The other day somebody wanted to know which episode contained the quote "how I vote, brother, is my business." This is in the episode Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain. Barney's telling Andy a story about how he deliberately got bad marks in school so the other kids wouldn't think badly of him. The scene goes something like this:
Barney: Listen, an IQ can be a mixed blessing. Some people want it and can't get it -- I got it, and had to get rid of it. Andy: you know what I think? That was real democratic of you, real democratic. Barney: (suddenly angry and defensive) How I VOTE, brother, is MY business! When I man walks into that booth, he's alone with his conscience, and NOBODY gets to ask him how he voted. That's the American Way, and I'm FOR that. Andy: Well, you can put me down for it too. Barney: (after a few seconds' pause) How'd you vote, Ange? That's all from memory so it's not a perfect word-for-word transcription. Now, about Andy's past. Barney mentions that Andy flunked biology in 1938, but there is no mention of what grade they were in at the time. Might have been kindergarten, for all we know. It does seem like that would be starting them awfully young for Biology, but maybe they had to because there was more of it in those days. About military service, there is no proof in any episode that Andy Taylor ever served in the United States military. He mentions in two early episodes (Ellie Comes to Town and A Feud Is a Feud) that he was "over there [in France] during the war" but there must have been tens of thousands of people, maybe even a million, who were "in France during the war" who were not part of any military group. Maybe he was helping the Red Cross or some similar humanitarian organization. Maybe he was a reporter or photographer. Maybe he was a missionary. Maybe he was studying in France as a foreign exchange student when war broke out, and he couldn't get out right away. Maybe he had distant relatives who were French, and he sneaked in somehow to try to help them get out of the country. Maybe he was on vacation in France during the Korean conflict. These are all just theories, of course. Paul Mulik _______________________________________________ WBMUTBB mailing list [email protected] http://www.mayberry.com/tagsrwc/wbmutbb/
