Beloved actor Andy Griffith is most widely known for his television roles. And why shouldn’t he be? He was the star of the hit television series “The Andy Griffith Show” and “Matlock,” after all.
However, Griffith just wasn’t a television actor. He also appeared in several films during his decades-long acting career. For example, according to IMDb, Griffith acted in such films as “A Face in the Crowd” in 1957, “Angel in My Pocket” in 1969, “Rustlers’ Rhapsody” in 1985, “Spy Hard” in 1996, and “Play the Game” in 2009.
Out of all his film roles, there is one that his daughter, Dixie Nann Griffith, prefers above all the rest. She talked about this with The Denver Post in July 2012. The interview took place just after her father’s death at the age of 86 on July 3, 2012.
So, which of Andy Griffith’s films did his daughter list as her favorite? It was the 2007 comedy and drama, “Waitress.” The film starred Keri Russell as an unhappy waitress who is trying to find happiness in he life. In the film, Griffith played the character of Old Joe.
Unlike his television characters, Old Joe was hard to get along with. This character was nothing like her father was in real life.
“It was the most beautiful movie. I have a copy, of course. I’ll probably watch it again soon,” Dixie Nann Griffith also said in 2012.
You can watch Andy Griffith in the trailer for “Waitress” below.
Andy Griffith’s daughter was also a big fan of her father’s appearance in a country music video. That was the 2008 video for Brad Paisley’s song, “Waitin’ on a Woman.” Dixie Nann Griffith called the part her father played in the video “most profound.”
“It brought tears to my eyes every time I saw it,” she said of the video. “They showed it on ‘Entertainment Tonight’ the other night — it just brought up those memories. I obviously have tears now thinking about it.”
Griffith’s daughter was also proud of her father’s work as a gospel singer.
“He won a Grammy (for a gospel album) at 70! Not many people can say that,” she shared.
Andy Griffith’s Daughter Said Her Father Was ‘Americana At Its Best’
Unsurprisingly, Dixie Nann Griffith was very fond and proud of her famous father and his work in “The Andy Griffith Show” and others. Also unsurprisingly, she was very sad to lose him.
“Tuesday was very surreal to me. I had the TV on. There was part of me that really didn’t believe this even though I knew my dad had been ill for years. For the millions of his fans and people who loved him, he represented something else. But he was my dad,” Dixie shared after his death.
She also talked about how her father and his career meant so much to his fans because of what he represented to them.
“So many people wanted to be a part of him. It goes back to the time when his show was on. It was such a sweet show, representing Americana at its best. We long for that in a way — the easier times, the gentler times,” Dixie also said.
