‘The Andy Griffith Show’ inspires new film starring Alabama man

Andy Griffith was the “TV dad” for millions of viewers, but he was Dixie Griffith’s actual father. At home in real life, Dixie says the beloved actor was, “a hands-on dad. We had so much fun.” Griffith family activities included Winnebago motorhome trips and motorcycle riding. “He loved to tinker in his woodshop and he loved to garden,” Dixie recalls. She also has fond memories of her dad’s costs, including Don Knotts and Alabama native George Lindsey, and their families coming over for visits at the Griffith’s San Fernando Valley, California home. “He and Don were truly friends until the end,” she says.

Dixie was just one-year-old when “The Andy Griffith Show” debuted in October 1960, starting the sitcom’s eight-year run on CBS. Griffith’s deft, warm portrayal of Andy Taylor, the kind, true and level-headed sheriff of fictional Mayberry, North Carolina, made him one of TV’s most endearing stars ever. The show’s menagerie of small town life, archetypes and caricatures – with Griffith’s straight-man sheriff keeping the show from spinning into screwball – has resonated with viewers for 60 years. Decades of syndication have made it a show multiple generations have grown up with.
A new independent film titled “Mayberry Man” taps into “The Andy Griffith Show” legacy and passionate fanbase. The film’s a fish-out-of-water comedy, about a cocky, Ferrari-driving movie star named Chris Stone (played by Brett Varvel), the fictional son of a former “Andy Griffith Show” guest star. After Stone gets busted doing 105 mph in a 45 mph zone, he gets sentenced to represent his father at a Mayberry Fest. Immersed among superfans and tribute artists portraying “Andy Griffith Show” stars, Stone connects with the show’s spirit. Antics, a romantic subplot and life lessons ensue.
Huntsville resident Allan Newsome has a key role in “Mayberry Man,” as a tribute artist portraying “Andy Griffith Show” character Floyd Lawson, aka Floyd the barber. The role wasn’t much of a stretch for Newsome. An electrical engineer by trade, he spends about 15 weekends a year doing event appearances as a Floyd tribute artist. Just as there are tribute acts for musicians such as Michael Jackson or Elvis Presley, there are tribute acts for TV/film characters.

In addition into taking on the appearance of Floyd, memorably played in the original show by Howard McNear, Newsome does an uncanny impression of the character’s quirky diction. A native of Henagar, a small town in Alabama, Newsome grew up watching “The Andy Griffith Show.” But he made a deeper connection with the show later in life while attending Auburn University. Every school night, after the stress of studying engineering all day, he’d decompress by watching “Andy Griffith Show” reruns.

“The more I watched it, the more I enjoyed it,” Newsome tells AL.com. “The older you got, the stories were different to you. And there was there’s enough real realism in ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ to remind you of growing up in a small town in The South.” His all-time favorite episodes of the show include 1964′s “The Pickle Story,” he says.

Newsome began attending Mayberry-centric events. He became friends with David Browning, who does a tribute act for Barney Fife, the bumbling, self-serious sheriff’s deputy, an iconic role inhibited by comedy genius Don Knotts. One day at lunch with Browning, Newsome started imitating Floyd. Browning was impressed and convinced Newsome to come to Mayberry Days, a Mount Airy, N.C. festival celebrating “The Andy Griffith Show,” as a Floyd the barber tribute artist. “That was in 1994,” Newsome says. “And then after I did that one time, I started getting calls and people wanted me to come and appear at events. I’ve been doing it ever since.”

When he was first honing his act, Newsome tried practicing in front of a mirror. That didn’t work for him because he found it made him behave differently than he would otherwise. So he started videotaping himself instead, to get the facial expressions, posture and movements of McNear as Floyd down right.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Newsome says of being a Floyd tribute artist. “You get to watch people smile and bring back memories or just add to memories that people have of watching ‘The Andy Griffith Show,” or maybe it was the people they watched the show with.”

His tribute work has allowed him to meet some of the show’s actual stars including Knotts. “He was a very nice man, very gracious,” Newsome says. “I mean, he’s Don Knotts and we’re just tribute artists and to watch him interact with everyone was amazing to see.” Knotts, also known for his portrayal of “Three’s Company” apartment manager Ralph Furley, died in 2006 at age 81.

And yes, Newsome has heard the song “Floyd The Barber” by legendary grunge band Nirvana. “It’s kind of dark. Almost like a ‘Sweeney Todd’ version of Floyd,” Newsome says with a chuckle.