Goober's gone [George Lindsay dies at 76]

[Johnny L.A.]

George Lindsey, who played 'Goober' on The Andy Griffith Show, has died at the age of 76.

[notfrommensa]

Goober was one of the many memorable characters from the TAGS. Goober, Gomer, Floyd, Barney

RIP Goober Pyle

[BMalion]

Tell Aunt Bea I said "hey".

[Nunzio Tavulari]

I always liked him better than Gomer. Gomer was a jerk.

[x-ray vision]

It looks like the article's headline got his age wrong. The article and other sources claim he died at 83.

[Mahaloth]

Originally Posted by x-ray vision

It looks like the article's headline got his age wrong. The article and other sources claim he died at 83.

Wikipedia has him as 76.

[x-ray vision]

^ Wikipedia was one of the sources I checked. Someone changed it within the past 20 minutes.

[x-ray vision]

According to the University of North Alabama's website, he graduated there when it was called Florence State Teachers College in 1952.

http://www.una.edu/library/about/col...biography.html

[notfrommensa]

Originally Posted by x-ray vision

According to the University of North Alabama's website, he graduated there when it was called Florence State Teachers College in 1952.

http://www.una.edu/library/about/col...biography.html

If he was 76, then he graduated when he was 16.

[aceplace57]

I'd agree he'd have to be at least 80 to have graduated in 1952. I think the sources that list him at 83 are right.

George Lindsay hit the jackpot with the Goober character. He played him in Andy's show and Hee Haw. He did a lot of fan signings in character too. A really good living. I read his book about twenty years ago. He originally was up for Gomer's part and didn't get it. Then when they decided to spin-off Gomer, they create Goober.

I always like ole Goober. RIP

[randwill]

I saw George at an Andy Griffith show event. Don Knotts, Betty Lynn, Elinor Donahue, Howard Morris, Arlene Golonka, Bernard Fox, Joanna Moore, Maggie Peterson, James Best and The Dillards were also there. What a great show, with an autograph and photo op room also with all these people. As Barney would say, it was BIG!

On the stage show, George Lindsay and Bernard Fox were the two who had an actual act that, as far as I could tell, they performed with some regularity. Lindsay's stand-up comedy was hilarious. Of course, by that time he had a lot of experience telling jokes on Hee Haw, which he did for 20 years.

I had my picture taken with him. He was wearing his Goober outfit, complete with the hat and the tire gauge in his shirt pocket. I've lost the pictures from that night, but I still have the great memories.

[breezman]

I saw him at a concert in Montgomery Alabama when I was a 8 or 9 years old. It was called the "Great Stars Show," and it has the band Alabama, Ray Stevens (I think), and other people I don't remember. It must've been 1983 or 1984, because when George Lindsay came out, he was dressed like Michael Jackson and he moonwalked out onto the stage. I was young and dumb enough that I thought it actually was MJ. At the time I didn't appreciate how hilarious it was.

[aceplace57]

George created a film festival. This year was the fifteenth one. He attended it this past March.

http://www.lindseyfilmfest.com/

[TriPolar]

Goober once appeared on News Radio to prove that the skull Jimmy James bought was not his.

[wedgehed]

Originally Posted by TriPolar

Goober once appeared on News Radio to prove that the skull Jimmy James bought was not his.

Goober had to examine it first to make sure.

[wedgehed]

I seem to recall seeing George Lindsay (in a pre-Goober role) playing an outlaw on Gunsmoke. It was interesting to see him playing a different kind of character.

[Batsinma Belfry]

About 28 years ago I was in downtown Nashville, headed for my bus stop. It was a cold day and I was fishing my gloves out of my pockets. I dropped one, bent down and picked it. I was still kind of walking as I was standing back up, and concentrating on my cold hands and not being late for the bus. I noticed the cab at the curb, but I was too busy to see anyone get out. Mr. Lindsay must have been in a hurry too because he was making a bee line towards whatever building I was in front of. I went face first into his tweedy right shoulder! I was very skinny back then and I stumbled back a little from the impact. He steadied me and asked if I was okay. That's when I realized who it was.

R.I.P Goober

[Accidental Martyr]

I met him several years ago when I shot an interview with him at his house in Nashville. His house had white carpet in it and he made you take your shoes off when you came in. We had lunch with him afterwards. He was pretty nice to us and had some great stories.

