Andy Griffith, 1926-2012: Five Surprising Facts

He never won an Emmy

Despite starring on two of the most iconic series in TV history, “The Andy Griffith Show” and “Matlock,” Andy Griffith shockingly never earned a single Emmy nomination for either show. (By contrast, his “Andy Griffith” co-star Don Knotts took home five Emmys for his supporting role as bumbling deputy Barney Fife.) Griffith’s lone Emmy nomination came in 1981 for the TV movie “Murder in Texas”… and he didn’t win for that, ... more 

He never won an Emmy

Despite starring on two of the most iconic series in TV history, “The Andy Griffith Show” and “Matlock,” Andy Griffith shockingly never earned a single Emmy nomination for either show. (By contrast, his “Andy Griffith” co-star Don Knotts took home five Emmys for his supporting role as bumbling deputy Barney Fife.) Griffith’s lone Emmy nomination came in 1981 for the TV movie “Murder in Texas”… and he didn’t win for that, either. But he did receive a very special honor in 2005: the Presidential Medal of Freedom (left), the highest award a civilian can earn in this country.

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