On October 3rd, 1960, "The Andy Griffith Show" premiered on CBS! Starring Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Frances Bavier, and Don Knotts, the show is one of only three shows in history (alongside "I Love Lucy" and "Seinfeld") to end its run while ranked at #1 on the Nielsen ratings. In fact, throughout its eight seasons and 249 episodes, the series never ranked lower than #7 in the annual ratings. The show initially aired 159 episodes in black and white (seasons 1-5), before switching to color in 1965 for its final three seasons. Don Knotts famously won 5 Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor during his run as Barney Fife, and he remains one of the most decorated comedic actors in TV history for a single role. "The Andy Griffith Show" officially aired its final episode on April 1st, 1968, in a series finale that served as a "backdoor pilot" to the spin-off of the show, "Mayberry R.F.D.".
