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The Best Episodes of The Andy Griffith Show Season 4

Every episode of The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Andy Griffith Show Season 4!

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The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised on CBS between October 3, 1960 and April 1, 1968. Andy Griffith portrays the widowed sheriff of the fictional small community of Mayberry, North Carolina.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 1 - Opie the Birdman
    8.9/10(603 votes)

    #1 - Opie the Birdman

    S4:E1

    Opie decides to raise a nest of baby birds after accidentally killing their mother with his new slingshot and ends up learning one of the hardest lessons of motherhood in the process.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  2. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 2 - The Haunted House
    9.2/10(692 votes)

    #2 - The Haunted House

    S4:E2

    Barney is sent into a reputed "haunted" house to retrieve Opie's baseball and sees things that make even the skeptical Andy wonder if there really are ghosts, until Andy discovers who's really doing the haunting.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  3. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 3 - Ernest T. Bass Joins the Army
    7.9/10(406 votes)

    #3 - Ernest T. Bass Joins the Army

    S4:E3

    When Ernest T. Bass is denied from joining the army, he blames Andy and threatens to break every window in Mayberry. When Andy learns the real reason for Ernest's denial, he finds a solution that benefits everyone...except Barney.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  4. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 4 - The Sermon for Today
    7.5/10(382 votes)

    #4 - The Sermon for Today

    S4:E4

    A visiting minister preaches the importance of relaxation and inspires Aunt Bee, Andy, and Barney to throw a Sunday afternoon band concert. When it ends up being more work than they imagined, it leaves them wondering if they'll ever have time to relax again.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writer:John Whedon

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  5. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 5 - Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee
    7.8/10(391 votes)

    #5 - Briscoe Declares for Aunt Bee

    S4:E5

    While having dinner at the Taylor household, mountain man Briscoe Darling (Denver Pyle) mistakes Aunt Bee's usual hospitality for affection and whisks her away to his cabin to marry her, quite against her wishes. But when Aunt Bee takes it upon herself to "civilize" him, he wonders if hospitality is all it's cracked up to be.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  6. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 6 - Gomer the House Guest
    8.0/10(372 votes)

    #6 - Gomer the House Guest

    S4:E6

    Andy lets Gomer move in after he loses his job at the gas station and instantly regrets it after Gomer's night habits prove to be more than the Taylors can take. Now Andy must find a way to get Gomer's job back, or never sleep again.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  7. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 7 - A Black Day for Mayberry
    8.2/10(414 votes)

    #7 - A Black Day for Mayberry

    S4:E7

    All of Mayberry turns out to welcome a truck carrying gold to Fort Knox as it passes through town. When Barney sneaks a closer look at the loot, he sees that there may not be as much to celebrate as everyone thought.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writer:John Whedon

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  8. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 8 - Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain
    8.0/10(342 votes)

    #8 - Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain

    S4:E8

    Opie finally gets a good grade in math, and Andy is so proud he tells everyone in town. But when Opie's teacher tells him she made a mistake and his grade is actually an F, he goes home to tell Andy the bad news, only to find Andy has bought him a shiny new bicycle.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writer:John Whedon

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  9. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 9 - A Date for Gomer
    8.4/10(422 votes)

    #9 - A Date for Gomer

    S4:E9

    Thelma Lou's bachelorette cousin is coming to Mayberry for the town dance, and Barney decides to set her up with Gomer. On the big night, they all meet up at Thelma Lou's and everything seems to be going great, until Gomer suddenly disappears.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  10. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 10 - Up in Barney's Room
    8.5/10(460 votes)

    #10 - Up in Barney's Room

    S4:E10

    Barney has an argument with his landlady Mrs. Mendelbright and gets evicted. After moving into the courthouse and having no luck finding a new place, he decides to mend fences with Mrs. Mendelbright, only to find she has decided to sell the house and run away to get married.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  11. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 11 - Citizen's Arrest
    8.9/10(527 votes)

    #11 - Citizen's Arrest

    S4:E11

    A minor argument between Barney and Gomer over a traffic ticket erupts into an all-out feud that leads to reckless driving, staged burglaries, and eventually Barney's resignation from the force. Can Andy get the two friends to make up before things really get out of hand?

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  12. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 12 - Opie and His Merry Men
    7.7/10(368 votes)

    #12 - Opie and His Merry Men

    S4:E12

    Opie and his friends decide to play Robin Hood to a friendly hobo they meet in the local woods and take food from their own cupboards to give to him. Andy decides to meet the man and ends up teaching them all a lesson in who the rich and poor really are.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writer:John Whedon

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  13. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 13 - Barney and the Cave Rescue
    8.3/10(411 votes)

    #13 - Barney and the Cave Rescue

    S4:E13

    The day of the town picnic, Barney watches as Andy and Helen go wandering into a cave just before the entrance collapses. He quickly rallies the town to their rescue, not realizing Andy and Helen have already found a way out.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  14. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 14 - Andy and Opie's Pal
    7.4/10(331 votes)

    #14 - Andy and Opie's Pal

    S4:E14

    After becoming jealous of the attention Andy give to the new boy in town, Opie comes to Andy wrapped in bandages and tells him he and the new boy got into a vicious fight. One peek under Opie's bandages, however, tells Andy the fight may not have been as bloody, or as real, as Opie says.

