Was ‘Aunt Bea’ from ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ a Pain in the Butt?

Okay, so it is a really weird question coming right out of nowhere. In any case, it warrants an answer. Word on the street is that Frances Bavier, the New York actress who portrayed Aunt Bea on "The Andy Griffith Show" and "Mayberry R.F.D." was in fact somewhat difficult to work with. This, of course, results in a sharp contrast to the image we have of her as the loveable Aunt Bea.

In all fairness, her costars claim it was really a matter of their working relationship with Frances Bavier that was strained, not their personal interaction with her. It has been suggested that Bavier, a film actress, had difficulty acclimating to working on the small screen, and frequently voiced her disdain to her costars. This resulted in what some referred to as a "walking on eggshells" atmosphere amongst the production crew.

Okay, so what does that mean? According to Andy Griffith, he and Bavier occasionally clashed during their eight-year run on the show.

When Griffith was interviewed on Larry King Live in 1998, he admitted that Bavier phoned him four months before her death, and apologized for being difficult on the set.