Farmer Takes a Wife, The (TAGS Episode)
Episode Info
The Farmer Takes a Wife
- S2.E13
- Filmed: 45
- Aired: 45
- Original Air Date: 1962/01/01
- Writer(s): Jack Elinson and Charles Stewart
- Director: Bob Sweeney
Plot Summary
One of Andy's old pals, Big Jeff Pruitt, comes to Mayberry looking for a suitable woman to be his wife. Andy and Barney give him a hand, but Jeff just can't find a woman who suits him. Finally he finds the perfect woman: Thelma Lou. Andy instructs Thel to accept Jeff's proposal and then go about trying to civilize him into being a city-dwelling house husband. That is more than Jeff can abide, and he heads back to the hills and his old gal, Big Bertha, just as Barney comes to tell Thel's demanding Big Jeff to either fight or flee.
Summary
Jeff Pruitt, a sturdy farmer from the hills, arrives in Mayberry with a single-minded mission: to "pick himself a wife" in just one afternoon . He asks Sheriff Andy (along with Deputy Barney) to help him find a suitable bride among the local women.
Andy and Barney take Jeff under their wing—cleaning him up and coaching him on polite manners and dating etiquette. They introduce him around town, hoping to find the perfect match.
However, Jeff sets his sights on Thelma Lou (Barney's steady girlfriend). Despite her lack of romantic interest, she allows Jeff's earnest advances to continue—partly to spark jealousy in Barney. Meanwhile, a panicky Barney realizes he might lose Thelma Lou and frantically tries to intervene.
Andy eventually steps in to calm things down. He explains Jeff's straightforward intentions to Barney, and Thelma Lou firmly lets Jeff down—making it clear she has feelings only for Barney.
At the episode's close, Jeff graciously accepts their decision. Though he doesn't marry anyone that day, he leaves with dignity—and perhaps hopes for future matches.
Odd Facts Known by Few
- Alan Hale Jr. is better known as "The Skipper" on "Gilligan's Island."
- Jeff repeatedly calls Barney "Little Buddy", a name he would call "Gilligan" on "Gilligan's Island".
- Andy Griffith's father, Carl Griffith, is seen exiting the mens clothing store where Jeff Pruitt buys 'the largest (suit)one they had.'
- At the "hen party," Thelma Lou walks past Jeff and Barney on her way to the kitchen to get coffee. Barney asks Jeff which girl he picked out to marry and Jeff points to Thelma Lou, who is somehow back in the living room with the coffee.
- This is the first time in the series that Barney uses his iconic phrase, "Nip it in the bud!"
- Towards the end of Barney's tirade in the courthouse, wide shots show Andy putting his left hand behind his neck, but close-ups show his left hand on the back of his chair.
Character List
- Andy Griffith - Andy Taylor
- Don Knotts - Barney Fife
- Ronny Howard - Opie Taylor
- Frances Bavier - Aunt Bee Taylor
- Betty Lynn - Thelma Lou
- Alan Hale Jr. - Jeff Pruitt
- Adoree Evans - Mary
- Bob McQuain - Joe Waters
