Jim Nabors | |
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![]() Nabors in a c. 1965 publicity photo | |
Born | James Thurston Nabors June 12, 1930 Sylacauga, Alabama, U.S. |
Died | November 30, 2017 (aged 87) Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
Resting place | Ashes sprinkled in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
Alma mater | University of Alabama |
Occupation(s) | Actor, singer |
Years active | 1954–2014 |
Known for | Portraying Gomer Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Singing "Back Home Again in Indiana" at the Indianapolis 500 race |
Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Spouse | Stan Cadwallader (m. 2013) |
Website | Official website ![]() |
James Thurston Nabors (June 12, 1930 – November 30, 2017) was an American actor, singer, and comedian, widely known for his signature character, Gomer Pyle.
Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith while working at a Santa Monica nightclub, and he later joined The Andy Griffith Show, where he played the good-natured, unsophisticated Gomer Pyle. The character proved so popular that Nabors was given his own successful spin-off show, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Nabors also became a popular guest on variety shows that showcased his rich baritone singing voice in the 1960s and 1970s. He was the featured guest on every season premiere of The Carol Burnett Show and he had two specials of his own in 1969 and 1974. He signed a recording contract with Columbia Records in 1965 and subsequently recorded numerous albums and singles, most of them containing romantic ballads. He recorded for Ranwood Records during the late 1970s.
Nabors was also known for singing "Back Home Again in Indiana" before the start of the Indianapolis 500, held annually on the Memorial Day weekend. He sang the unofficial Indiana anthem almost every year from 1972 to 2014, except for occasional absences due to illness or scheduling conflicts.[1][2]
Nabors was born in Sylacauga, Alabama, on June 12, 1930,[3] to Fred Nabors, a police officer, and Mavis Pearl (née Newman).[4] He had two older sisters, Freddie and Annie Ruth.[5][6] He sang for his high school and church. Later, he attended the University of Alabama, where he began acting in skits. While at Alabama, he became a member of Delta Tau Delta International Fraternity.[7] After graduating, he moved to New York City, where he worked as a typist for the United Nations;[8][9] after a year, he moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he got his first job in television as a film cutter at NBC affiliate WRGP-TV (now WRCB-TV) and was also a substitute co-host on the show Holiday for Housewives.[10]
Because of his asthma, Nabors moved to Los Angeles and continued his work as a film cutter, this time for NBC. He also worked at a Santa Monica tavern, The Horn, singing and acting in cabaret theater.[11][12] His act featured him as a character similar to the later Gomer Pyle. He sang in a baritone and sometimes spoke and sang in his higher-pitched comedic voice.[13] At the club, comedian Bill Dana saw Nabors' act and invited him to appear on The Steve Allen Show. Nabors signed on to the show, but it was soon canceled.[14]
Nabors made his television debut as "Jimmy Nabors" on the Today in Dixie show on WJBF in Augusta, Georgia. He was active in the choir at Grace United Methodist Church in North Augusta.[15]
Andy Griffith discovered Nabors at The Horn and hired him to play a one-shot role of Gomer Pyle, a dimwitted gas station attendant on The Andy Griffith Show (Season 3, episode 13, "The Bank Job").[16] Nabors' character was based on his act at The Horn, and it became so popular that he was made a regular on the show and was later given the spin-off show Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., in which his character joined the Marines. The show placed Nabors' bungling, naive character opposite Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter (Frank Sutton).
