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Find out about the character on 'The Andy Griffith Show' that the show's star correctly guessed wouldn't work out.

This item which has come up before from other content creators never made sense to me. Andy basically claimed the Sheriff reporting to the Mayor was unrealistic, I don't think the audience then or now ever gave that a thought. If the audience analyzed the show at that level the character of Barney wouldn't have worked. Barney was insubordinate on many occasions, dangerously incompetent, any reasonable person would have dismissed him from the Deputy position.


The character of the Mayor was a recurring character not a regular character. In season one the Mayor appeared in 7 episodes, season two four episodes, Dick Elliot died around midseason. Season three the character again appeared in 7 episodes. Beginning in season four Aneta Corsaut was added as a new recurring character with the character of the Mayor being eliminated. With respect to the cast, TAGS was very transactional.

Barney's not being fired can be explained by Andy and Barney being cousins, as is made clear I think in the tag scene of the first episode. References may also have been made a few times after that.

In the color years, it wouldn't explain why the Raleigh P.D. would hire or keep him. In an episode where Andy visits Barney in Raleigh Andy rescues Barney, as he had done many other times, by making it appear that Barney had solved a series of grocery store robberies. Even so, at some point they would have to deem his work unacceptable.