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Howard Morris was told he was ''too good'' for Mayberry
There's a reason Ernest T. Bass wasn't around as much as some other characters.
"It's me, it's me, it's Ernest T!"
Howard Morris is such a familiar name and Ernest T. Bass is such a familiar face in Mayberry. The Andy Griffith Show fans will have no problem recalling the eccentric hillbilly. It seems strange, then, to remember that he was only on five episodes of the show as Ernest T.
Why was such a fan favorite not brought on more often? Well, Howard Morris offered an explanation.
Watch The Andy Griffith Show on MeTV!
Weeknights at 8 & 8:30, Sundays at 12 & 6 PM
*available in most MeTV marketsAccording to an interview given to Scripps Howard News Service in 2001, the choice wasn't Morris'. "After five episodes," Morris said, "(Producer) Sheldon Leonard said 'Howie, you're off the show.'"
Why would the producer of the show give Morris the boot? "'You did too good,'" Morris said, quoting Leonard. "'You overpower all the other characters.'"
Still, Morris counted Ernest T. Bass as one of his favorites. "I've always loved him. He's a wonderful guy. He's a mean little son of a (bleep), and that appeals to me. He gets away with all this stuff."
It can't be easy to be told you're out of a job, but maybe the reason being that you did too well takes a little sting out of it.
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