• By Walkertown Branch Library
• Posted Friday, November 6, 2015

"Andy & Don" Presented by Author Daniel de Visé

Andy Griffith and Don Knotts met in the 1950s. When Andy went to Hollywood to film a TV pilot about a small-town sheriff, Don asked if the sheriff could use a deputy. The comedic synergy between them ignited The Andy Griffith Show, elevating a folksy sitcom into a timeless study of human friendship, as potent off the screen as on. But behind this small-town charm, de Visé’s exclusive reporting reveals explosions of violent temper, bouts of crippling neurosis, and all-too-human struggles with the temptations of fame.

Andy and Don received a starred review from Booklist. Excerpt: "Delicious comfort food for boomers and, really, anyone with cable."

Andy and Don chronicles unspoken rivalries, passionate affairs, unrequited loves, and friendships lost and regained. Andy and Don ended their Mayberry partnership in 1965, but remained best friends for the next half-century, with Andy visiting Don at his death bed.

Daniel De Visé’s book, Andy and Don, began as an exploration into the career of his late brother-in-law, Don Knotts.

His first book, I Forgot To Remember, began as a front-page article de Visé wrote for the Washington Post, part of a 23-year career spent at the Post, the Miami Herald and three other newspapers. He has won more than two dozen national, regional and local journalism awards, including a shared 2001 Pulitzer Prize for deadline reporting. His investigative reporting twice led to the release of wrongly convicted men from life terms in Florida prisons.

Click here to visit Author's page .

Meet the author of a new biography, Daniel de Visé
as he discusses his new book Andy and Don.

Walkertown Branch library
Tuesday, November 17th, at 6:30 pm.

Click here for driving directions