One of the real staples of entertainment has died at the age of 81.
Don Knotts, forever to be remembered at the bumbling deputy Barney Fife to Andy Griffith’s calm and cool demeaner on the old Andy Griffith show died Friday night due to respiratory complications.
Don Knotts was a legend with razor sharp wit and a comedic timing that put him at the top of his game. Even as he aged his brillant mind and cleverness never failed him.
Andy Griffith, Don’s old boss and lifelong friend said Saturday upon hearing of Knott’s passing, “Don was a small man … but everything else about him was large: his mind, his expressions….Don was special. There’s nobody like him. “I loved him very much,” Griffith added. “We had a long and wonderful life together.”
Knotts came on the scene in the very beginnings of TV’s hey day appearing as the ultra nervous man on the street on the old Steve Allen Tonight Show. Him and Griffith first worked together in the classic comedy film, “No Time For Sargents,” and they remained friends and continued working together for over a half a century. Knotts even did a stint on Griffith’s successful “Matlock” series.
The recipient of many awards, including his Emmy for his work on “The Andy Griffith Show,” Knotts had a long, illustrious and successful career that spanned two generations of viewers.
His film career was just as successful. The unlikely leading man was perfect for parts requiring his split-second timing and sharp mind.
Nearly all of Knott’s movies were comedies, but even many of those dealt with fantasy and even dabbled in scifi.
In the part-animated 1964 film “The Incredible Mr. Limpet,” Knotts played a meek clerk who turns into a fish after he is rejected by the Navy, and ends up being the hero that saved the naval fleet.
When it was announced in 1998 that Jim Carrey would star in a “Limpet” remake, Knotts responded: “I’m just flattered that someone of Carrey’s caliber is remaking something I did. Now, if someone else did Barney Fife, THAT would be different.”
Some of his other films that deal with fables, fantasy and scifi but always with his tongue planted firmly in his cheek were “The Reluctant Astronaut,” “The Love God,” The Ghost and Mr.Chicken,” Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo,” and the pivotal role in the very popular “Pleasantville.”
We have all lost someone who knew how to make us laugh out loud at the most ridiculous and yet endearing aspects of our human nature.
Sad….I’ll always remember watching reruns of the show with my grandfather. Rest in peace Mr. Knotts, you’ll always be in the hearts and minds of people.
That was a very touching tribute to a wonderful man. Thanks for writing it.
I feel like Chicken Little today…that the sky is falling about me since I have heard that the world has lost such a dear man. Mr. Knotts, you may have had only one bullet in your pocket, but you didn’t need it to get to the heart of people. You truly were the LOVE GOD…as SO MANY of us from so many generations, young and old, LOVED YOU DEARLY! I am 50, my son is 10. We both will be watching your movies all day Sunday in memory of you. We love you, Don! REST IN PEACE AS YOU SHINE YOUR STAR OF FAME IN HEAVEN!
Whatever role or character Don Knotts played, he always made me smile.
I am 52 and will always remember the way you made me laugh over the years on the Andy Griffith Show. I guess my favorite movie is The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. The nervous little man who wanted the girl and the job went through so much to get it all. The expressions you made throughout this movie was hilarious. Being a friend of Andy for all these years, I’m sure you was a Christian and Jesus will be sure to welcome you with open arms. You will be remembered.
God Bless.
I always remember staying home sick from school and my mother let me watch tv in her bed those days and it was always Andy of Mayberry that i remember most watching. Don Knotts really touched my life with such laughter and also loved Three’s company and his role in it . Andy and Don are always a duo that is special .
Don and Jack Ritter was special and how Don supported Jack like Andy supported Don . Don really had a big heart that way as did Andy . Thank you Don Knotts for all your great acting for those incredible facial expressions and body language like no one else did .