Talk:Don Knotts

vandalism

The introduction to this article appears to have been vandalized, please revise accordingly.

Leaving Andy Griffith

Why did Don Knotts leave The Andy Griffith Show in 1965? The show was nowhere near as funny when "Barney Fife" left the show. I presume the ratings of the show dropped dramatically as well. Also, the show was less charming in color as opposed to black & white. Do any of oyu agree?

According to a biography I saw, Andy Griffith was thinking about leaving the show (I think around season 5 or 6) and Don Knotts started looking for a new job thinking the series was ending, but when Andy decided to stay, Don had already committed to other projects.

 Tom Willis

According to some of the biographies out there, Griffith had told Knotts near the begininng that he had only planned to do the show for a set number of seasons. When that time came Knotts started to look at leaving thinking the show was going to end but was suprised to learn that Griffith decided to stay. By that time Knotts had already indicated his wish to depart and I believe he felt a bit angry that Griffith hadn't mentioned that he was going to stay.--Skeev 19:53, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

Andy Griffith was on Larry King tonight (3/1), and he said that when the show started, it was planned to go 5 seasons. During the fifth season Knotts started to look for work as he thought the show would end. When Griffith announced he decided to stay on, Knotts was already under contract at Universal and so had to leave. -- Ash

The original plan for a predetermined run of the Andy Griffith Show only partly explains the departure of Knotts. As I understand it, Knotts wanted to parlay his television success into film. He is quoted as saying (in a video-taped interview) that even at the time he thought it might have been a mistake (to leave the Andy Griffith Show). Jeff Mincey (talk) 21:04, 28 June 2008 (UTC)

It's only natural. As loved and successful as his Fife role was, he, like most TV stars, saw film as a move up. – AndyFielding (talk) 09:26, 4 July 2022 (UTC)

Pittsburgh?

Why is he listed in the Pittsburgher category?

Death?

• I can't find any news reports that confirm this. Until someone posts a link confirming it, it really shouldn't be here (and yes, I've made the mistake of jumping the gun on deaths before). Danny Lilithborne 22:42, 25 February 2006 (UTC)
  • And now you've made the mistake of reverting accurate info. - Nunh-huh 22:49, 25 February 2006 (UTC)

"Don Knotts, TV's Lovable Nerd, Dies at 81" http://entertainment.tv.yahoo.com/entnews/ap/20060225/114091842000.html

I'm going to fix the date. Saline

ACK, nevermind, the date is right, 24th, leave 24th. Saline

Don Knotts... was a man and a legend... in his passing the world has lost a pillar of greatness. Daniel J. Forman 23:32, 25 February 2006 (UTC)

The article states that Andy Griffith was at Knotts' bedside when he died. I would like to believe that's true, but I haven't seen it stated anywhere else. What is the source for this? Rich 03:17, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

On Larry King (3/1), Andy Griffith stated that he visited Knotts in the evening, but left around 6:30 or 7:00, and Knotts passed away at 11:00. Knotts' daughter Karen was at his bedside when he passed, and they made no mention of anyone else being present or absent --Ash61

Career Comeback

Knotts was essentially trick casting for his role in "Pleasantville," since he himself is sort of a relic of a bygone, "innocent" era of T.V. His role in that film hardly brought him a plethora of new acting work, and I wouldn't really call it a comeback, so I'm going to change this wording... Pacian 00:15, 26 February 2006 (UTC)

Knotts worked in theater up until 2003 at least, including a revival of On Golden Pond, and worked in some shows with his daughter Karen Knotts. He was doing voice over work a month before he passed (Ash61)

Scooby-Doo?

Wasn't he among the celebrity guests who turned up in Scooby-Doo cartoons? I never watch Andy Griffith and I'm pretty sure that was my first introduction to him. --Do Not Talk About Feitclub (contributions) 01:09, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

Where did he die?

