doors (1977) and Centennial (1978-79). TV guest appearances included shots on Hawaii Five-O (1972), Here’s Lucy (1973), and The Bionic Woman (1976). You may also remember him as the narrator for Frosty’s Winter Wonderland (1976).
Thank you for the fine entertainment, Mr. Griffith. Let’s enjoy a few 1970s-era clips.
The New Andy Griffith Show, 1971:
Salvage 1, 1979:
“‘Throughout his career, he represented everything that was good about North Carolina: a small town boy and UNC graduate who took a light-hearted approach to some of the attributes he grew up with and turned them into a spectacularly successful career,’ she (Gov. Beverly Perdue) said. ‘And regardless of where that career took him, he always came back to North Carolina and spent his final years here.’
Actor and director Ron Howard, who played Griffith’s son, Opie Taylor, on ‘The Andy Griffith Show,’ said he is ‘forever grateful’ to the actor.
‘His pursuit of excellence and the joy he took in creating served generations & shaped my life,’ Howard said on Twitter.”