Memories of Mayberry: A Nostalgic Look at Andy Griffiths Hometown, Mount Airy, North Carolina [Hardcover]

Jewell Mitchell Kutzer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 15, 2002

Step behind the characters and scenes in Mayberry, televisions favorite hometown, and discover ANDY GRIFFITHS real hometown, Mount Airy, North Carolina. Learn the secrets of the real Snappy Lunch, the Sheriff of Andys youth, and much more! The author grew up there during the same era, and reveals with humor and insight their hometowns influence on The Andy Griffith Show.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...a gentle, personable, informative, and insightful look at the small town that shaped a televsion entertainment legend. -- Midwest Book Review, January, 2002

Even the show's most devoted fans... will learn something new about Mayberry. -- Jessie Mitchell, Our State Magazine, August, 2003

The author has a wonderful way of bringing nostalgia to life. This delightful walk down memory lane rated four hearts. -- Heartland Book Reviews, July, 2002

Product Details

• Hardcover: 207 pages
• Publisher: Dynamic Living Press (January 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0971100047
• ISBN-13: 978-0971100046
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,467,704 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars American Heartland Nostalgia, January 19, 2003

By 

Roger E. Herman (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Memories of Mayberry: A Nostalgic Look at Andy Griffiths Hometown, Mount Airy, North Carolina (Hardcover)

Thousands and thousands of us faithfully watched the television classic, The Andy Griffith Show and its sequel, Mayberry RFD. We followed Sheriff Taylor, Barney, Aunt Bea, and the rest through 249 episodes from 1960 through 1968. From 1968 through 1971, we were treated to 78 episodes of Mayberry RFD. Watching these shows today is a heartwarming nostalgic experience. Why, there's even an active The Andy Griffith Show Rerun Watchers Club!

Mayberry has its roots firmly and deeply planted in Mt. Airy, North Carolina, a small town nestled in the mountains between Winston-Salem and the Virginia state line. Andy Griffith is celebrated there, along with all the traditions of hometown America, during community festivals and other events.

Jewell Kutzer grew up in Mayberry, just a couple of years behind Andy Griffith. She shares many of the memories that inspired Griffith to create Mayberry and the character of the popular television show. In Memories of Mayberry, she shares her experiences growing up in this now-famous small town. It's a pleasant, comfortable book to read, like having a conversation with a friend. Mt. Airy was a microcosm of life in a changing country, in a changing world. Lives were interwoven with the lives of others in the community. People were real, they were caring neighbors, they led simpler lives in the 1940s and 1950s. This book takes the reader back to those uncomplicated times.

Did I say uncomplicated? Well, compared to today's complex lifestyles. But for Jewell, growing up in a small town, life brought one adventure after another. Her tales of yesteryear are referenced to episodes in The Andy Griffith Show that relate to the memories. Readers will gain a deeper appreciation of how Griffith made the show so real in the earlier days of television.

Want a trip back to our roots? To the values on which our country was built? Pick up a copy of Memories of Mayberry to open your mind and heart to our wonderful past, not just in Mt. Airy, but in hundreds of other small towns across the land. Definitely designed for readers over 40 (we were there), but offers valuable insights for younger readers, too.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mayberry, U.S.A., October 15, 2004

By 

Dennis Phillips "The Book Friar" (Bulls Gap, Tennessee USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Memories of Mayberry: A Nostalgic Look at Andy Griffiths Hometown, Mount Airy, North Carolina (Hardcover)

Hardly anyone who has been exposed to television over the last forty years has not come in contact with the good people of Mayberry. Walk up to most people on the street and ask them to name three justices of the U.S. Supreme Court and you just might get a blank stare. Ask the same person to name three residents of Mayberry, North Carolina and very few people will have a problem. Andy, Barney, Opie, Aunt Bea, Otis, Goober and Floyd have become so much a part of American culture that to most of us they are just like family. Mayberry is as real to most people as Chicago or Los Angeles and almost everybody knows that you have to go to Mount Pilot to get Chinese food.

Mayberry of course is not a real place but is instead a product of Andy Griffith's mind. Griffith's mind was however heavily influenced by his hometown and Mount Airy, North Carolina has become to most people, the real Mayberry. Jewell Kutzer grew up in Mount Airy and is just a few years younger than Andy. This book therefore, depicts on a very personal level the Mount Airy that has become America's most famous small town.

Many of the stories that are related in this book had a very obvious influence on the happenings in Mayberry. One story involves a young man who went on a small crime spree that included throwing rocks through most of the windows at the school. The authorities kept catching the young man but he would escape from jail almost as quickly as they locked him up. It all sounds a lot like Earnest T. Bass to me. If you remember Barney's very off key rendition of, "Welcome Sweet Springtime" you will not be surprised to learn that this song was a favorite of Andy's grammar school music teacher. Over and over, as one reads this book, they will be reminded of some happening in Mayberry.

There are many stories in this book that do not relate to Mayberry at all but are personal reminiscences of the author. At first I felt like these stories should not have been included since I bought this book to learn about Mayberry. As I read however, I changed my mind for these stories add greatly to the reader's ability to relate to life in a small southern town. Thank you Mrs. Kutzer for giving us all the chance to feel like we grew up in Mayberry just like you and Andy.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gee Andy, I didn't know that!, September 15, 2002

By 

Randy Bruner (St. Augustine, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Memories of Mayberry: A Nostalgic Look at Andy Griffiths Hometown, Mount Airy, North Carolina (Hardcover)

This book took me back to a time in my life that was simple and wholesome, a time that we all crave. Jewel Kutzer's recollections have deepened my love for a show that I eagerly turn to in my childhood for entertainment, and in my adulthood have realized had terrific idealisms. I found myself sighing the big sighs as I turned pages. I feel Jewel has allowed me the chance to live and grow up in the same town as these people I loved and make them close personal friends. Thank you Ms. Kutzer for a great book. Highly, highly recommend for Andy Griffith afficianados!