Elinor Donahue - why did she quit the show? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Yong Fang · 08-03-2011, 02:23 PM

That's the question, in the first season, the character of the actress Eleanor (sic?) Donahue was the love interest of Andy. And then the actress was dropped.

What happened?

MichaelKeith · 08-04-2011, 10:40 AM

Good question. I liked her in that character. She fit in with the cast well (at least from the viewer's point).

TV Knowledge Fan · 08-07-2011, 12:41 PM

..."the show left her".

"Ellie Walker" just didn't seem to fit in with Mayberry, or as Andy's "girlfriend"- and perhaps creator/producer Aaron Ruben realized this. In any case, Ms. Donahue was quietly dropped from the cast, and Andy would have to wait until Helen Crump became Opie's teacher in 1964 before he found a more enduring cast member...

lucyandethel · 08-19-2011, 01:26 AM

Ellie wasn't enduring. I think she was far more charming than Helen, who always looked like she just bit into a lemon.....

RowMan · 11-20-2011, 02:45 PM

Eleanor Donahue claimed in an interview that she was having personal problems at the time and had asked to be let out of her contract.

DJlaysitup · 12-18-2011, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RowMan

Eleanor Donahue claimed in an interview that she was having personal problems at the time and had asked to be let out of her contract.

That may very well be the case RowMan...but let's remember that E.D. had a fairly high profile and was likely getting other offers.

One of my hobbies is gathering snippets of information and putting together theories (like a jigsaw puzzle)...I remember hearing on a reunion show a quote from "Thelma Lou" that at one time she really needed a raise - but was afraid to ask for one because she thought they would probably write her out of the show. Add to that Barney left for movie money and characters came and went frequently...I think maybe TAGS was being run on the cheap, at least for the first few years.

duckie · 12-19-2011, 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucyandethel

Ellie wasn't enduring. I think she was far more charming than Helen, who always looked like she just bit into a lemon.....

I agree with you, if i were Andy i would of droped her in a heart beat, i couldnt handle her getting jeolous everytime i were around another woman. I wished they would of kept elinor to be Andys girl.

old grouch · 12-19-2011, 11:59 AM

It's a shame that Elinor Donahue didn't stick around for all eight seasons. She's great.

RowMan · 12-19-2011, 03:40 PM

Just found it. In this 1998 interview, ED states that she felt she was performing very poorly on TAGS. It made her so nervous to the point that she started losing weight. She couldn't take it and asked to be let out of her contract.

http://www.imayberry.com/tagsrwc/wbm...view26Jun98.ra

DJlaysitup · 12-30-2011, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lucyandethel

...Helen, who always looked like she just bit into a lemon.....

LOL...I always thought Opie really blew it when he used his third wish from the Count to have Miss Crump be his teacher again in the sixth grade. Even another jack knife would have been better than that

Fontaine · 10-16-2013, 09:12 PM

Ellie was a good foil for Andy, but the best of Andy's girlfriends was Nurse Peggy. She was much more country than any of the others, had great rapport with both Andy and Opie, oh yes...was smokin' hot!

Samme · 10-19-2013, 03:09 PM

Elinor was a good actress but no warmth seemed to develop with Andy Griffith onscreen. (And maybe not offscreen either. Andy was a pretty harsh judge.) She said the lack of chemistry and personal reasons made her ask out of her contract, but she was slightly disappointed when they didn't ask her to reconsider. I usually like her as an actress but the show got better without her. Anita was less of an actress yet helped the show more. I thought Elinor was usually very good in Father Knows Best. And she was surprisingly relaxed and funny with Tony Randall on Odd Couple. She also seems like a very nice lady. I didn't know she started acting at such a young age until I saw her in a few movies on TCM. She was a good kid actress too.

biffbronson · 04-02-2015, 01:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DJlaysitup

Add to that Barney left for movie money and characters came and went frequently...I think maybe TAGS was being run on the cheap, at least for the first few years.

Bringing back this old thread to make a correction:

As I understand what happened, Don Knotts signed his film contract because he believed the series was not returning for another season -- not simply for a more lucrative deal. By the time the new TAGS season was announced, it was too late.