Gomer Pyle remained popular despite the concurrence of the Vietnam War because the show avoided war-related themes and instead focused on the character's rural roots and the relationship between Pyle and Carter.[17][18][19] Nabors resigned from Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. after five seasons because he wanted to move on to something else, "reach for another rung on the ladder, either up or down."[20]
Nabors first revealed his fine singing voice on the February 24, 1964, "The Song Festers" episode of The Andy Griffith Show and on April 8, 1964, on The Danny Kaye Show, and subsequently capitalized on it with numerous successful recordings and live performances.[21][22] Most of the songs were romantic ballads, though he sang pop, gospel, and country songs as well.[23][24][25][26]
The climactic vocal performance on Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. came in an episode titled "The Show Must Go On", aired November 3, 1967, in which Pyle sang "The Impossible Dream (The Quest)" in Washington, D.C., at a U.S. Navy relief show, accompanied by the Marine Corps Band. A clip from the show, in which Pyle says the tag-line "Surprise, surprise, surprise!" appears in the Pink Floyd album The Wall in the song "Nobody Home".[27] He hosted a variety show, The Jim Nabors Hour (1969–1971), which featured his Gomer Pyle co-stars Ronnie Schell and Frank Sutton.[28] Despite a poor critical reception, the show was popular[29][30] and earned an Emmy nomination.[31] After the cancellation of The Jim Nabors Hour, Nabors embarked on a nationwide roadshow.[32]
Typecast from his role as Gomer Pyle, Nabors found his subsequent roles mostly comedic.[23] In the 1970s, he appeared in the children's television program The Krofft Supershow. He appeared in every season premiere of The Carol Burnett Show, because Burnett considered him a "good-luck charm".[33] They were so close that he became the godfather to her daughter Jody.[34]
In a 1973 episode of The Rookies, he played his first dramatic role, a man called on to be an assassin after the death of his sister.[35][36] Also in 1973, Nabors sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before Game One of the Major League Baseball World Series.[37] From 1977 to 1978, Nabors hosted another variety show, The Jim Nabors Show. Though the show lasted only one season, Nabors was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Host or Hostess in a Talk, Service or Variety Series.[38]
Nabors eventually grew tired of the "prime-time TV grind" and abandoned television jobs for nightclub and concert engagements and a role in a touring production of Man of La Mancha.[26] However, Sid and Marty Krofft persuaded Nabors to star in the Saturday-morning children's television show The Lost Saucer, about two bumbling androids, Fi (Ruth Buzzi) and Fum (Nabors), who travel through time with two children. Nabors, whose character was described as a "Gomer Pyle in outer space", sang in a few of the episodes.[39] He also guest-starred on The Muppet Show (season 1, episode 6).[40]
In the 1980s, Nabors appeared in three feature-length films starring his friend Burt Reynolds, at the latter's request. In The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), about a sheriff (Reynolds) who falls in love with a brothel madam (Dolly Parton), Nabors played Deputy Fred, a character similar to Gomer Pyle.[41][42] Though the film received mostly unfavorable reviews, Nabors garnered some positive comments for his performance.[43]
In 1983, Nabors played an auto mechanic in Stroker Ace, starring Burt Reynolds as a NASCAR race car driver who has a contentious relationship with his team owner, a fried-chicken fast-food chain entrepreneur. The film was panned, and Nabors earned a Golden Raspberry Award for his performance.[44] In Reynolds' star-studded Cannonball Run II (1984), about a cross-country car chase, Nabors made a cameo appearance alongside such celebrities as Dom DeLuise, Jackie Chan, Shirley MacLaine, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Andy Griffith Show co-stars Don Knotts and George Lindsey.[45] Like the two previous Reynolds films Nabors appeared in, Cannonball received mostly negative reviews.[46]
In 1986, Nabors returned to television, reprising his role as Gomer Pyle in the television movie Return to Mayberry, in which the cast of The Andy Griffith Show reunited.[47] Also in 1986, Nabors starred in the half-hour comedy pilot Sylvan in Paradise as the title character, Sylvan Sprayberry, an accident-prone bell captain at a Hawaiian hotel. The series was not picked up by NBC.[48]
After moving to Hawaii from Bel Air, California, with his partner Stan Cadwallader in 1976, he launched a show, The Jim Nabors Polynesian Extravaganza at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, which ran for two years. Nabors eventually experienced "bright-light burnout" and disappeared from the stage, save for an occasional performance. In 1984, after a five-year hiatus, Nabors returned to performing, starring in the "Moulin Rouge" show at the Las Vegas Hilton and other shows in Reno and Las Vegas.[49] In 1982, he made his theatrical debut as Harold Hill in The Music Man with Florence Henderson at the Burt Reynolds Dinner Theatre in Jupiter, Florida.[50][51]
In 1994, Nabors suffered from a near-fatal case of hepatitis B. According to Nabors, he contracted the disease while traveling in India; he shaved with a straight razor and "whacked [his] face all up."[52] The disease caused liver failure, and Nabors was given a dim prognosis; however, his friend Carol Burnett contacted the head of the liver transplant division at the University of California, Los Angeles, and gave Nabors the information.[6] Nabors later became involved with the American Liver Foundation as a result of his experience.[53]
Shortly after recovering from his transplant, Nabors embarked on another tour, with stops in Phoenix, St. Louis, and Washington.[54] From 1997 to 2006, Nabors starred in the Burton White-produced A Merry Christmas with Friends and Nabors, a live performance at the Hawaii Theatre Center in Honolulu. The production, featuring local and national artists, ran for 40 performances and was directed by Tom Hansen until Hansen's death in 2006. The final performance run was directed by John Rampage and dedicated to Hansen.[55]
From 1972 to 2014, Nabors sang "Back Home Again in Indiana" with the Purdue All-American Marching Band before each Indianapolis 500 race.[56][57] In March 2014, Nabors announced that the 2014 Indianapolis 500 would be his final appearance, because health issues were limiting his ability to travel.[58] After his retirement from this role, the singing of "Back Home Again in Indiana" was done on a rotating basis (as it had been before Nabors became the regular performer), before organizers named Chicago Blackhawks anthem singer Jim Cornelison as permanent replacement.
