After The Andy Griffith Show, Frances Bavier opted to stay in North Carolina, versus returning to her native New York City. In 1972, Bavier retired from acting and bought a home in Siler City, North Carolina.
On choosing to live in North Carolina instead of her native New York, Bavier said, “I fell in love with North Carolina, all the pretty roads and the trees.” Bavier never married or had children. According to a 1981 article by Chip Womick, a staff writer of The Courier Tribune, Bavier enthusiastically promoted Christmas and Easter Seal Societies from her Siler City home, and often wrote inspirational letters to fans who sought autographs.
Where Are They Now?
While many of the cast members from The Andy Griffith Show are unfortunately no longer with us, let’s take a look at what the main actors did once the show ended its legendary run. We will be walking you through some amazing highlights from the legendary careers of Ron Howard, Frances Bavier, Jim Nabors, Aneta, Hal Smith, George Lindsey and of course, Don Knotts.
But no other cast member’s post-series life will impress you as much as this next person…
Director Ron Howard
During his time on The Andy Griffith Show, Ron also appeared in the musical film The Music Man (1962) and the comedy film The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1963). In 1973, he played Steve Bolander in the classic coming of age film American Graffiti (1973). In 1974, Howard became a household name playing teenager Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days , which ran for seven years.
Ron has received many awards for his works, including the National Medal of Arts. He was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 2013 and has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It looks like Opie has done pretty well for himself!
Nabors Comes Out
Jim’s character on The Andy Griffith Show proved popular, and Nabors was given his own spin-off show, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Nabors was known for his portrayal of Gomer Pyle, although he became a popular guest on variety shows which showcased his rich baritone singing voice in the 1960s and 1970s, including two specials of his own in 1969 and 1974. He subsequently recorded numerous albums and singles, most of them containing romantic ballads.
In 2013, Jim publicly came out as gay and married his long-time partner of 38 years. He said, “I’m 82 and he’s in his 60s and so we’ve been together for 38 years and I’m not ashamed of people knowing, it’s just that it was such a personal thing, I didn’t tell anybody.”
Aneta Continues Acting
Corsaut had a continuing role as policeman Bumper Morgan's pawn-shop-owner friend on the series The Blue Knight and as Irma Howell in the short-lived series Mrs. G. Goes to College. In the TV series Adam-12, Corsaut portrayed Officer Pete Malloy's girlfriend, Judy. She had a supporting role as Head Nurse Bradley in the 1980s sitcom House Calls , and also appeared in several episodes of Matlock with star Andy Griffith . In addition, Corsaut played the role of nurse Jesse Brewer in 1977 on the long-running ABC soap opera General Hospital when long-time portrayer Emily McLaughlin was too ill to work.
Aneta returned for two reunion shows, 1986’s Return to Mayberry and 1993’s The Andy Griffith Show Reunion. She also made appearances on dozens of TV shows, such as Gunsmoke, Rich Man, Poor Man, and The Runaways. She died of cancer in 1995 and was buried in Hollywood.