September 02, 2006
Preamblin' Entertainment
The Andy Griffth Show - "Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain"
First aired: November 18, 1963 on CBS
Recently aired: August 29, 2006 on TV Land
Written by John Whedon
Directed by Jeffrey Hayden
A couple of things happen here:
1. Don Knotts reveals himself to be one of television's best comedic actors.
2. Opie's teacher reveals herself to be totally incompetent.
Opie gets a report card with straight A's. Andy is proud. Opie is proud. Aunt Bee makes him a butterscotch pecan pie. All is well in Mayberry until his teacher, Miss Crump, calls him up to her desk the next day and tells him she made a mistake transcribing the grades, and she needs to change his report card, which includes a giant F, which stands for what Opie is when he tells his dad what happened. Then she has the audacity to tell him that he really could get straight A's if he tried. Wonderful sense of timing, Miss Crump.
So what could have caused Miss Crump to make such a mistake? Well, I noticed that in the TV movie Return to Mayberry (1986), she looked and talked as if she had been smoking two packs a day for most of her adult life. Perhaps the stress of report card time made her smoke even more cigarettes than usual, causing her to do an important task in a nicotine-induced haze. Opie just stands there at her desk with a hang-dog look on his face, instead of telling her that she could probably do everyone's report cards correctly if she dialed back her cigarette intake a little.
As Andy revels in his son's scholastic achievments, Barney brings in his old history book and brags to his boss that he can still remember the preamble to the U.S. Constitution. His facial expressions and frustration as Andy prompts him with every word and syllable are indescribably brilliant, so I won't try to describe them. Ranks right up there with Vitameatavegamin.
Random Notes:
Andy's patrol car is a Ford Galaxy
Andy Taylor, supportive father: "A report card? Bad news, huh? I hate to say I told you so, but I did, you know."
In the preamble scene, Barney's hair switches back and forth from neatly combed to messy several times.
First aired: November 18, 1963 on CBS
Recently aired: August 29, 2006 on TV Land
Written by John Whedon
Directed by Jeffrey Hayden
A couple of things happen here:
1. Don Knotts reveals himself to be one of television's best comedic actors.
2. Opie's teacher reveals herself to be totally incompetent.
Opie gets a report card with straight A's. Andy is proud. Opie is proud. Aunt Bee makes him a butterscotch pecan pie. All is well in Mayberry until his teacher, Miss Crump, calls him up to her desk the next day and tells him she made a mistake transcribing the grades, and she needs to change his report card, which includes a giant F, which stands for what Opie is when he tells his dad what happened. Then she has the audacity to tell him that he really could get straight A's if he tried. Wonderful sense of timing, Miss Crump.
So what could have caused Miss Crump to make such a mistake? Well, I noticed that in the TV movie Return to Mayberry (1986), she looked and talked as if she had been smoking two packs a day for most of her adult life. Perhaps the stress of report card time made her smoke even more cigarettes than usual, causing her to do an important task in a nicotine-induced haze. Opie just stands there at her desk with a hang-dog look on his face, instead of telling her that she could probably do everyone's report cards correctly if she dialed back her cigarette intake a little.
As Andy revels in his son's scholastic achievments, Barney brings in his old history book and brags to his boss that he can still remember the preamble to the U.S. Constitution. His facial expressions and frustration as Andy prompts him with every word and syllable are indescribably brilliant, so I won't try to describe them. Ranks right up there with Vitameatavegamin.
Random Notes:
Andy's patrol car is a Ford Galaxy
Andy Taylor, supportive father: "A report card? Bad news, huh? I hate to say I told you so, but I did, you know."
In the preamble scene, Barney's hair switches back and forth from neatly combed to messy several times.
LIfe in Mayberry, and America in general, sure was simple when this episode first aired. Four days later, it got substantially less so.
Comments:
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I feel old. I noticed the episode was written by John Whedon and I thought he might be the father of Joss Whedon, creator of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series (not the crappy movie). No, he's the f*cking GRANDFATHER of Joss Whedon.
You can catch Barney's recitation of the Preamble on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgLYXwz0rJ0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgLYXwz0rJ0
Cool that John Whedon is the Grandfather of Joss! Way to keep it in the family! Sorry it made Dave feel old, though! :)
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