Nabors began vacationing in Hawaii in the 1960s, and in 1976, moved from Bel Air, California, to Honolulu, Hawaii. For 25 years, he owned a macadamia plantation on Maui before selling it to the National Tropical Botanical Garden, a conservationist organization, though he still retained farming rights to the land and owned a second home on the property.[59]
He also owned a home and spent some summers in Whitefish, Montana, during the 1990s.
On January 15, 2013, Nabors married his partner of 38 years, Stan Cadwallader, at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel in Seattle, Washington, a month after same-sex marriage became legal in Washington.[60][61][62] They had met in the 1970s, when Cadwallader was a fireman in Honolulu, and began dating in 1975. Although Nabors's homosexuality was not widely known before this, it was also not completely secret. For instance, Nabors brought his then-partner Cadwallader along to his Indy 500 performance in 1978.[63]
A longstanding rumor maintains that Nabors married actor Rock Hudson in the early 1970s, shortly before Nabors began his relationship with Cadwallader.[64] Not only was same-sex marriage not yet legal anywhere in the United States at the time, but the two closeted gay actors were, according to each, never more than casual friends. According to Hudson, the story originated with a group of "middle-aged homosexuals who live in Huntington Beach", who sent out joke invitations for their annual get-together.[65] One year, the group invited its members to witness "the marriage of Rock Hudson and Jim Nabors", at which Hudson would take the surname of Nabors' most famous character, Gomer Pyle, becoming "Rock Pyle".[64] The rumors spread, and because of this, the two made sure they were never seen in public together.[64]
Nabors died at his Honolulu, Hawaii, home on November 30, 2017, aged 87.[66][67][65]
The United States Marine Corps released a statement on Nabors: "Semper Fi, Gomer Pyle. Rest in peace Jim Nabors, one of the few to ever be named an Honorary Marine."[68] Second Lady of the United States and former First Lady of Indiana Karen Pence wrote a statement on Twitter: "So sad to hear about the passing of Jim Nabors. We heard him sing 'Back Home Again in Indiana' at the Indianapolis 500 countless times. We will miss his beautiful voice."[69]
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Carol Burnett paid tribute to Nabors, saying they were "close friends for 52 years. ... My heart is heavy. I'm grateful he was a large part of my life. I miss him. I love him."[70] IndyCar driver Tony Kanaan praised Nabors's performance of "Back Home Again in Indiana".[71] Journalist Larry King praised Nabors as a "gentle man with immense talent" while sending condolences to his family.[72]
Nabors' successes have earned him accolades.
