For those of us who grew up watching The Andy Griffith show, he will be missed.

FORBES: Andy Griffith Vs. The Patriot Act

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andy Griffith.

CNN: Andy Griffith's crowning achievement

Andy Griffith died today in North Carolina at the age of 86.

FORBES: Andy Griffith Vs. The Patriot Act

Demand at the National Guard armory, on Andy Griffith Parkway, was so intense that, for months at a time, the unit stopped recruiting.

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Actor and director Ron Howard, who played Griffith's son, Opie Taylor, on "The Andy Griffith Show, " said he is "forever grateful" to the actor.

CNN: Actor Andy Griffith dead at 86

Mario, a mustachioed plumber from Brooklyn, is as familiar to the millions of kids who play Nintendo's games as Andy Griffith was to their parents.

FORBES

It remains one of the glories of American film, not least for the incendiary performance of a young Andy Griffith, who died today at 86.

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He observes that television's representations of the South -- Andy Griffith's Mayberry, "The Dukes of Hazzard, " "The Beverly Hillbillies" -- seldom delve into the challenging issues underneath.

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He made his film debut in the critically acclaimed "A Face in the Crowd, " but it was the 1960 debut of "The Andy Griffith Show" that brought his greatest fame.

CNN: Actor Andy Griffith dead at 86

At the Gahanna Grill on Granville Street, Jim Sevy, 62, sipped a cold beer and ribbed bartender Dottie Burns about her decision to watch Andy Griffith reruns instead of the debate.

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The next year Griffith starred in the amiable military comedy "No Time for Sergeants, " and by 1960 "The Andy Griffith Show" was on network television and he was on his way to sweet, gentle fame, under blue skies and white clouds.

CNN: Andy Griffith's crowning achievement