Goober's coming back to town and he's bringing lots of friends with him

By Darrel Radford
Managing Editor

Goober is coming back to New Castle. And this time, he's bringing more Mayberry friends with him.

"Mayberry in the Midwest" the two-day festival that made New Castle a multi-state destination and even drew the attention of national syndicated radio broadcaster Paul Harvey - will return for an encore performance Friday and Saturday, July 11-12.

George Lindsey will again headline the event, reprising his popular role as "Goober." Also scheduled to appear from last year's highly successful event will be Betty Lynn (Thelma Lou), Maggie Peterson (Charlene Darling), Rodney Dillard and the Dillards band as well as James Best, who not only was Jim Lindsey on The Andy Griffith Show but also was well-known as Roscoe P. Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard.

Four other Mayberry stars have been added to this year's event. They include:

• Elinor Donahue as "Ellie Walker."

• Margaret Kerry as "Bess Muggins" and "Helen Scoby" (Christmas episodes).

• Jean Carson as "Fun Girl Daphne" who was scheduled last year but could not come because of illness.

• Bernard Fox as "Malcolm Merriweather," the English Butler.

Once again coordinating the entire event will be the popular David Browning, who kept people laughing last year in his "Mayberry Deputy" impersonation. He will again be joined by "Floyd" impersonator Allan Newsome and "Otis" impersonator Kenneth Junkin. In addition, this year's cast will include Phil Lee, an "Ernest T. Bass" impersonator; Jeff Branch, a "Howard Sprague" impersonator, and Tim Petigrew, a "Goober" impersonator.

Officials with the Henry County Convention and Visitors Bureau say that Lindsey, the real "Goober," is anxious to meet Petigrew, his impersonator. There was no word on whether the two would share the stage during any part of the festival.

The schedule of events will be similar to last year. On Friday, July 11, cast members will answer questions for the media, and then be available for autograph sessions at various locations throughout Henry County. The highlight Friday will once again be dinner with the stars and a celebrity auction at Henry County Arts Park.

On Saturday, July 12, another to-be-announced autograph session is planned during morning hours, similar to last year, when as many as 2,000 people attended. The highlight will again be a cast reunion show at Bundy Auditorium.

"Most of the stars commented on how nice our auditorium is," said Curt Bell, Henry County's number one Mayberry fan who was the catalyst for bringing the event here. "They couldn't believe that it was just a high school auditorium."

Both the Friday and Saturday events sold out quickly last year and tickets may go even faster this year. No date has been set for ticket sales. Watch The Courier-Times for an upcoming announcement on how and where to buy tickets. Last year's event was such a success and the stars were treated so nicely, Henry County's Mayberry feeling has lasted in the months since the July shows.

Bell said that Rodney Dillard was spotted wearing his New Castle S.W.A.T. team jacket in North Carolina. Dillard went out target shooting with the local officers while he was here, and was presented the jacket at last year's cast reunion show.

Meanwhile, west coast resident Betty Lynn has become a frequent phone caller to the Bell family residence, becoming very close to Curt and Karen Bell's four children in the process. "Karen and the girls talk to her at least every week or two," Curt said.

Last year's festival brought people here from 70 different communities in Indiana and as far away as California, Texas, Nebraska and New York. Christine Mallette, executive director of the Henry County Convention and Visitors Bureau, said that more than 100,000 hits were recorded on the Mayberry In the Midwest Web site.