Nabors recorded 28 albums and numerous singles; three have been certified either gold or platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[79]
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1963 | Take Her, She's Mine | Clancy, Sleeping Pill Coffee Shop Manager | Uncredited |
1982 | The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas | Deputy Fred[80] | |
1983 | Stroker Ace | Lugs Harvey[80] | Won: Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actor[44] |
1984 | Cannonball Run II | Pvt. Homer Lyle[80] |
Year | Title | Role | Notes |
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1961 | The Steve Allen Show[81] | Himself | |
1963 | I'm Dickens, He's Fenster[82] | Episode: "The Carpenters Four" | |
1963 | Mr. Smith Goes to Washington | Claude | 2 episodes |
1963 | The Danny Kaye Show[81] | Himself | 2 episodes |
1962–1964 | The Andy Griffith Show [81] | Gomer Pyle | 23 episodes |
1964–1969 | Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.[81] | 150 episodes | |
1966 | The Lucy Show | Episode: "Lucy Gets Caught Up in the Draft" | |
1967 | The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour[83] | Himself | Episode #1.1 |
1968 | The Dean Martin Show[83] | Himself | Episode: "1968 Christmas Show" |
1969 | The Don Rickles Show | Himself | Episode #1.16 |
1969 | The Leslie Uggams Show | Himself | Episode #1.5 |
1969–1971 | The Jim Nabors Hour[81] | Host/Various character | 51 episodes |
1967–1977 | The Carol Burnett Show[81] | Himself | 11 episodes (the premiere episode of each season[84]) |
1970-1971 | Sesame Street | Himself | 2 episode |
1971 | The Johnny Cash Show[83] | Himself | Episode #2.19 |
1972–1973 | The Flip Wilson Show[83] | Himself | 2 episodes |
1973 | The Rookies[35] | Corley Curlew | Episode: "Down Home Boy" |
1973–1974 | The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour[85] | Himself/Various characters | 4 episodes |
1976 | The Lost Saucer[81] | Fum | 16 episodes |
1976 | The Muppet Show[40] | Himself/Billy Lee Boomer/Bakery Guard | Episode #1.6 |
1976–1977 | The Sonny & Cher Show[86] | Himself/Various characters | 6 episodes |
1977–1981 | The Love Boat[87] | Robert Tanner, Wayne Bouton, the valet | 3 episodes |
1978 | The Jim Nabors Show [88] | Host | Nominated for a Daytime Emmy (for Outstanding Host or Hostess in a Talk, Service or Variety Series)[38] |
1978 | Buford and The Galloping Ghost | Deputy Goofer McGee (voice) | 13 episodes |
1981 | Aloha Paradise | Episode: "Alex and Annie/Blue Honeymoon/Another Thing" | |
1983 | Knight Rider[89] | Passerby | Episode: "Soul Survivor" |
1986 | Return to Mayberry[80] | Gomer Pyle | Television movie |
1986 | Sylvan in Paradise[80] | Sylvan Sprayberry | Television movie |
1991 | Hi Honey, I'm Home![90] | Gomer Pyle | Episode: "Hi Mom, I'm Not Home" |
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. | |
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![]() Title screen | |
Genre | Sitcom |
Created by | Aaron Ruben |
Starring | |
Theme music composer | Earle Hagen |
Composers |
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Country of origin | United States |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 5 |
No. of episodes | 150 (30 in black-and-white, 120 in color) (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producers | |
Producers |
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Cinematography | John Finger |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 22–24 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | CBS |
Release | September 25, 1964 – May 2, 1969 |
Related | |
The Andy Griffith Show |
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.[fn 1] is an American situation comedy that originally aired on CBS from September 25, 1964, to May 2, 1969. The series was a spin-off of The Andy Griffith Show, and the pilot episode was aired as the season finale of the fourth season of its parent series on May 18, 1964. The show ran for a total of 150 half-hour episodes spanning over five seasons, in black-and-white for the first season, and then in color for the remaining four seasons. In 2006, CBS Home Entertainment (distributed by Paramount) began releasing the series on DVD. The final season was released in November 2008.
Like its parent series, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. was also a major ratings hit, never placing lower than tenth in the Nielsen ratings, and ended its run as the second-highest-rated series in the United States. It has enjoyed continued popularity through reruns and DVD releases. The series was created by Aaron Ruben, who also produced the show with Sheldon Leonard and Ronald Jacobs. Filmed and set in California, it stars Jim Nabors as Gomer Pyle, a naïve but good-natured gas station attendant from the town of Mayberry, North Carolina, who enlists in the United States Marine Corps.[1] Frank Sutton plays Gomer's high-octane, short-fused Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter, and Ronnie Schell plays Gomer's friend Duke Slater. Roy Stuart portrayed Corporal Chuck Boyle, GySgt Carter's good-natured sidekick. Allan Melvin played in the recurring role of Gunnery Sergeant Carter's rival, Staff Sergeant Charley Hacker.