I've found 350 sources through Google News that say he died at Cedars and 17 that say he died at UCLA. I suspect the former is correct despite what the article currently says. Here are the searches I did:

• Cedars[1]
• UCLA[2]

Theshibboleth 01:56, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

On Larry King (3/1), Andy Griffith and Karen Knotts mentioned that he was in UCLA --Ash61

Recurring role in Andy Griffith Show

I'm little suprised that it goes from Knotts leaving the show to his later work and on to the reunion but never mentions that he did appear at least once more (or was it more?) on the show as a guest. The only appearence I remember offhand was when he comes to visit from Raleigh and is afraid to tell people that he's not doing as well as he hoped with the Raleigh department. I believe there were others when Andy visted him. --Skeev 19:57, 27 February 2006 (UTC)

Andy Griffith stated on Larry King (3/1) that Knotts made 3 appearences on the show after he left in 65, and won Emmy's for 2 of those appearences, making a total of 5 Emmys that Knotts won for playing Barney Fife (Ash66)

That's probably something that should be added to the article rather than leaving the impression that he left and never looked back until the reunion.--Skeev 15:50, 2 March 2006 (UTC)

Don Knotts married?

Was Don Knotts ever married? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 69.148.167.29 (talk) 00:26, 12 April 2007 (UTC).

Personal life?

I've done a bit of revision to move what was already written around in chronological order, and to incorporate some of the (still too long) trivia section into the main article. I'm thinking , though, that someone must have some info on his personal life. We know he had a daughter- what about a wife, other kids, etc? ChrisStansfield 11:52, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

trivia

the trivia is a little lame. a lot of it amounts to name-dropping. a character in one show mentions an actor from another--that's trivial, but not any more noteworthy than the list of politicians mentioned on murphy brown. all don knots had to do with these shows was get referenced by a character? a dozen people get name-dropped every week on family guy... 76.238.60.13 16:16, 24 July 2007 (UTC)

Emmies

Has any actor earned more Emmies than Don Knotts? Softlavender (talk) 12:32, 6 January 2008 (UTC)

Death

Great article. One suggestion- making distinction between “pulmonary” and “respiratory” complications of lung cancer is not necessary. I think “respiratory complications of related to (of) lung cancer” would be somewhat better. (Yanmak (talk) 21:21, 31 December 2008 (UTC))

Early Life

The article lists Knotts as having two brothers. According to the Archive of American Television Interview at about 2' 37", Knotts says he had 3 older brothers: Willis, Earl and Ralph. Spidra (talk) 06:43, 20 June 2010 (UTC)spidra

References

No Deposit, No Return

In 'filmography' No Deposit, No Return should be under film, unless... was it made for television? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 204.193.200.216 (talk) 06:51, 15 January 2012 (UTC)

Inaccuracies in "Post-Mayberry films".

According to the article, Don Knotts made "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "The Incredible Mr. Limpet" after he left "The Andy Griffith Show." That's not true. Those films were released in 1963 and 1964 respectively, and Knotts didn't leave "The Andy Griffith Show" until 1965.97.73.64.149 (talk) 02:24, 26 July 2012 (UTC)

"Windy Wales"

Mention should be made of Don's portrayal of Windy Wales (who told tall tales) on the Bobby Benson and His B-Bar-B Riders radio series beginning in 1949. The character's name was, of course, a take-off on that of western sidekick George "Gabby" Hayes.

Griffith said in an interview he had been a fan of the radio series and that during auditions for supporting roles in his own TV series, he recognized Don's voice as that of Windy Wales and hired him immediately.76.199.5.143 (talk) 15:52, 4 October 2015 (UTC)

The Shakiest Gun in the West

Looking at the lede, I know Knotts was very well known for Barney Fife, probably also for Mr. Limpet which was shown on TV very frequently following its initial release, and maybe also for Steve Allen Show which was before my time, but is he that well known for The Shakiest Gun in the West? I don't remember that movie being particularly popular, at least not any more so than Knotts' other movies (and certainly less known than Mr. Limpet). Does the film have a big cult following or did I miss something? The only things I really remember Knotts for between Andy Griffith and Three's Company are Mr. Limpet and a few Disney kids' films where he usually played half of a bumbling duo. TheBlinkster (talk) 05:51, 26 November 2015 (UTC)

Add link to daughter Karen

Optionally, add link to the new page for his daughter Karen created July 25, 2016 A21stCenturyEducator (talk) 03:41, 26 July 2016 (UTC) Johnny Booker

Don Knotts related to Ron Howard?

