He was buried in the Griffith family cemetery on the island within five hours of his death. He said they just didnt know how to write for me. Plus, the two helped bring Barney and Thelma Lou, together. View results. Subscribe to our newsletter for new stories, tips & events. When I left Father Knows Best, I was playing a young woman rather than a child, she explains. The magazine added part of the reason was due to a strike of the Writers Guild of America lasted from January to June 1960. Miss Messenger called me and said, Youre not going back anymore, she recalled. Years later, Elinor attended an event and saw him there. mike vernon royal household; are there snakes in gran canaria; shooting in laurel, md yesterday. In 1990, she played Bridget, a Beverly Hills clothing-store manager, in the film Pretty Woman. As The Andy Griffith Show started, Donahue and her husband, Richard Smith, were divorcing. She hasn't appeared in any onscreen roles since 2011. Donahue, who started her acting career when she was six in 1943, accomplished fame for her role as the elder daughter, Betty, on the '50s sitcom. Donahue is one of the show's cast members who is still alive today. Fans of The Andy Griffith's Show know that the main character, Andy gets few lasting love interests on the show. Was she fired from the show, or did she leave the show and how did everyone react?First, lets look into how Elinor Donahue got her start in life. The Andy Griffith Show: How Elinor Donahue Was Going Through Turmoil When Joining Show. She went up and apologized for having left the show. Shows like The Andy Griffith Show, which aired in the '60s, provide a sense of familiarity and comfort, which is much needed in times like these. Its difficult to go from one series to another, especially in the early days of network television. After her appearance in episode The Guitar Player Returns, she inexplicably leaves the series. And Ellie won the seat. 2022 - 2023 Times Mojo - All Rights Reserved The actor told the Television Academy Foundation how she came to be cast in 1960 on The Andy Griffith Show. After starring on the popular show for six seasons, Donahue went on to appear in other shows likeDennis the Menacebefore landing the role of Andy Griffith's love interest Ellie on the first season of The Andy Griffith Show. Father Knows Best Star, Billy Gray, Reminisces on Childhood Fame, An Unhappy Elinor Donahue Quit The Andy Griffith Show, Feeling There Was No Point In Continuing, Why Clint Eastwood Turned Down This Iconic Role, 74-Year-Old Susan Sarandon Says Why She Prefers Younger Men. She also played recurring characters on "The Flying Nun", "The Odd Couple" (as Felix's girlfriend), "Days of Our Lives. Ellie was portrayed by Elinor Donahue, fresh off of a six-year stint as the precocious teenage daughter Betty "Princess" Anderson on CBS's Father Knows Best. I just didnt feel right about it. The Andy Griffith Show made its debut in 1960, and Elinor was a part of it, playing pharmacist Ellie Walker, with the idea being that she would eventually become the girlfriend of Sheriff Andy Taylor (Andy Griffith) following a rocky start between the two of them. I didnt know that much about it except that I was going to be in the show with Andy Griffith, Donahue said. Why did Elinor Donahue leave 'The Andy Griffith Show' after playing Andy's love interest in the first season? In 1959, she was nominated for an Emmy Award for her supporting role as Betty Anderson on "Father Knows Best". The actor told the Television Academy Foundation how she came to be cast in 1960 on The Andy Griffith Show. After all, she was only 23 when he agreed to the three-year contract as Ellie. Author, Ed Gross, Your email address will not be published. Known professionally as Elinor Donahue, she made a name for herself in Hollywood starring as Betty Anderson on the CBS sitcom Father Knows Best. Do you wish we could have seen more of the character?Contents of this video00:00 - Intro0:39 - Elinor Donahue1:24 - The Andy Griffith Show2:41 - Why She Left the Andy Griffith Show4:00 - Try Surfshark VPN5:02 - The Reaction6:12 - Elinors Career7:29 - OutroLike this content? She guest starred on an episode of U.S. He was just absolutely precious. Required fields are marked *. Ellie . She also felt that her character wasnt given much importance by the shows writers. She was a pharmacist who helped her uncle. Her previous program, Father Knows Best, ended abruptly and Donahue had no idea how to live