Everett Greenbaum and Jim Fritzell, writers for The Andy Griffith Show, are credited with creating the character of Gomer Pyle. The character was based on an "incompetent" gas station attendant whom Greenbaum met and named after Gomer Cool (a writer) and Denver Pyle (an actor on The Andy Griffith Show).[2] Jim Nabors was cast to play Gomer; he had been performing for a Santa Monica nightclub, The Horn, when Andy Griffith discovered him.[3][4] Though originally intended to appear in only one episode, Gomer proved popular, and after appearing in seasons 3 and 4, Nabors was given his own spin-off produced by Aaron Ruben. The pilot episode of Gomer Pyle was filmed in 1963 as part of The Andy Griffith Show, but was not aired until 1964, as the finale of The Andy Griffith Show's fourth season.[5]
Everett Greenbaum on the creation of the character Gomer Pyle[2]
The 1960s saw a return to "the more mundane sensibilities of comedy," due to viewers' wishes for television programming to be a "cultural antidepressant." Thus, fantasy- and rurally-oriented comedies gained popularity and dominated the Nielsen ratings.[6][7] Like other comedies at the time, Gomer Pyle was a "deep escapist" show; it avoided political commentary and offered viewers a distraction from the social changes of the 1960s.[8][9] Despite being a military-themed show and airing during the peak of the Vietnam War, the show never discussed the war.[10][11] Instead, the show was founded on "Gomer's innocent simplicity [and] Sergeant Carter's frustration and later concern for Gomer's well-being." This, compounded with the popularity of rural comedies in the 1960s, made the show popular.[10] Frank Sutton, who played Carter, ascribed the show's popularity to its concentration on its two main characters, and the plots being built around their respective personalities.[12] The program remained in the top 10 of the ratings throughout its run—in the top three for all but its third season when CBS moved it from Fridays to Wednesdays.[13][14] Approaching age 40, Nabors quit because he desired to move to something else, "reach for another rung on the ladder, either up or down."[15]
After Gomer Pyle left the air, Jim Nabors hosted his own variety show, The Jim Nabors Hour, from 1969 to 1971. As well as showcasing Nabors' singing and rich baritone voice, the show included comedy sketches that featured Nabors's Gomer Pyle co-stars Frank Sutton and Ronnie Schell.[16] Though told that he should not leave Gomer Pyle, Nabors felt that the show would still be exciting and noted that every character he portrayed in his sketches "turn[ed] out to be Gomer."[17]
The show was produced by creator Aaron Ruben, Andy Griffith Show producer Sheldon Leonard (in partnership with Griffith), and Ronald Jacobs; it was co-produced by Bruce Bayley Johnson and Duke Vincent.[18] Among the writers were Sam Bobrick, Harvey Miller, Aaron Ruben, Jack Elinson, and Bill Idelson; Andy Griffith Show writers Everett Greenbaum and Jim Fritzell also wrote episodes. Coby Ruskin was the primary director in the first four seasons, before John Rich took over the role for the fifth season; other directors included Gary Nelson, Peter Baldwin, and Alan Rafkin. Ruth Burch was in charge of the casting, and John Finger directed the cinematography.[18] The theme song was composed by Earle Hagen, who also composed the themes for shows such as The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, and That Girl.[19]
The show was filmed at Camp Pendleton, Desilu Studios's Desilu-Cahuenga, and RKO Forty Acres backlot, where The Andy Griffith Show was filmed.[20][21][22][23] Though Ruben preferred the use of a multiple-camera setup for comedy programs, Gomer Pyle used a single-camera setup because much of the shooting was conducted outdoors.[24] In his book And The Show Goes On, Sheldon Leonard explained that the armed forces offer levels of "cooperation" with filmmakers. Because the Marines felt that the show would be good for the branch's image, Gomer Pyle was given "total cooperation," meaning that the show was allowed unlimited access to military equipment.[21]
The vehicles in the show were provided by the Chrysler Corporation, as opposed to the parent series' vehicles that came from the Ford Motor Company. Although Jeeps are also prominent in the show, the brand itself would not become a part of Chrysler until the AMC buyout that occurred in 1987.