I nominate immediate deletion of the statement: "Knotts is a sixth cousin of Ron Howard, a co-star on The Andy Griffith Show." Notable that Ron Howard never mentions the relationship in his eulogy for Don Knotts or in subsequent articles where Howard talks about his time working with Knotts. There are no articles, interviews, or books published prior to May 2017 (when the statement was added) that cite this relationship. However, the statement appears verbatim in a self-pub book "The Kings & Queens of Hollywood Comedy" published in March 2017 which also lacks citation. MUnderwood 17:18, 15 August 2017 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Wikieditor 3833 (talk • contribs)

Lead

The lead of the article has been going back and forth between two versions (refs removed):

• Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924 – February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian, widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show, a 1960s sitcom for which he earned five Emmy Awards, and for his role as Ralph Furley on the highly rated sitcom Three's Company from 1979 to 1984.
• Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924 – February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian. He was widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show, a 1960s sitcom for which he earned five Emmy Awards. He also played Ralph Furley on the highly rated sitcom Three's Company from 1979 to 1984.

@Cmwings and RandomCanadian:, perhaps you could discuss it here instead of in edit summaries? Schazjmd (talk) 15:40, 24 January 2021 (UTC)

@Schazjmd: It's mostly a question of style: I think that the longer sentence reads better, because "He was", "He ..." is repetitive. The sentence could be rewritten:

Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924 – February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show, for which he earned five Emmy Awards, and for his role as Ralph Furley in Three's Company.

Removes some of the extra details while keeping it in one flowing sentence. Anyway, not a major issue. RandomCanadian (talk / contribs) 15:47, 24 January 2021 (UTC)

I just thought maybe you two could talk it out here, since you've both reverted twice. Neither version is wrong. Schazjmd (talk) 15:51, 24 January 2021 (UTC)

The first one is appropriate because it simply states the two shows he was widely known for. Breaking it up changes the entire context. I thought we already dealt with this years ago. P37307 (talk) 15:53, 24 January 2021 (UTC)

Dodge commercials

A little more mention might be in order about Knotts being the commercial spokesperson for Dodge Trucks. The earliest appearance I have found on YouTube is a dealer promotional film he starred in, dated 1965. There is at least one general market TV spot on YouTube dating from that year.--Msr69er (talk) 14:28, 24 February 2021 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 27 March 2022

While serving in WWII Knotts was awarded the World War II Victory Medal, Philippine Liberation Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (with 4 bronze service stars), Army Good Conduct Medal, Marksman Badge (with Carbine Bar) and Honorable Service Lapel Pin. BullGa8tor (talk) 04:17, 27 March 2022 (UTC)

 Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made. ScottishFinnishRadish (talk) 09:44, 27 March 2022 (UTC)

Matlock

I could be wrong, but I feel sure I saw Don Knotts on Andy Griffith’s TV show “Matlock”. 107.11.180.184 (talk) 22:24, 21 April 2022 (UTC)

You did. Matlock is listed in Knotts' TV credits. Schazjmd (talk) 22:49, 21 April 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 30 April 2022

One of the links in the main description leads to the Wikipedia page for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress, rather than the page for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor, which is what Don Knotts won. Physicsboyt (talk) 22:04, 30 April 2022 (UTC)

 Done Thanks for catching that! Schazjmd (talk) 22:09, 30 April 2022 (UTC)

Edit

It’s “man ON the street”. 2601:196:8780:9B60:E951:A05A:31D8:2D75 (talk) 23:21, 13 July 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 10 August 2022

It mentions Knotts’ appearance in That 70’s Show and says he “plays Fez, Jackie’s landlord.” Fez is another established character on the show. It should be changed to either “plays Jackie and Fez’s landlord” or simply that he plays the landlord. Proof can be found in the filmography/tv show section of the same page. 2600:1700:9A21:A10:C76:F58B:9B:57D0 (talk) 03:15, 10 August 2022 (UTC)

 Done - FlightTime (open channel) 03:26, 10 August 2022 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 17 August 2022

Incorrect hyperlink on "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad World" film title. 47.232.190.190 (talk) 04:56, 17 August 2022 (UTC)

 Done --*Fehufangą (✉ Talk · ✎ Contribs) 06:10, 17 August 2022 (UTC)

By 107.119.69.43 (talk) 02:58, 10 January 2023 (UTC)

No time for Sergeants

Knotts was not the test administrator. 71.182.144.131 (talk) 19:04, 7 January 2024 (UTC)