where ANdy and Barney go to Raleigh to see if they are a fit for that club


Barney is just amazing in that episode, I can't get through it without laughing non stop

where ANdy and Barney go to Raleigh to see if they are a fit for that club


Barney is just amazing in that episode, I can't get through it without laughing non stop
Non-stop hilarious. Top 5 all-time episode. One of many appearances of Alan Melvin as hotel security.

Good episode, but I wonder why would they want andy and barney, the club seems pretty upscale and andy and barney are just small-town hicks.

Non-stop hilarious. Top 5 all-time episode. One of many appearances of Alan Melvin as hotel security.

Melvin was hotel security in "Andy and Barney in the Big City", not "The Clubmen".

So in this episode, Andy and Barney drive to Raleigh for the 8:00 pm club meeting and then drive back to Mayberry after the meeting. But a few episodes later in Andy and Barney in the Big City, they take a bus to Raieigh and stay overnight in a ritzy hotel. This is one of the many inconsistencies throughout the series.

but I wonder why would they want andy and barney, the club seems pretty upscale and andy and barney are just small-town hicks.


I have a theory on that. It was Andy's fisherman buddy who was inviting Andy to join. So I figured that he wanted to invite fellow clubmen to fish at Andy's favorite spot, and it would look boorish to do so, unless Andy could be made part of the clique? That way he would be welcoming his club brothers to his fishin' hole

Yeah, I think that most people in life use others in exactly this way

I have a theory on that. It was Andy's fisherman buddy who was inviting Andy to join. So I figured that he wanted to invite fellow clubmen to fish at Andy's favorite spot, and it would look boorish to do so, unless Andy could be made part of the clique? That way he would be welcoming his club brothers to his fishin' hole


Andy didn't have exclusive rights to the fishing hole. The guys from the Esquire Club could have gone fishing there anytime, regardless of whether or not Andy was a club member.

No good fishing holes near Raleigh?

Andy didn't have exclusive rights to the fishing hole. The guys from the Esquire Club could have gone fishing there anytime, regardless of whether or not Andy was a club member.

No good fishing holes near Raleigh?

I think that it's more a matter of etiquette than one of ownership. If I invited you to a special hunting or fishing "spot" that I had uncommon good luck in times past, and the next week you were up there with family and friends, not only would I feel betrayed, but your and my friendship would be thru.

Additionally, Perhaps you might remember near the end of the episode after Barney's rejection was shared with Andy and he declined to join as well, he reassured to two clubmen that there were no hard feelings and that they could continue to fish the location...(?)

I believe that etiquette does in fact figure here.

In the final scene, it probably would have been more tactful for Andy to tell Barney that neither of them was accepted into the Esquire Club.

Good episode, but I wonder why would they want andy and barney, the club seems pretty upscale and andy and barney are just small-town hicks.

How would the club members even know about Andy and barney??
I can see them cozying up to some big city police chief but andy and Barney are way below the club members radar.

Club members Roger Courtney, Cliff Britain, Tom Wilson, Jim Baker, John Danby, and George Bronson were all named after teachers from the school Andy Griffith taught at during his stint as a teacher.

Andy Taylor seemed to have a penchant for putting Barney into situations he was going to fail at. That theme comes up over and over again during the course of the first 5 seasons. The Clubmen episode is example of this. By the time we get to this season 2 episode we have already seen Barney overreact and exercise incredibly poor judgement on numerous occasions. The Esquire Club was a supposed big deal with movers and shakers as members, Andy had never met any of the members outside of his fishing buddy, why would ask if he could bring his deputy in the first place. Wouldn't it have made sense for Andy to go alone, see what was going on, and if he should be invited to join then make a decision about recommending Barney for membership at some point down the road.

As one who has joined various clubs of interests (where you need to be sponsored and then be informed as whether you had been approved), I think it's more interesting to have people from different backgrounds. However, not everyone feels that way.

Personally, I think Barney was trying hard (too hard) to fit in with the highbrow members. Talking about stocks and market trends is probably what some of the Esquire Club members would be interested in. Would it have been better for Andy and Barney to be discussing "shop" about how to fix the town drunk or rampant jaywalking in town?

I also think there would have been a major drawback to belonging to a club, you're expected to attend all meetings on a regular basis. Of course, each club has their own bylaws. One club which I joined had the stipulation that you needed to be present in 60% of all club activities (monthly meetings, charity events, out of town conventions). Since I ended up moving farther away, I eventually resigned my full time membership with voting rights/good standings to a part time honorary but dues paying member and I had to drop out all together with the understanding that I would need to re-apply and sponsored if I wish to rejoin.

So in this episode, Andy and Barney drive to Raleigh for the 8:00 pm club meeting and then drive back to Mayberry after the meeting. But a few episodes later in Andy and Barney in the Big City, they take a bus to Raieigh and stay overnight in a ritzy hotel. This is one of the many inconsistencies throughout the series.