    Director:Richard Crenna
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  15. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 15 - Aunt Bee the Crusader
    7.6/10(342 votes)

    #15 - Aunt Bee the Crusader

    S4:E15

    Aunt Bee's friend Mr. Frisby tells her his house is about to be demolished to make way for a new highway. She decides to help her friend and campaigns to halt the county's plans, despite the fact that Andy is the one who must serve the eviction.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:John Whedon

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  16. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 16 - Barney's Sidecar
    8.7/10(483 votes)

    #16 - Barney's Sidecar

    S4:E16

    Barney buys an antique motorcycle in order to set a speed trap for speeding truckers on Highway 6. After Barney makes a complete nuisance of himself to all of Mayberry, Andy realizes that the answer may be to make the motorcycle more valuable to the town than to Barney.

    Director:Coby Ruskin
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  17. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 17 - My Fair Ernest T. Bass
    8.5/10(467 votes)

    #17 - My Fair Ernest T. Bass

    S4:E17

    Andy is called to arrest Ernest T. Bass once again for disturbing one of Mrs. Wiley's socials. Sympathizing with his search for true love, Andy and Barney teach him how to act like a gentleman and bring him to Mrs. Wiley's next social. But when Ernest falls for Mrs. Wiley's niece, his true colors shine through.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  18. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 18 - Prisoner of Love
    8.1/10(474 votes)

    #18 - Prisoner of Love

    S4:E18

    While guarding a gorgeous jewel thief one night, Andy nearly falls for her seductive charms. He decides to go home and leaves Barney to guard her for the night. But when it suddenly occurs to Andy what the thief's real plans are, he realizes he may not be able to warn Barney in time.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  19. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 19 - Hot Rod Otis
    8.2/10(372 votes)

    #19 - Hot Rod Otis

    S4:E19

    Andy and Barney are horrified to learn that Otis, the town drunk, has just bought a new car. After he passes out one night after a party, Andy and Barney put him in his usual jail cell and pretend that he is dead to teach him a lesson. Little do they know Otis may have already learned it.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  20. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 20 - The Song Festers
    8.4/10(389 votes)

    #20 - The Song Festers

    S4:E20

    When Gomer replaces Barney in the Mayberry choir, Barney is heartbroken. Gomer hears about this and feigns illness so that Barney can sing on the night of the recital. But when Barney's pride gets in the way, the big performance threatens to become a big disaster.

    Director:Earl Bellamy
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  21. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 21 - The Shoplifters
    8.7/10(462 votes)

    #21 - The Shoplifters

    S4:E21

    Andy and Barney must find a shoplifter that's been hitting Ben Weaver's store, so Barney volunteers to dress up as a mannequin. He ends up accusing a little old lady and is ridiculed for another one of his famous blunders by everyone except Andy, who believes he might be onto something.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 22 - Andy's Vacation
    8.3/10(350 votes)

    #22 - Andy's Vacation

    S4:E22

    Andy decides to take a vacation in the mountains and leaves Barney to guard a prisoner the state police have brought in. Inevitably, the prisoner escapes Barney's grasp and flees into the mountains -- the very same mountains Andy is vacationing in.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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  23. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 23 - Andy Saves Gomer
    7.6/10(336 votes)

    #23 - Andy Saves Gomer

    S4:E23

    After Andy extinguishes a small fire that started at the filling station while Gomer was napping, Gomer believes Andy saved his life and makes a pest of himself trying to repay the debt. Andy decides to stage an accident and let Gomer "rescue" him, but it's Gomer that ends up needing the rescuing.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writer:Harvey Bullock

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  24. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 24 - Bargain Day
    7.7/10(363 votes)

    #24 - Bargain Day

    S4:E24

    Aunt Bee decides to buy 150 pounds of beef at a discount from a new butcher in town. She stores in in her "discount" freezer, which immediately breaks down. With her beef about to go bad, she learns that the only one in town with a freezer bug enough to save her beef is her original butcher.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writer:John Whedon

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  25. The Andy Griffith Show Season 4 Episode 25 - Divorce, Mountain Style
    7.5/10(379 votes)

    #25 - Divorce, Mountain Style

    S4:E25

    Charlene Darling returns to Mayberry and announces that she has divorced her husband and now, according to folklore, must marry Andy. Desperate for a way out, Andy reads up on mountain folklore and finds a peculiar ritual that will void the marriage, if only he can get Barney to ride the horse.

    Director:Jeffrey Hayden
    Writers:James Fritzell, Everett Greenbaum

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Season 4 Ratings Summary

"Opie the Birdman" is the best rated episode of "The Andy Griffith Show" season 4. It scored 8.9/10 based on 603 votes. Directed by Richard Crenna and written by Harvey Bullock, it aired on 9/30/1963. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "The Haunted House".