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Originally Posted by OneAccord
*Andy and Aunt Bea (Andy G and Frances Xavier) did not get along. She was a well known movie star before joining the cast and always resented Andy because she was never given "star status".
* Andy G had an explosive temper. There are two episodes where his hand in bandaged up. On the show he explained that he had been in a "tussle" with some prisoners.
Actually, he got so angry, some say at "Aunt Bea", that he punched a wall and injured his hand.
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By the way her last name is Bavier not Xavier. Isn't Xavier on X Men? LOL
Years ago I was shocked to read that the actress playing Aunt Bea was very diffiult to work with and definitely nothing like the warm loving character she played. She was from New York and not a Southerner at all.
As you said she resented Andy Griffith greatly and was extremely difficult to work with. Everybody had to be very careful how they spoke to her. One directer asked her to do something a certain way in a scene and she stormed off the set because she was offended. In all of the interviews I have seen or read with Ron Howard about being a child actor on Andy Griffith he talks about what a good experience it was and praises Andy Griffith and the producers but I have never heard him comment about working with Frances Bavier.
Interestingly enough even though she was not from North Carolina as mentioned she did retire there. She was extremely private and did not have any kind of public life.
I saw an interview with Andy Griffith years back not long after she died and he said that she either called him on the phone or asked him to visit (I forget which) and she apologized for her behavior. She told him that it had been his show and she had no right to have been resentful,etc. You could tell it meant a lot to him that she said that before she died.
On a side note, after she died they auctioned off her belongings and one of the things was a mid 60's Ford Falcon with almost no miles on it in her garage. I would have loved to have had that!
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