Hal Smith was more than just an on-screen drunk. While the actor became known for his time playing the comical town drunk of Mayberry, Otis Campbell, Hal Smith was an esteemed actor before her even joined the cast of The Andy Griffith Show.

"I had good indoctrination for my future career," said Smith during an interview with The Charlotte News. "When I was six years old, my brother and I played elves in the Follies of 1923, down in Wilmington. Later in high school, my brother and I formed a vaudeville team, and finally, I started singing with Freddie Cornburst and his orchestra, later known as Freddie Kaye."

Of course, Smith was a delightful addition to the cast of The Andy Griffith Show, and Otis was even given the opportunity to shine in a few of his own episodes.

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As a Southern man himself, Smith understood what it was like to live in a small southern town. The actor had previously lived in North Carolina, a trait he shared with series star Andy Griffith.

The actor was confident that his familiarity with the South didn't help him win the part of Otis.

"I don't think the fact that I'd lived in North Carolina had anything to do with my being cast as Otis on The Andy Griffith Show," said the actor. "But I can fall into a southern drawl without much effort."

But while Smith was more than prepared to fall into a southern step when he began working on The Andy Griffith Show, there was one aspect of the role that gave him pause.

"The part of Otis is the hardest acting of all, though," said the actor. "It's because I'm generally - shall we say, inebriated. And I don't drink."