Aunt Bee the Warden (TAGS Episode)
Episode Info
Aunt Bee the Warden
- S2.E23
- Filmed: 55
- Aired: 55
- Original Air Date: 1962/03/12
- Writer(s): Jack Elinson and Charles Stewart
- Director: Bob Sweeney
Plot Summary
The Gordon boys are brought in for moonshining, and when Otis arrives for his regular stay at the jail, there is no room at the inn. When the Gordon boys accuse Otis of turning them in, Andy has no choice but to take Otis home to let him sleep it off at the Taylor home. Come morning, Otis finds that he's been turned over to "Bloody Mary," aka Aunt Bee, who decides to rehabilitate Otis once and for all.
Summary
Sheriff Andy Taylor and Deputy Barney Fife arrest the Gordon brothers, a rowdy group of moonshiners who completely fill the Mayberry jail. During the arrest, Andy even injures his hand, emphasizing how tough the capture was.
Soon after, the town drunk, Otis Campbell, arrives to lock himself up—as he routinely does after a drinking binge. However, there’s no room in the jail, and the Gordon brothers are hostile toward Otis, believing he informed on them.
With no safe alternative, Andy brings Otis to his home to "serve his sentence." He assigns Aunt Bee the responsibility of supervising him—essentially making her the warden.
At first reluctant, Aunt Bee quickly embraces the role—but not in the soft, nurturing way one might expect. Instead, she runs a strict household regimen. She forces Otis to work constantly: scrubbing floors, chopping wood, washing windows, and performing endless chores. Otis, hungover and exhausted, finds himself in far worse shape than he would have been in a jail cell.
Otis repeatedly tries to escape or avoid the work, but Aunt Bee is always one step ahead, assigning even more tasks. Her firm discipline earns her the nickname "the Warden." Over time, the relentless labor has an effect—Otis becomes so worn out that he swears off drinking, at least temporarily.
Meanwhile, in a comedic subplot, Barney attempts to "rehabilitate" the jailed Gordon brothers by giving them hobby kits (like leatherworking). His effort backfires when it inadvertently helps them escape. When Andy recaptures them, he brings them—like Otis—under Aunt Bee’s authority, implying they’ll face the same strict treatment.
Odd Facts Known by Few
- Andy is shown with a cast on his arm, supposedly from a sprained wrist, he got bringing in the Gordon boys. This is because, in real life, Andy Griffith supposedly sprained his wrist driving his fist through a wall. The reason for this seemingly uncharacteristic outburst has been debated for years. The cast is seen in the next episode, The County Nurse, as well.
- Andy claims his arm was injured arresting the Gordon boys and they went by the doctor on the way back to get patched up.
- The four actors portraying the Gordon boys appeared several times as other characters in the series. One of them is named "Ike" and is Robert "Bob" McQuain who played 11 characters (most common - 4 episodes - is "Joe Waters") in 14 episodes.
- Andy wears a gun in this episode. Because he was busy apprehending criminals, Andy wears a handgun and carries a shotgun even though he's known for never carrying either.
- Otis sings the Larry Clinton song "The Dipsy Doodle" written in 1937. It became a very popular piece during the Swing era, recorded by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald & Chic Webb as well as Tommy Dorsey. The word "dipsey" was code for drunk, as in "dipsomaniac." It also lead to the word "tipsey" which refers to slightly drunk.
- Tommy Dorsey's version of the Larry Clinton song "The Dipsy Doodle" (1937) featured an 'E. Hagen on trombone.' Yes, that is the same Earle Hagen who did all the music for The Andy Griffith Show. (Thanks to Paul Mulik for this information.)
- When Otis is standing between the two cells and the Gordon boys grab him and start tussling with him, the brick wall moves when Otis bumps against it.
- In a blooper, as the delivery man opens the back doors of the truck for Aunt Bee who is looking for Otis, a microphone boom can be seen in the reflection of the driver's side window. Details can be found in this story about Strange and Curious Happenings.
- When Andy takes off Otis's coat before putting him to bed, his suspenders have an "X" back. After he woke up to fill his vase, they have a "Y" back for the remainder of the episode.
- When Andy finds Otis at his house scrubbing the kitchen floor, Otis refers to Aunt Bee "the warden" as "Bloody Mary," the nickname of Queen Mary I (the first) of England.
- Otis says he is through with drinking at the end of this episode, but he will return to it later.
- On the day this episode first aired, baseball right fielder Darryl Strawberry was born.
Character List
- Andy Griffith - Andy Taylor
- Don Knotts - Barney Fife
- Frances Bavier - Aunt Bee Taylor
- Mary Lansing - Mary
- Hope Summers - Clara
- Hal Smith - Otis Campbell
- Orville Sherman - Billy Gordon
- Bob McQuain - Ike Gordon
- Paul Bakanas - Junior Gordon
- undetermined - Sherman Gordon
- undetermined - laundry man