Nabors and Sutton were the only actors credited in every episode (however, Sutton did not appear in every episode).[fn 2] Ronnie Schell (who played Duke Slater) left after the third season to star in Good Morning World, though he returned for the fifth season, promoted to corporal, after graduating from non-commissioned officer training. Roy Stuart, who played Corporal Chuck Boyle, made his debut in the second season and left after the fourth. Andy Griffith, Frances Bavier, Ron Howard, and George Lindsey made guest appearances on the series reprising their respective roles from The Andy Griffith Show.[fn 3] Denver Pyle and Allan Melvin, who both had roles on The Andy Griffith Show, appeared in Gomer Pyle, but did not reprise their original roles. Denver Pyle, who had played Briscoe Darling in six episodes of The Andy Griffith Show, played tomato farmer Titus Purcell in the Gomer Pyle episode "The Price of Tomatoes." Allan Melvin, who had played Clarence "Doc" Malloy and other antagonists on The Andy Griffith Show, played Sergeant Carter's rival, Staff Sergeant Hacker, for four seasons. Nabors also carried the Gomer Pyle character to fellow CBS series The Lucy Show, in which he made a cameo appearance in a 1966 episode.
Nabors always said he had a hard time watching the show's opening credits, as many of the Marines he was filmed training with were later killed in Vietnam.[29]
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | Rank | Rating | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||||
Pilot | 1 | May 18, 1964 | — | — | ||
1 | 30 | September 25, 1964 | April 16, 1965 | 3 | 30.7 | |
2 | 30 | September 17, 1965 | April 15, 1966 | 2 | 27.8 | |
3 | 30 | September 14, 1966 | April 12, 1967 | 10 | 22.8[a] | |
4 | 30 | September 8, 1967 | April 12, 1968 | 3 | 25.6 | |
5 | 30 | September 27, 1968 | May 2, 1969 | 2 | 27.2 |
The premise of Gomer Pyle is similar to and perhaps inspired by Andy Griffith's starring role in the Broadway play and film version of No Time for Sergeants, which was based on the Mac Hyman novel of the same title.[30][31][32] Like Leonard's other shows, Gomer Pyle was character-driven; the main characters were "accessible" and "engaging," and the supporting characters were often eccentric.[33] In the show's pilot episode, Gomer, a gas-station attendant from Mayberry, joins the Marines. Gomer's naïveté immediately exasperates his drill instructor, Gunnery Sergeant Carter (Frank Sutton). Originally situated in Camp Wilson in North Carolina, the setting was moved to the fictional Camp Henderson in California.[34] The show was a fish-out-of-water piece, which, like its contemporary The Beverly Hillbillies, featured rural characters out of their normal settings.[35][36] Like other comedies of the 1960s, the show avoided political commentary (especially concerning the Vietnam War) and focused instead on the predicaments that ensued from Gomer's unintentional breaking of the rules or sticking his foot in his mouth.[37][38]
Among the themes explored were the honesty and "strong family values supposedly inherent in small-town life"; according to author Gerard Jones, Gomer Pyle's basic message was "far simpler than any corporate suburban sitcoms with their lessons in compromise and role-following [...] It said merely that the oldest, most basic, least sophisticated sort of sweetness could redeem even the toughest modern types".[1][39] Author Elizabeth Hirschman noted that Gomer represented a "uniquely American archetype"—a "large, powerful man physically" with the "simple, honest nature of a child or animal". She also noted that, like stories with characters of such an archetype, Gomer's trusting nature was often taken advantage of, though in the end he "reaps happiness" because of his innocence.[40] In his book Watching M*A*S*H, Watching America, media and communications scholar James Wittebols said that Gomer Pyle illustrated how class differences "supposedly negated or diminished by military training" made themselves apparent in the military world.[41]
The Andy Griffith Show Book[42]