I can't remember, who did they leave in charge of law enforcement those times?

How would the club members even know about Andy and barney??
I can see them cozying up to some big city police chief but andy and Barney are way below the club members radar.

Perhaps he met them through Opie and his classmate like in the similar color episode?

I can't remember, who did they leave in charge of law enforcement those times?

Good question. In The Clubmen, Andy gave the courthouse key to Floyd, in case Otis got a snootful and needed to spend the night.

As one who has joined various clubs of interests (where you need to be sponsored and then be informed as whether you had been approved), I think it's more interesting to have people from different backgrounds. However, not everyone feels that way.

Personally, I think Barney was trying hard (too hard) to fit in with the highbrow members. Talking about stocks and market trends is probably what some of the Esquire Club members would be interested in. Would it have been better for Andy and Barney to be discussing "shop" about how to fix the town drunk or rampant jaywalking in town?

I also think there would have been a major drawback to belonging to a club, you're expected to attend all meetings on a regular basis. Of course, each club has their own bylaws. One club which I joined had the stipulation that you needed to be present in 60% of all club activities (monthly meetings, charity events, out of town conventions). Since I ended up moving farther away, I eventually resigned my full time membership with voting rights/good standings to a part time honorary but dues paying member and I had to drop out all together with the understanding that I would need to re-apply and sponsored if I wish to rejoin.

You're raising some interesting questions. After thinking about the points you raised I realized how little sense the whole episode made in the first place. Where are the boys going to get the money to pay the dues in this upscale organization. Barney seemed a little tightfisted in the first place, I can imagine him having zero comfort level in paying monthly dues to a club where most of the members are professional men who may also belong to a country club, in other words they live life large. In addition to the dues, having to attend charity events, conventions, let alone the 800 pound gorilla in the room, how would they be commuting to these meetings. Using the patrol car for personal business like taking the girls out was always questionable to begin with, but at least they were in their jurisdiction, driving the patrol car well outside their jurisdiction to attend club meetings would clearly have been a serious ethical violation.

My experience has been quite different:

I've belonged to a dues-paying fraternal (charitable) organization since 1988. There are no meeting attendance requirements whatsoever. All that is required to remain in good standing (active) is to remit the annual dues payment -- which is under $100. (We have a member who is now disabled who's maintained his active membership status for a full 50 years, and certainly not expected to attend meetings at a very advanced age.) Some members reside far out-of-town but choose to remain active just through paying by mail. Anyone who has stopped paying is always welcome to Reinstate, which is done simply by filling out a form and writing a check.

I didn't attend any of the monthly meetings from 2009 to 2021 (caregiver years), though I handled all emails, billing notices, written reports, and newsletters for the local chapter. I've attended several conventions in the past as a Delegate, though very few of the members ever do so, and likewise charity events.

Using the patrol car for personal business like taking the girls out was always questionable to begin with, but at least they were in their jurisdiction, driving the patrol car well outside their jurisdiction to attend club meetings would clearly have been a serious ethical violation.
Andy using the squad car for personal business, dates, day trips, vacations always seemed bizarre to me watching even as a kid. Then, whenever Barney works solo Andy's got an official town police car tied up or just sitting in his driveway. The town gave it's blessing to the car arrangement but it seems potentially dangerous not to have an available police car 100% of the time.

The Andy's squad car set-up is TAG's version of LITB's June's around the house outfits & pearls.

Good question. In The Clubmen, Andy gave the courthouse key to Floyd, in case Otis got a snootful and needed to spend the night.

Good image, Floyd would have been interesting in an episode where he was in charge of the Courthouse and jail.

Andy using the squad car for personal business, dates, day trips, vacations always seemed bizarre to me watching even as a kid. Then, whenever Barney works solo Andy's got an official town police car tied up or just sitting in his driveway. The town gave it's blessing to the car arrangement but it seems potentially dangerous not to have an available police car 100% of the time.

The Andy's squad car set-up is TAG's version of LITB's June's around the house outfits & pearls.

In the first Aunt Bee episode, shown last night, Andy has a good looking old pickup truck that he was going to take Aunt Bee away in before Opie stops them, so commandeering the squad car was apparently a gradual thing.

Good image, Floyd would have been interesting in an episode where he was in charge of the Courthouse and jail.

An intoxicated Otis would most likely be coming to the courthouse late in the evening. Would Floyd still be in the barber shop at that time? Probably not.

Andy using the squad car for personal business, dates, day trips, vacations always seemed bizarre to me watching even as a kid. Then, whenever Barney works solo Andy's got an official town police car tied up or just sitting in his driveway. The town gave it's blessing to the car arrangement but it seems potentially dangerous not to have an available police car 100% of the time.

So if Andy had the squad car at his house in the evening, how did Barney get around for his escapades with Juanita, judo classes in Mt. Pilot, etc.? Apparently he never got another car after the lemon he bought from Mrs. Lesh.