a normal adult life., The actor got married, had a child, and then found herself divorced. Ellie Walker is a pharmacist (or "lady druggist" as Andy called her) who assists her uncle Fred Walker at Walker's Drugstore in Mayberry. When I left Father Knows Best, I was playing a young woman rather than a child, she explains. Donahues character, Ellie, arrives in Mayberry having taken over the drugstore from her uncle, and eventually begins dating the towns sheriff, Andy Taylor. She played lady druggist Ellie Walker on the CBS comedy for about a dozen episodes until her unexpected departure. Part of that, she believes, was because she had more or less grown up on the former. But I felt that it was because I was so terrible.. Just a rehearsal. We started singing and sang through the whole thing. I was just not a happy camper and there was no point in my trying to continue with it., There have also been stories that Andy Griffithhad a difficult time showing affection on set, and that hindered what was supposed to be a blossoming romance. He wanted to make sure I was all right. Ms. Lynn joined the cast of the show in 1961, late in the first season, for an episode in which Sheriff Andy Taylor (Mr. Griffith) plays matchmaker between Barney and Thelma Lou. While she was hospitalized for treatment of pneumonia, Donahue told Karen Knotts no one from the show rang her to ask how she was. If anything, Griffith felt bad that he couldnt do more. Donahue played a strong female role on The Andy Griffith Show. Fife appeared on The Andy Griffith Show from the show's beginning in 1960 until 1965, when Knotts left the show to pursue a career in feature films . However, Mayberry, the quaint hometown made famous on The Andy Griffith Show, has long been considered a fictional place, but the real Mayberry does exist. What happened to kitten on Father Knows Best? Subscribe to our newsletter for new stories, tips & events. Sheriff Andy liked to call her the "lady pharmacist.". My mother said, Oh for heavens sake, you sing that in church all the time, you can certainly sing that. But I was very, very nervous about it. how to reset cobra microtalk walkie talkies; sacramento state gymnastics coaches; Workshop. ELINOR DONAHUE. She was set to play a very different role. She played one of the daughters in Three Daring Daughters in 1948 and appeared as Mamie Van Doren's sister in Girls Town (1959). We just wish poor Ellie had been given a better send-off her character certainly deserved it! Part of that, she believes, was because she had more or less grown up on the former. Several women did come into his life but none of them seemed to stick around. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Her character mysteriously disappeared without any kind of explanation for the viewers. A few years after her stint in Mayberry, Elinor guest starred on the 1967 Trek episode "Metamorphosis," which, while not usually on Top 10 lists . In 1984, she made an appearance as Mrs. Broderick, the mother of a teenage drug addict on the last season of Happy Days. Before The Andy Griffith Show, Donahue found major success on the show, Father Knows Best. RELATED: How Did The Andy Griffith Show End? I just didnt feel right about it. Why did Elinor Donahue leave the Andy Griffith Show? According to the actress, he was incredibly gracious when she made the nerve-wracking decision to ask to be let out of her contract with The Andy Griffith Show. I just didnt feel right about it. But there was a reason that Andy didnt have Ellie in his life for long. But the truth is, I felt like a bird out of a nest. Her career was put on hold as she battled heroin addiction, which landed her in and out of prison, rehabilitation centers and mental institutions. Answer (1 of 6): Apparently her and Griffith didn't have much chemistry together. The two were married for almost 30 years when he died in 1991. The widow of TV executive producer Harry Ackerman (he was 25 years her senior), whose list of credits included Leave It to Beaver (1957), Bewitched (1964) and Gidget (1965), and a mother of four sons, Elinor married third husband, contractor Louis Genevrino, in 1992. She went up and apologized for having left the show. Mrs. Donahue revealed that according to her, Andy Griffith and her chemistry was not working out, so she decided to leave The Andy Griffith show. Thankfully, still-single Barney and now-single Thelma Lou were reunited and married in 1986s Return to Mayberry movie. Very good. 1960-Season 1), 1960-68. He said they just didnt know how to write for me. Study Guides . Appearing in dancing-chorus film roles from the age of five, Donahue was at one point a ballet-school classmate of future Fred Astaire partner Barrie Chase. