Frances Bavier: Aunt Bee As You’ve Never Seen Her

Last week, there was a Jeopardy! clue that mentioned Andy Griffith’s singing career before he began “patrolling a small N.C. TV town.” I’ve never been a big fan of the “Andy Griffith Show”, but I know all the characters so I was mighty surprised, as anyone would be, to see Aunt Bee turn up in an episode of “The Lone Ranger”.

It was Aunt Bee, all right, as I never expected to see her. She was playing an aunt — Aunt Maggie Sawterelle — but Aunt Maggie was nothing like Aunt Bee. She was a ruthless criminal using her own nephews to commit crimes.

When the Lone Ranger (Clayton Moore) and Tonto (Jay Silverheels) pay her a visit, she pretends not to know that her nephews were thieves. She manages to get both the Lone Ranger and Tonto locked in the woodshed. Then she gleefully instructs her nephews to set fire to the woodshed. The Lone Ranger and Tonto manage to get out before that happens, but Tonto has a bad time of it trying to restrain Aunt Maggie. Hilariously, he tells the Lone Ranger: “Next time me take easy job. Fight man. You fight woman.” This video is set to start at that scene:

Frances Bavier played Aunt Bee on “The Andy Griffith Show” for 188 episodes from 1960 to 1968. No wonder she became so closely identified with that role! That wasn’t something she was particularly happy about, however. In her own words, “I had played Aunt Bee for ten years and it’s very, very difficult for an actress or actor to create a role and be so identified that you as a person no longer exist and all the recognition you get is for a part that’s created on screen.” Indeed, all of her appearances in Jeopardy! clues are connected to Aunt Bee, but there was one in 1988 where the players were expected to know her real name:

AUNTS ($500) On both “The Andy Griffith Show” & “Mayberry R.F.D.” she played Aunt Bee

It was not a triple stumper either, so there’s that! All of the main characters from “The Andy Griffith Show” have had multiple Jeopardy! clues. Barney Fife (Don Knotts) and Opie (Ron Howard) still turn up now and then. That’s how much this show was loved and it still has a faithful audience on Pluto TV and other streaming services.

But the only place you can see Aunt Bee abuse Tonto is on “The Lone Ranger”