Legendary actor and comedian Don Knotts was most assuredly one of the largest draws to The Andy Griffith Show. His humorous role as the bumbling deputy Barney Fife was a perfect fit for Griffith's righthand man. He was an unforgettable character and The Andy Griffith Show wouldn't have been the same without him. In fact, once he left the series it was never quite the same.

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Just five years into the classic sitcom's tenure on the television screen, which was still performing quite well in the ratings at the time, Knotts made an unexpected and shocking announcement indicating that he was leaving the show. Everyone was disturbed by the news and the producers of The Andy Griffith Show were faced with a major problem on their hands.

How on earth could they replace somebody as irreplaceable as Don Knotts? He was a distinguished character actor who had his role downpat. Nobody could have played Barney Fife like he did and even if somebody tried to mimic him, they would most assuredly fail miserably in the process. Should the show even go on without him or was it time to call it quits?

So at this point, you've probably got a lot of questions. Why did Knotts choose to take his leave when he did? What did Andy and company do to fill the void that he left behind? And who was brought in to replace him if anyone? Watch this factspacked video to have all of these questions and more answered.

The Real Reason Don Knotts Left the Andy Griffith Show