RowMan · 04-02-2015, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by biffbronson

Bringing back this old thread to make a correction:

As I understand what happened, Don Knotts signed his film contract because he believed the series was not returning for another season -- not simply for a more lucrative deal. By the time the new TAGS season was announced, it was too late.

I remember Don Knotts telling the story and he said he left because Andy Griffith told him that he, himself, was leaving. After Don made other deals for movies at Universal, Andy told Don that he had changed his mind.

gopyle · 04-03-2015, 12:22 AM

I am not a huge first season fan, relatively speaking, but I think Miss Donahue and the character of Ellie were very good. Despite that, I liked when Andy was not attached and could have a variety of women to interact with. The Helen Crump character was one of the worst things about the show to me.

08-03-2011, 02:23 PM	#1
Yong Fang Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 04, 2009 Location: Memphis Tennessee Posts: 3,073	Elinor Donahue - why did she quit the show? That's the question, in the first season, the character of the actress Eleanor (sic?) Donahue was the love interest of Andy. And then the actress was dropped. What happened?

08-07-2011, 12:41 PM	#3
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	I don't believe Elinor left the show... ..."the show left her". "Ellie Walker" just didn't seem to fit in with Mayberry, or as Andy's "girlfriend"- and perhaps creator/producer Aaron Ruben realized this. In any case, Ms. Donahue was quietly dropped from the cast, and Andy would have to wait until Helen Crump became Opie's teacher in 1964 before he found a more enduring cast member...

08-04-2011, 10:40 AM	#2
MichaelKeith Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 01, 2007 Posts: 1,139	Good question. I liked her in that character. She fit in with the cast well (at least from the viewer's point).

08-19-2011, 01:26 AM	#4
lucyandethel Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Dec 18, 2009 Location: Los Angeles CA Posts: 435	Ellie wasn't enduring. I think she was far more charming than Helen, who always looked like she just bit into a lemon.....

11-20-2011, 02:45 PM	#5
RowMan Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Aug 07, 2003 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 48	Eleanor Donahue claimed in an interview that she was having personal problems at the time and had asked to be let out of her contract.

12-19-2011, 11:59 AM	#8
old grouch Member Senior Member Join Date: May 13, 2010 Location: montana Posts: 1,877	It's a shame that Elinor Donahue didn't stick around for all eight seasons. She's great.

12-19-2011, 03:40 PM	#9
RowMan Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Aug 07, 2003 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 48	Just found it. In this 1998 interview, ED states that she felt she was performing very poorly on TAGS. It made her so nervous to the point that she started losing weight. She couldn't take it and asked to be let out of her contract. http://www.imayberry.com/tagsrwc/wbm...view26Jun98.ra

10-16-2013, 09:12 PM	#11
Fontaine Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 16, 2013 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 160	Ellie was a good foil for Andy, but the best of Andy's girlfriends was Nurse Peggy. She was much more country than any of the others, had great rapport with both Andy and Opie, oh yes...was smokin' hot!

10-19-2013, 03:09 PM	#12
Samme Member Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 01, 2001 Posts: 676	Elinor was a good actress but no warmth seemed to develop with Andy Griffith onscreen. (And maybe not offscreen either. Andy was a pretty harsh judge.) She said the lack of chemistry and personal reasons made her ask out of her contract, but she was slightly disappointed when they didn't ask her to reconsider. I usually like her as an actress but the show got better without her. Anita was less of an actress yet helped the show more. I thought Elinor was usually very good in Father Knows Best. And she was surprisingly relaxed and funny with Tony Randall on Odd Couple. She also seems like a very nice lady. I didn't know she started acting at such a young age until I saw her in a few movies on TCM. She was a good kid actress too.

04-03-2015, 12:22 AM	#15
gopyle Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Oct 22, 2011 Posts: 235	I am not a huge first season fan, relatively speaking, but I think Miss Donahue and the character of Ellie were very good. Despite that, I liked when Andy was not attached and could have a variety of women to interact with. The Helen Crump character was one of the worst things about the show to me.