[cosmosdan]

I'm hearing a lyrical rewrite of Tuesday's Gone, to Goober's gone, with sound bytes of Goober in the mix, "Judy Judy Judy"

[cosmosdan]

Originally Posted by cosmosdan

I'm hearing a lyrical rewrite of Tuesday's Gone, to Goober's gone, with sound bytes of Goober in the mix, "Judy Judy Judy"

Woah!! Now it's a Tribute to the show with verses that include Barney's gone with the wind , Floyd is gone with the wind, Aunt B's gone, with the wind, and the appropriate sound bytes.

[cosmosdan]

Originally Posted by wedgehed

I seem to recall seeing George Lindsay (in a pre-Goober role) playing an outlaw on Gunsmoke. It was interesting to see him playing a different kind of character.

I'm a big Gunsmoke fan and just read that in an article about him. Supposedly he shot Matt Dillon. Now I want to look for it.

[cosmosdan]

One thing I always appreciated about Mt Lindsey is how happily and gratefully he seemed to embrace Goober. Some actors get very frustrated and bitter about typecasting or a role they can't escape from. He seemed to be happy and grateful that his character was popular and it afforded him a good living long after the show was off thew air.
That strikes me as a centered person.

[shiftless]

My dad, in his retirement, started doing volunteer work with handicapped kids. Apparently Mr. Lindsey did the same and they met once at some event. Mom still has the picture of them together in the living room. Sounded like a cool guy and I know he was someone my dad respected for his non-acting work. RIP Goober.

[Johnny L.A.]

Just a nitpick to whoever changed the thread title. It's Lindsey, not Lindsay.

[johnpost]

Originally Posted by wedgehed

I seem to recall seeing George Lindsay (in a pre-Goober role) playing an outlaw on Gunsmoke. It was interesting to see him playing a different kind of character.

Originally Posted by cosmosdan

I'm a big Gunsmoke fan and just read that in an article about him. Supposedly he shot Matt Dillon. Now I want to look for it.

he was in 6 episodes

Pa Hack's Brood (28 December 1963) - Orville
Hung High (14 November 1964) - Bud
Two Tall Men (8 May 1965) - Billy
Which Dr. (19 March 1966) - Skeeter
Mad Dog (14 January 1967) - Pinto Watson
Blind Man's Buff (21 February 1972) - Charlie Clavin

[Labdad]

Never mind - beaten to the punch in post 19.

[ftg]

He played a fairly serious guy in an episode of The Twilight Zone. I still remember it well.

IMDb lists his birthday as 17 December 1935. Was UNA back then a real college? E.g., both my grandfathers graduated from "colleges" that at the time were vocational schools that served as high school substitutes.

From his bio page:

"TV Land's Star Trek marathon November 17th, 2006, had comments by the actors. Leonard Nimoy's stunner was that Gene Roddenberry's first choice to play Spock was George Lindsey. He turned the part down and the rest is history."

You're welcome for that image.

[Tom Tildrum]

Originally Posted by ftg

He played a fairly serious guy in an episode of The Twilight Zone. I still remember it well.

Yes! That was creepy.

[Earl Snake-Hips Tucker]

Originally Posted by cosmosdan

One thing I always appreciated about Mt Lindsey is how happily and gratefully he seemed to embrace Goober. Some actors get very frustrated and bitter about typecasting or a role they can't escape from. He seemed to be happy and grateful that his character was popular and it afforded him a good living long after the show was off thew air.

Yeah, Lindsey was a better actor than he gets credit for, but he also knew the value of getting a steady paycheck. The last time I saw him was on one of "Larry the Cable Guy's" Christmas specials. I thought then, "Man, he doesn't look too good."

[Accidental Martyr]

Originally Posted by ftg

He played a fairly serious guy in an episode of The Twilight Zone. I still remember it well.

IMDb lists his birthday as 17 December 1935. Was UNA back then a real college? E.g., both my grandfathers graduated from "colleges" that at the time were vocational schools that served as high school substitutes.

UNA was Florence State College when Lindsey was there. It was founded as a teacher's college. It went through a couple of other name changes before becoming University of North Alabama in 1974.

[Backwater Under_Duck]

Here is a terrific clip, from Hee Haw, I think. He's singing with Johnny and June Carter Cash backing up Joe South on "Don't It Make You Want To Go Home". Very sentimental and nice.

[Sampiro]

Originally Posted by cosmosdan

One thing I always appreciated about Mt Lindsey is how happily and gratefully he seemed to embrace Goober. Some actors get very frustrated and bitter about typecasting or a role they can't escape from. He seemed to be happy and grateful that his character was popular and it afforded him a good living long after the show was off thew air.
That strikes me as a centered person.