Gomer Pyle (played by Jim Nabors), from Mayberry, North Carolina, is a good-natured and innocent private whose naïveté constantly annoys his drill instructor, Sergeant Carter. Eventually, however, his "unquestioning love and trust of the world"[1] lead those in his platoon to befriend him. His good nature attracts the friendship of women; meanwhile, in so far as Carter's abrasiveness repels women, Gomer is in the position of salvaging numerous social occasions by charming the women whose opinions are important to officers at the Marine base. Gomer was created as a stereotype of a rural American; according to Time, he "wears a gee-whiz expression, spouts homilies out of a lopsided mouth and lopes around uncertainly like a plowboy stepping through a field of cow dung. He is a walking disaster area."[43] Though never promoted beyond private first class during the show's run, Jim Nabors (who played Gomer) was given an honorary promotion to lance corporal in 2001, to corporal in 2007, and then to sergeant in 2013 by the Marines.[44][45][46][47]
"The Feudin' Pyles"[48]
Vince Carter (played by Frank Sutton), a gunnery sergeant from Kansas, is Gomer's irritable, abrasive, and socially inept drill instructor (later his platoon sergeant) who is constantly annoyed by Gomer's well-intentioned mistakes.[49] Carter disdains Gomer's country idiosyncrasies ("golly!" "Shazam!" "surprise, surprise, surprise!").[50] He is also put off by Gomer's expectation that the platoon should be a family, of which Carter is the father figure: As much as Carter wants their working relationship to be temporary, as is common in the military, Gomer expects a life-long friendship, which exasperates Carter. Due to the audience's demand for more family-oriented programming, he eventually revealed his softer side: Carter became a father figure to Gomer as well as his best friend.[1][10][34] Sutton stated that his character was created "out of whole cloth for the show" and, as the actor played him "by ear," Carter greatly changed during the first season.[12] Barbara Stuart played his girlfriend "Miss Bunny" for three seasons.
Mark Slade appeared in eight episodes in 1964 in the role of "Eddie" though in the first of those appearances he was billed as "Private Swanson."[51]
Duke Slater (played by Ronnie Schell) is Gomer's friend and platoon-mate. Schell left the show in the fourth season to star in the short-lived show Good Morning, World but returned in the final season as the corporal of Gomer's platoon.[52][53]
Chuck Boyle (played by Roy Stuart) is Gomer's corporal. He often serves as Carter's conscience and sticks up for Gomer when Sergeant Carter is annoyed over his mistakes. Stuart debuted in the second season and left the show after the fourth season; Boyle was replaced by Duke Slater as corporal for the final season.
Lou-Ann Poovie (played by Elizabeth MacRae) is Gomer's girlfriend. She debuts in the third season as a singer for a nightclub, but leaves the job at Gomer's urging to return home to Turtle Creek, North Carolina, and marry her beau Monroe Efford. In a later episode in the same season, she returns to California and reveals that she called the wedding off. At the end of the episode, she reveals that she wants Gomer to be her boyfriend, to the dismay of Carter and Duke. After she loses her job at the nightclub, Gomer finds her a job as a salesclerk at a record shop.
Season | Timeslot | Rank | Rating |
---|---|---|---|
1) 1964–65 | Friday at 9:30 pm | #3 | 30.7 |
2) 1965–66 | Friday at 9:00 pm | #2 | 27.8 |
3) 1966–67 | Wednesday at 9:30 pm | #10 | 22.8 |
4) 1967–68 | Friday at 8:30 pm | #3 | 25.6 |
5) 1968–69 | #2 | 27.2 |
In the song "Nobody Home" from Pink Floyd's 1979 album The Wall, an audio clip of Pyle saying his signature line "Surprise, surprise, surprise!" can be heard.[54] The audio clip, however, is not present in the 1982 film.
In 1987, some 18 years after Gomer Pyle finished its broadcast run, Stanley Kubrick's film Full Metal Jacket was released. In it, the nickname "Gomer Pyle" is derogatorily given to Private Leonard Lawrence (played by Vincent D'Onofrio) during boot camp, after incurring the drill instructor's wrath (Gunnery Sergeant Hartman played by R. Lee Ermey) for being unable to turn off his idiot's grin and his perceived incompetence.[55][56]
A brief clip of the show airing on American Forces Vietnam Network television appears during the military hospital scene in the 1994 film Forrest Gump. In the scene, Gump is scolded for watching the show by a fellow marine who calls it "stupid shit".[57]
E. Kitzes Knox wrote a novel based on the series, also titled Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. The paperback was published by Pyramid and released in 1966.[58] Jim Nabors recorded Shazam!, which is not a soundtrack of the show but features Jim sin