What If Barney (Don Knotts) Smoked a Pipe?

[brightleaf]

Don Knotts may have been Barney, a nervous, fidgety character used for comedy on screen.

But what was he like when the camera wasn't rolling?

....A ladies man with girls eager to warm up his pipe.

 

[prairiedruid]

Barney would probably use his one bullet as a tamper for his pipe.

 

[unkleyoda]

Barney would probably use his one bullet as a tamper for his pipe.

This

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

Barney would probably use his one bullet as a tamper for his pipe.

:rofl:

 

[cortezattic]

I wonder what pipe shape he would find appealing. As Barney Fife I can see him sporting a gourd calabash, but as an off-screen character, I don't know.

 

[huntertrw]

Actually, Barney Fife's father was a pipe-smoker. That fact is revealed in this episode (Class Reunion) starting at the 2:50 mark.

 

[lochinvar]

He probably wouldn't have been so keyed up

 

[mso489]

Knotts was a brilliant comedic actor. I always wondered how much of his nasal whine delivery and amazing awkward body language was Don Knotts and how much a created character. From a few interviews I saw over the years, I think it was a blend. He took his awareness of his own awkwardness and exaggerated it, and added strong acting skills to make his on-screen character live. Andy Griffith was the perfect straight man for Knotts, a pairing made in TV heaven. It wouldn't have worked if Knotts hadn't been able to act out everyone's feeling of being inept and not up to situations, so even competent and capable people recognized a little of themselves. Insecurities on the half shell. Making lemonade out of lemons.

 

[warren]

Yet another great Steve Allen find! I miss those old "man on the street" skits.

 

[huntertrw]

Yet another great Steve Allen find!

"Are you nervous?"

 

[huntertrw]

Barney Fife - A young pipe-smoking dandy...

 

[mso489]

Yes! Steve Allen was a founding performer and conceptualizer of TV entertainment. And composer of many pop standards, like "This Could Be the Start of Something Big," and many others. Proof of his talent are some of his failed efforts to bring intellectual subjects to TV, like his show interviewing historical characters (actors of course) and other duds, but he was a brave originator. He could be a little pompous and silly-high-flown, but when he was funny, he had it right on. I think even his slightly stilted over enunciation had good comic effect, like Charlie Chaplin's top hat.

 

[anantaandroscoggin]

I have in fact, a time or three (several decades ago now) actually grabbed an empty rifle shell to use as a tamper.