I used to go to his Celebrity Golf Tournaments in Montgomery, AL. (They were for the benefit of local retarded citizens- some great memories of working for those.) Part of that was a sort of meet-and-greet that Lindsey hosted and he also read the same poem into the mike and it always worked each time; it was called WHAT MAYBERRY MEANS TO ME and it's a rambling, somewhat syrupy poem about how Mayberry represents a simpler time and a kinder place and an ideal we should all strive for and apple pie and Aunt Bea and values and laughs and blah blah blah, and then it ends with the lines

Mayberry is what scratches my soul
when it gets that very special itch
But the think that I like about Mayberry, most of all,
IT MADE OL' GOOBER RICH!

I always appreciated both the "let's get real" humor and the honesty of that joke.


RIP, George and Goob.

[aceplace57]

That's probably from the Johnny Cash show. They would have been dressed in bib overalls for Hee Haw. Hee Haw never used contemporary 60's sets like that.

It is a very good clip.

Originally Posted by Backwater Under_Duck

Here is a terrific clip, from Hee Haw, I think. He's singing with Johnny and June Carter Cash backing up Joe South on "Don't It Make You Want To Go Home". Very sentimental and nice.

[Sampiro]

Originally Posted by Accidental Martyr

I met him several years ago when I shot an interview with him at his house in Nashville. His house had white carpet in it and he made you take your shoes off when you came in. We had lunch with him afterwards. He was pretty nice to us and had some great stories.

Was it a nice house? In addition to his "made ol' Goober rich" line, I would assume he had a tidy bit socked away due to working non-stop as Goober for almost 30 years, personal appearances, endorsements (if you're outside of the Deep South you may not know that he appeared on quite a few regional commercials- Liberty Overalls, Ace Hardware, Glidden Paints, and a few others- usually in his Goober cap- though I haven't seen him on one in many years), plus he left Hollywood, and while Nashville is a relatively large city it's not as expensive to live in as L.A.. The main thing that would have hurt him probably was his divorce from his wife of forever back in the '90s.

His divorce (1991 per wikipedia) was actually much covered in the tabloids for a D-list "way outside of Hollywood" celebrity. Per the tabloid reports, after their kids were grown & gone, his wife went through a major New Age phase (channeling, reincarnation "therapy", crystals, etc.) and started opening their home to some weird New Age types in Nashville and George just couldn't take it. I'm all about supporting your partner, but I can see his point on that as well; your home is sacrosanct and you don't want it to be seen as a 'second home' to a bunch of freeloaders (not saying all New Agers are freeloaders, but all groups have a freeloading element) plus a lot of that stuff is just really hard to listen to anybody talk about while keeping a straight face.

[Accidental Martyr]

His house wasn't really that big or lavish at all. I was actually kind of surprised that it wasn't bigger. Maybe the ex-wife ended up with the big house.

[Earl Snake-Hips Tucker]

Originally Posted by Sampiro

. . . usually in his Goober cap- though I haven't seen him on one in many years). . . .

I think he did wear it at the end of the "Larry the Cable Guy" special (2009). Looking at his filmography, that might have been his last public appearance.

[ExcitedIdiot]

Goober on Newsradio.

[TBG]

Originally Posted by TriPolar

Goober once appeared on News Radio to prove that the skull Jimmy James bought was not his.

I actually came in here to ask (hopefully not too distastefully) if that means Mr. James now finally gets what he paid for.

[MPB in Salt Lake]

Anyone remember the MASH episode where he played a visiting army surgeon (Roy DuPree) who was temporarily assigned to the 4077th while Hawkeye was away?
-----------------------------------
"Soo-Wee Pigs"

[Siam Sam]

Guess Wally's going to have to find someone else to mind the gas station.

RIP, George.

[johnpost]

Originally Posted by MPB in Salt Lake

Anyone remember the MASH episode where he played a visiting army surgeon (Roy DuPree) who was temporarily assigned to the 4077th while Hawkeye was away?
-----------------------------------
"Soo-Wee Pigs"

very Gooberish.

[MPB in Salt Lake]

Originally Posted by johnpost

very Gooberish.

I remember the poignant Andy Griffith episode when ol' Goob flunked out of his 2nd year of surgical residency and is forced to go back to work at the fillin' station....