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Then he said, Oh, that was very nice. Why did Don Knotts leave Andy Griffith Show? As much as we enjoyed watching Andy Griffith play Ron Howard's onscreen father, it was entertaining to see him simultaneously pursue relationships with women on the family sitcom. It is explained that Fife had left Mayberry to take a job as a detective in Raleigh, North Carolina. I have always wondered why he was uncomfortable around women. There was no mean spiritedness to it. However, Father Knows Best would be abruptly canceled. the Cat. Okay, thats it. I said, What? He faked me out, because he knew how nervous I was, and that was the take that they used. Why Did Elinor Donahue Leave Andy Griffith Show? Her character mysteriously disappeared without any kind of explanation for the viewers. As she explained to Don Knotts daughter Karen in her recent book Tied Up in Knotts: My Dad and Me, she was only 23 years old when she appeared on the Griffith Show. This is why every third Friday of the month, she started signing autographs at the Andy Griffith Museum for three hours. Born on August 29, 1926, Elizabeth Ann Theresa Lynn was a well-known actress and appeared in several films during the 1940s and 1950s. To hear Elinor Donahue in her own words regardingFather Knows BestandThe Andy Griffith Show, as well as people likeGilligans Islandstar Dawn Wells and others, please visit theTV RetroVisionpodcast by clicking HERE. That could have been part of it. 47 6 thatphanom.techno@gmail.com 042-532028 , 042-532027 But the truth is, I felt like a bird out of a nest. It was just very sweet., Our new Privacy Policy will go into effect on January 1st, 2023. Ms. Lynn said that she could have stayed with the series, which ended in 1968, had she accepted the producers offer to make her the owner of a hairdressing salon. Andy Griffith was already in his mid-thirties when he began playing everyones favorite country sheriff on The Andy Griffith Show in 1960. with Father Knows Best's Elinor Donahue as the druggist . So he was only a few months away from turning 60 when Matlock premiered on NBC. I was very, very touched by that. My mother said, Oh for heavens sake, you sing that in church all the time, you can certainly sing that. But I was very, very nervous about it. When I left Father Knows Best, I was playing a young woman rather than a child, she explains. It was an ongoing whirlwind. Donahue portrayed Miriam Welby in 17 episodes of The Odd Couple (197275). THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, Elinor Donahue, Andy Griffith (ca. After twelve appearances in the first season, Ellie disappeared with no explanation offered to the audience. Home | About | Contact | Copyright | Report Content | Privacy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions | Sitemap. Elinor Donahue is the stage name for American actress Mary Eleanor Donahue. Elinor Donahue (born Mary Eleanor Donahue, April 19, 1937) is an American actress, best known today for playing the role of Betty Anderson, the eldest child of Jim and Margaret Anderson on the 1950s American sitcom Father Knows Best. "I'm so welcomed here. It was the strangest feeling. In retrospect, from things that people have said to me very lovely things I was doing OK. In September 2010, Donahue made an appearance on The Young and the Restless as Judge Anderson, one of Nikki Newman's old friends and also as the woman minister who will officiate at the wedding of Billy Abbott and Nikki's daughter, Victoria Newman. Follow the link to read our updated Privacy Policy, John Travolta Celebrates 69th Birthday By Dancing With Daughter Ella, Jamie Lee Curtis Attributes Stardom To Being Nepo Baby During SAG Award Speech. "Nip It In the Bud": $20 'Andy Griffith Show' Tee Is a Funny, Cozy Memory. She was a pharmacist who helped her uncle. 'The Andy Griffith Show' is one of the most revered series in history. At least now we know what happened. Elinor Donahue was Andy Griffith's 1st love interest on the show. THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW, Elinor Donahue, Andy Griffith (ca. 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why did elinor donahue leave the andy griffith show