6. Andy Griffith - Pray For The Wildcats
Andy Griffith was a Goddamned bonafide national treasure; it says so right there in the Constitution, or at least it would if the founding fathers had stopped slaying dragons long enough to watch TV every once in a while. Look, I don't have time to sit here and go over everything that was wrong with that last sentence. Just trust me, Andy Griffith was an all-around nice guy and I'll physically fight anyone who says otherwise.* For eight seasons, Mr. Griffith (respect) ruled the town of Mayberry, NC with a gentle touch as Sheriff Andy Taylor on The Andy Griffith Show. Why they didn't name it The Andy Taylor show or name his character Sheriff Andy Griffith is a true conundrum that modern scholars still don't give enough of a crap about. Anyway, Mr. Griffith liked the role so much he reprised it several times in other sitcoms. Alas, there's only so much one man can take of dispensing homespun wisdom and solving everyone's problems with kind words and a slice of Aunt Bee's pie. Even though is was mighty fine pie indeed, made with fruit and love. So, with Sheriff Taylor several years behind him, Mr. Griffith decided to give villainy a try when he brought Sam Farragut to life on the small screen in the made for TV movie Pray for the Wildcats, the touching story of a successful business man who takes a trio of advertising guys into the Baja desert for a fun weekend of dirt bikes and general mayhem. Honestly, it's pretty light on the mayhem by today's desensitised standards, but for the 70s, Farragut's actions were downright brutal. It's been reported that Mr. Griffith went so far into Farragut's headspace during filming that one night after shooting, he had a rather grisly dream about beating his Andy Griffith Show co-star Don Knotts near to death. During an interview Mr. Griffiths admitted how this disturbed him so much that it caused him to call Knotts so he could hear his voice and know that he was all right. Probably shouldn't have worried so much though, we've all had that dream about our co-workers. I have it at least twice a month and I hardly ever wake up crying anymore. *Offer to fight anyone not valid anywhere or at any time.