Along the way, she won an Emmy Award, in 1967, as Outstanding Supporting Comedy Actress for that role her costar, Don Knotts, also won for comedic supporting actor the same year, one of the five Emmys he’d collect for his portrayal of Deputy Barney Fife. Of course it was Bavier’s 10-year stretch - the longest of any Mayberry character - as Aunt Bee on “The Andy Griffith Show” and its spinoff, “Mayberry R.F.D.,” that brought her fame and instant recognizability. It marked a full-time shift to television and film work for Bavier, which had begun a year earlier with her role in the science fiction classic, “The Day the Earth Stood Still.” In her final Broadway role, she starred alongside Henry Fonda in “Point of No Return,” the year-long run of which ended in 1952. But working in vaudeville and getting her first role on Broadway (in the play “The Poor Nut”) at the age of 22 led to expanded stage work that included roles on and off the Big Apple’s Great White Way and even trips to entertain World War II troops in the Pacific with the USO. “I never heard anybody who used their own car in a television series.Frances Bavier was born in 1902 near Gramercy Park - a few blocks south of Central Park - in New York City. “The thing that interested me so much is that later in the show, she drove a ’66 Studebaker, and all indications are that it’s the same as her car,” Fox said. He explained that even though the car isn’t valuable, even he became intrigued by the car since Aunt Bee owned it. Fans wanted Aunt Bee’s old car for themselves.įred Fox, a car historian, spoke to the Chicago Tribune in 1990 about her Studebaker. Instead they began to receive bids that increased well into the thousands. Yet the people auctioning the car thought it would only command a few hundred dollars. Studebaker stopped making the vehicles in 1966, and Bavier did have a rarer model. But that didn’t stop the bidding war for the famous Hollywood star’s automobile. Bavier’s Studebaker sat in her garage for years with flat tires, expired plates from 1983, and cat hair all over the interior from her pets sleeping in the car. She hadn’t driven it for years, since at least the early ’80s. She owned numerous models of the cars, but only held onto one 1966 Studebaker Daytona until her dying days.įollowing her 1989 passing, the vehicle shocked many when an all-out bidding war ensued when it went to auction. For the rest of her life, Bavier only drove classic Studebakers. When she did become a driver, the famous actress only had one car in mind. However, after years of not even attempting to get her driver’s license, Bavier changed her mind. When living in New York City, that’s not an essential form of transportation. The star went 50 years without learning to drive. Previous to The Andy Griffith Show actress Francis Bavier‘s death, she became a devout driver of only one type of car. ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ Star’s 1966 Studebaker Was Object of Wild Bidding War While the exact cause of death was not reported, it’s safe to assume The Andy Griffith Show star passed away from heart-related complications. In fact, one week before the actress passed, the hospital released her from their coronary care unit. She spent time in Chatham Hospital not long before she died. Sadly, Bavier suffered heart issues at the end of her life in Siler City. The fact that she could portray Aunt Bee showed the depth of her talent.″ ″When she started on the show she was 57 and had more experience going in than any of the other cast members,″ he said. ″Many episodes focused on her and she was essential to the success of the show,″ Meroney said, according to an AP News article. In addition, Meroney pointed out how talented the actress was for her portrayal of Aunt Bee considering she’s from NYC. He called the actress “essential” to its success. John Meroney, Andy Griffith Show Appreciation Society founder, spoke about Bavier’s important role on the show. She lived there for almost 20 more years before her death. In 1972, Bavier retired from acting and moved to the small central North Carolina town. While filming The Andy Griffith Show though, she visited Siler City and fell in love with the town and its people. She attended Columbia University and graduated from Manhattan’s American Academy of the Arts. The actress hailed from New York City, which may surprise some. The Emmy Award-winning star passed away in her Siler City, North Carolina home in early December of that year. In 1989, beloved The Andy Griffith Show actress Francis Bavier who played Aunt Bee on the classic television show passed away at age 86.
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