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Aunt Bee the villain? Frances Bavier really wanted to play a bad person
Can you picture that?
Lots of actors deal with the negative repercussions of their public perception. Success can be difficult for anyone, especially for those in the limelight. We all have our preconceived notions about the folks we see on TV. When they play the same roles for years, we attach a lot of meaning to that role and associate the actor with the character they play.
While some actors break the cycle by playing "against type," that's just not possible for others. There are people on TV that we invite into our homes. They become almost family members as we follow their lives for multiple seasons. We don't want our Aunt to be suddenly a nefarious type.
But just because we might not want that change, that doesn't mean the actors are comfortable just treading water for the rest of their careers. Frances Bavier, Aunt Bee on The Andy Griffith Show, struggled to buck expectations after playing such an iconic, memorable character.
“Once in a while, I get a hankering to play a really bad woman," Bavier told The Charlotte News.
"Once a few years ago I was really vicious in a Lone Ranger episode, but so many people wrote in outrage at what I was doing, I guess it was a mistake."
The episode Bavier refers to, "Sawtelle Saga," aired in 1955, before The Andy Griffith Show even premiered. However, audiences were already so acclimated to seeing Frances Bavier in a particular way that the episode caused some controversy. There was a vocal crowd who felt uncomfortable seeing her as a baddie.
Luckily, despite the disappointments of not having a huge breadth of archetypes to embody, Bavier was able to make peace with her lot in life and what audiences were willing to accept of her.
"Sometimes it gets me down to think I’ve lost my own identity and my identity as an actress. But other times I get a lift when I realize that I’m really doing quite well.”
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(The episode originally aired the weekend I was born and my mother said she didn't want to go to the hospital and miss her favorite show, which is the main reason I'm familiar with it.)
