Mayberry R.F.D. - Reception and Ratings

Reception and Ratings

NOTE: The highest average rating for the series is in bold text.

The social upheaval which occurred during The Andy Griffith Show's final 1968 season, (including the Vietnam stalemate, street protests, the slayings of Martin Luther King, Jr and Bobby Kennedy, and racial riots) had much of the nation wistful for a more stable, idealistic America. The final episode of the Andy Griffith Show was titled, "Mayberry RFD", which added an Italian-American family to the Sam Jones homestead. The series bowed-out as the number one rated show. The producers, however, chose to forego a big overhaul, and instead stuck with the winning premise of a widower, his son and the matronly Aunt Bee. Therefore, the series was much the same as, "The Andy Griffith Show", absent Andy Taylor and son Opie.

The series was number four in the Nielsen ratings the first two years of its run. While show's ratings were strong enough for renewal at the end of its third season, (finishing at 15th place for the year), it was canceled despite public complaints. That year CBS, seeking a more urban image, canceled all its rural-themed shows including Green Acres, Hee Haw and The Beverly Hillbillies, in what became known as the "rural purge".

Unlike The Andy Griffith Show and Gomer Pyle, USMC (both owned by CBS Television Distribution), Warner Bros. Television Distribution holds the rights to the series. There are currently no plans to release this series on DVD.