1, How long have you been watching TAGS? How often do you watch episodes? Do you have the DVD collection? If so, do you also watch TAGS on cable or local TV.

I’m lucky to have been able to watch the original shows. I try to watch them at least six times a year on DVD, as well as twice a day on local TV.

2, Do you sing along with any of the songs on TAGS? What are some of your favorite TAGS songs?

Yes, I always sing the Mayberry High Fight Song. I like most all of the songs, and especially the titles of the songs the Darlings do.

3, Do you prefer the B&W or the color episodes best? What are some of your favorite episodes?

I prefer the B&W episodes best, but have come to enjoy every single episode. Favorites are The Pickle Story, Dogs, Dogs, Dogs, and Three’s A Crowd. Of course I could list a dozen or more other favorites.

4, Who are some of you favorite regular characters? Your favorite reoccurring characters? Have you changed the way you think about some of the characters as you’ve watched them over the years?

Barney, Thelma Lou, young Opie, Floyd, and Aunt Bee are my favorite regulars. Both Otis and Ernest T as reoccurring roles. Having grown up with TAGS, I see the older women in a much different light. In 1960 Aunt Bee was grandmotherly in my eyes, but now she’s someone I could ask for a date. I liked young Opie much more than teen Opie.

5, Who are your favorite one-time characters? Who would you like to have seen as a regular cast member?

I think Ed Sawyer and Walt the milkman would have made good additions. But I would have rather seen some of the semi-regulars appear more often. But my favorite would have been Walter Baldwin as the first Floyd. A barbershop ran by both Floyds would have been great.

6, Who were some of the unseen characters you feel should have been seen?

Sarah of course, as well as many of the country folks the Darlings and Ernest T mentioned, such as Widow Bradshaw and the Winslows. Hoady Snitch and Vicky Harms are two more I would have liked seeing. With all the unseen and one time stars, TAGS could maybe have used them more regularly and expanded into an hour-long show.

7, Who is your favorite of Andy’s girlfriends? Should have Barney & Thelma Lou gotten married?

Mary Simpson, played by Sue Ann Langdon, would have been perfect as Andy’s wife. But Helen wasn’t nearly as bad as some people think. If everyone on the show was overly nice and always got along, the show would have been boring.

Although I often pitied long-suffering and good-natured Thelma Lou, she would have been the ideal wife for Barney. She was able to overlook his shortcomings, and helped build up his fragile ego.

8, Which of the 3 Ben Weavers did you like best? Which Mayor was your favorite?

I liked Will Wright, Ben Weaver #1 the best. But #2, of The Shoplifters, was also pretty good. Without a doubt, our fat little Mayor Pike was a favorite. I’m sure there would have been a mayor every season if Dick Elliot had lived.

9, Which replacement Deputy was your favorite. And least favorite?

It’s taken a while, but Jack Burns as Warren Ferguson has continued to grow on me the more I watch the show. Cousin Virgil might have worked too, as he grew into the part. As much as I have liked Jerry Van d**e over the years, his absent-mindedness on TAGS got on my nerves.

10, If Aunt Bee would have gotten married, who would you have liked to have seen her marry?

Charles Ruggles, aka John Canfield, would have been great as Aunt Bee’s new husband. All her other suitors were quite flawed, irritating, or in some cases, both.

11, If you could write yourself into TAGS, what would your character be like?

Since I’m a life long pipe smoker, I would have felt right at home running a pipe and tobacco shop. My character’s name could have been Latakia Perique, which happen to be two types of pipe tobacco.

12, Which character who left, other than Barney, do you wish had continued their role?

Actually two. Walter Baldwin, the original Floyd, was a riot, and if he had stayed, we wouldn’t know how much we would miss Howard McNear. But even better would have been both of them running the shop together. Also, Dick Elliot was wonderful as our fat little Mayor Pike.

13, If you would like to tell us anything personal about yourself, do so now or tick a lock.

I’m an old 64, short, fat, bald, and toothless. Yes, I’m a slight for sore eyes. I’ve been disabled for 23 years, and am a retired freelance editor, writer, and poet. I read a lot, and watch other older TV series and movies on DVD and VCR. I don’t have cable, so I watch very little local or network programming. I also have made older style virtual pinball games of all sorts that can be played on PCs.