Opie's Mother/ Brother
Opie's mother is mentioned only once in the series. In "Wedding Bells for Aunt Bee", Andy tells Opie he had a love for the boy's mother similar to the love Aunt Bee feels for her beau. Other than this one mention, Opie's mother is non-existent on the show. There are no photographs of her in the house, or other souvenirs, and no one mentions a grave. She apparently has no relatives in Mayberry such as parents or siblings as Opie never mentions grandparents or aunts and uncles except those on his paternal side. In the backdoor pilot episode from The Danny Thomas Show, viewers learn Andy lost Opie's mother when the boy was "the least little speck of a baby." On a "Mayberry RFD" episode, viewer's learn that Opie's former teacher and stepmom Helen gave birth to Andy Taylor Jr, who is Christened in Mayberry.
Read more about this topic: Opie Taylor
Famous quotes containing the words mother and/or brother:
“It is not always possible to predict the response of a doting Jewish mother. Witness the occasion on which the late piano virtuoso Oscar Levant telephoned his mother with some important news. He had proposed to his beloved and been accepted. Replied Mother Levant: “Good, Oscar, I’m happy to hear it. But did you practice today?””
—Liz Smith (20th century)
“Take two kids in competition for their parents’ love and attention. Add to that the envy that one child feels for the accomplishments of the other; the resentment that each child feels for the privileges of the other; the personal frustrations that they don’t dare let out on anyone else but a brother or sister, and it’s not hard to understand why in families across the land, the sibling relationship contains enough emotional dynamite to set off rounds of daily explosions.”
—Adele Faber (20th century)