Don Knotts had a long and successful career before his passing in 2006. He was in television shows, movies, and even worked on the stage. Before any of that, Knotts was a ventriloquist and comedian in the United States Army during WWII. However, most people know him best as Deputy Barney Fife from The Andy Griffith Show.
Barney Fife allowed Don Knotts to really showcase his comedic talents. He had expert timing. At the same time, he could pull off the overly nervous schtick with seeming ease. However, the thing that really endeared him to fans was his physical comedy. The way he moved almost seemed animated. This is especially true for Knott’s face. There wasn’t much he couldn’t do with his face. It was as if it was made of rubber or clay.
Sure, Don Knotts was an animated comedic actor in a large portion of his roles. However, he was an actual animated character a handful of times. Most notably among those were his appearances in the classic Scooby-Doo franchise. Knotts made two appearances in the series New Scooby-Doo Movies in 1972. He was in “Guess Who’s Knott Coming to Dinner,” and “The Spooky Fog of Juneberry,”
Don Knotts played himself in both of those animated appearances. However, the roles and storylines were completely different. Let’s take a look at both of his Scooby-Doo appearances.
Don Knotts Joins Mystery, Inc.
“Guess Who’s Knott Coming to Dinner,” was Don Knotts’ first appearance on the series. It aired on October 7, 1972, according to IMDb. In that episode, Knotts’ character meets up with Scooby and the gang at a creepy old manor. Then, they have to solve the mystery of the disappearance of the manor’s owner.
The funny thing is that Don Knotts plays himself. Not only that, Scooby and the rest of the gang know who he is. Check out this clip below to see how the mystery-solving pooch reacts to seeing the former Andy Griffith Show star.
With the spooky manor and mystery-solving, one can’t help compare this to Knotts’ film The Ghost and Mr. Chicken.
The second of Don Knotts’ Scooby-Doo appearances made some heavy references to The Andy Griffith Show. In that episode, Knotts plays himself as well. This time, though, he sports a tan deputy’s uniform. On top of that, they are in the little desert town of Juneberry. Get it? Instead of Mayberry. The references don’t stop there, though. Juneberry’s sheriff is Dandy Griffith.
Check out the hilarious clip below to see Don Knotts basically playing Barney Fife in the Scooby-Doo universe. Knotts even takes part in a staple of the cartoon franchise, running from ghosts. It just goes to show, no matter where Knotts pops up, he’s always funny.
