Mayberry, North Carolina
With a single long-distance telephone line and plenty of great fishing holes, Mayberry is the rural village where widowed sheriff Andy Taylor (with help from his spinster housekeeper Aunt Bee) raises his son Opie.
POINTS OF INTEREST: The Taylor home, the Mayberry Courthouse (with two cells and convenient access to the mayor’s office), and Floyd’s barbershop (where it’s impossible to get sideburns trimmed evenly).
LIVABILITY: Specifically imbued, according to series star Andy Griffith, with a 1930s-America vibe, Mayberry is the homey idealization of every small town in which wisdom is imparted while sipping lemonade on a front porch.
REAL-LIFE INSPIRATION: Mount Airy, N.C.—the real-life hometown of Andy Griffith.
SHOOTING LOCATION(S): Practically the entire show was shot at Desilu Production facilities in Culver City, California. Interiors were shot at the Desilu Studios main lot and exteriors at their famous backlot (on which were once constructed some of the larger sets from Gone With the Wind).
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