In the last post, I discussed the paper color used in scripts for The Andy Griffith Show, though there was the occasional variation. This is not a unique way to handle script revisions.
The page colors for scripts have now been standardized by the Writers Guild of America (WGA). Unrevised scripts are now always in white with the next two colors the same as used in The Andy Griffith Show scripts: blue then pink. Further revisions are next on yellow, then green, then goldenrod, then buff, then salmon, then cherry. Revisions after that begin with “second blue revision” all the way through cherry again.
Sometimes the “color” of the paper is in name only for later revisions, meaning the “green” revision might actually be on white paper and will just have the words “GREEN REVISION” with a revision date at the top of each page. The “color” needs to be typed because unlike actors and the rest of the crew, script supervisors get a fresh script printed on white paper with each revision so they need the color to be stated. Likewise, if a PDF copy has to be made, it can then be printed on all white pages. And quite frankly, it saves the copy shop from having to keep colors such as cherry in stock.
When you watch these same scenes from The Andy Griffith Show pages shown in the photos, you will see the actors did not necessarily follow the lines verbatim, feeling free to put a slight spin on them to make the lines their own. In the script, when Otis tells Barney he can’t stay in jail since choir practice is that night, the script called for Barney to hit his palm with his fist and say, “Darn it!” That was scratched out and “Oh, yea” was written in as though Barney had just forgotten that it was the night for choir practice and now recalls it. As filmed, Barney does mouth an almost imperceptible “Oh, yea” without playing up the implicit joke that he had forgotten it was choir practice night. Knotts then reinserts part of the original line saying “Darn!” as he strikes his plan with his fist.
During the first three seasons, an “integrated commercial” was included at the end of every episode that at first usually seems to be extending the story. But as the commercial progresses, it always ends with Andy or another character breaking the fourth wall, speaking directly to the viewing audience, and often stating something that makes it clear the commercial is not canon. A first example is a good one: the commercial at the end of “The New Housekeeper.”
After Opie had told Andy and Aunt Bee in the tag ending that his pet bird, Dickie, had returned, Andy is shown putting Opie to bed. Opie asks why Andy really thinks Dickie came back. Andy repeats what he had originally said in the tag ending about Dickie enjoying the fried chicken at their house, but he then adds that the next time Opie feeds his bird he should top it off with a nice cup of Sanka coffee. Andy then explains about the qualities of Sanka coffee to Opie and adds “that little ole’ parakeet can drink, drink, drink all he wants ‘cause it’s 97% caffeine-free.”
This is already not canon and obviously a commercial instead of a true part of the original story. Andy even acknowledges his character is aware he is in a television show in the next exchange, When Opie says that parakeets don’t drink coffee, Andy replies.”They do on this program.” He then looks directly at the TV audience and says, “And so do a lot of us folks. What don’t you try Sanka Coffee? Thank you. Goodnight.”
This also illustrates that even though the scripts were tightly adhered to, they still were tweaked a bit by the actors. Even though the script describes Dickie as a parakeet, that is not actually used in the episode or the Sanka commercial.
All the integrated commercials were also written by Aaron Ruben. I had not known and was surprised to find that for the few episodes that they knew would be rerun after the season ended (there were only five reruns at the end of the first season), fresh integrated commercials were written for the rerun. So there were two sets of integrated commercials for the few episodes they knew would be rerun after the end of the season.
