Being an outsider is never easy. So many people blindly follow the popular choice, especially in the workplace. It's rare to find somebody willing to buck trends at the risk of alienating their peers. Industry nonconformists are more fun to observe than to be. 

A great example of someone existing on the outskirts of their profession is Denver Pyle, who was perhaps best known to viewers as Briscoe Darling on The Andy Griffith Show. While Pyle had plenty of success on the small screen, he nonetheless stayed away from the typical trappings of TV fame.

In a 1977 edition of The Austin American-Statesman, Pyle admitted that he was never concerned with making Hollywood friends within show business circles. Specifically, Pyle said didn't want "to be aware of who's dating whom and what actor made a good deal with which studio."

Watch The Andy Griffith Show on MeTV!

Weeknights at 8 & 8:30, Sundays at 12 & 6 PM

*available in most MeTV markets

 Add to Favorites  Remind Me

"Besides," said Pyle, "all show business people ever want to talk about is show business. What's so interesting about grown people playing cowboys and Indians?"

Instead, Pyle surrounded himself with working-class folks, with whom he better identified. He related more to mechanics than he did to anyone in the entertainment world. 

His time in the limelight started with a gig as an NBC pageboy. That position led him to the conclusion that acting might just be a great way to make a quick buck.

"I figured it would be an easy way to make money," Pyle said of the craft.

While he was able to carve a living out of the cutthroat show business world, he continued to pursue extracurricular pastimes. 

"Probably the worst thing that can happen to an individual is to quit striving. I never want to reach the point where I'm not saving up for anything anymore. I have to have something to plan for."