He's everyone's favorite little guy; He's Opie! Little Ron Howard was a delight to watch on screen, full of youth and excitement.

Opie also served an important purpose for the writers of The Andy Griffith Show. TAGS producer Aaron Ruben spoke about the character in Mayberry 101: Behind the Scenes of a T.V. Classic by Neal Brower. "There was always a special joy in doing an Opie story," said Ruben. "We always tried to open the new season with an Opie script because they had such enormous appeal, and we felt it was a smart way to hook an audience for the start of the new season."

One of these notable episodes included "Opie's Hobo Friend." The story was written by Harvey Bullock. "'Opie's Hobo Friend' was a wonderful story, and just the kind that Harvey Bullock was so capable of writing - lots of heart, warmth, a solid moral lesson, and always the meaningful relationship between Andie and Opie," said Ruben.

It was Bullock's first contribution to the series, and it's an episode that remains a favorite for many viewers of The Andy Griffith Show. "'Opie's Hobo Friend' has a very special meaning for me," said Harvey Bullock. "It was the first one I wrote for the series. I was new in town, having left my wife and three infant daughters back in New York while I sought employment in the booming sitcom business in Hollywood."

Writing the sort of heartwarming stories that made The Andy Griffith Show so popular was both a skill and a passion for Bullock. "I have always delighted in older, colorful characters who were not the stuff of convention," he said. "The bare bones of the story I had in mind featured an irresponsible vagrant who seemed to live in glorious freedom and would thus be appealing to a youngster who didn't recognize the pitfalls. But it was important the vagrant be somewhat glib, educated, articulate, even likable - all of which made him an even more effectively tempting role model."

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The story didn't just receive rave reviews from viewers. Bullock got kudos from series creator Sheldon Leonard, who gave Bullock a compliment that stuck with him for the rest of his career.

"Several weeks after completing 'Hobo,' I was on my way out of the studio when Sheldon Leonard, the king himself, intercepted me," said Harvey. "He had gone out of his way to find me and tell me how much he enjoyed the script of Hobo. His final words were, 'I find your writing very literate...Happily, the episode worked well. That opened the door for me, and I went on to do some thirty-odd more. But the Hobo will always be the most meaningful."

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