Rolling on the floor in an alcoholic haze with Gilligan was a low point for Lindsey, who played sweet, slow-witted Goober on The Andy Griffith Show and later on Mayberry R.F.D., from 1964 to 1971. During his heyday on Griffith, he had developed a serious drinking problem, which he finally licked in 1980. After that, he was able to confront the other problem haunting him—a decades-long resentment of Goober, the character who caused him to be typecast for years as a simpleton. "George Lindsey didn't exist anymore," he explains. "It was always Goober, Goober, Goober."
Then, he says, "I finally found a point where I like Goober. When I walk into a room, people start smiling. They love him because he has been part of their family for most of their lives." In fact, Lindsey now makes his living touring the country in his trademark beanie, doing a stand-up act. "I call it Gooberizing America," says Lindsey, still a fixture on TV, thanks to reruns airing in about 100 markets.
The Alabama native, who entertained troops while in the Air Force, had parts on some 40 TV shows before Gooberizing himself, and after Mayberry ended in 1971, he hooked up with Hee Haw, where he stayed until 1991. His wife of more than 35 years, Joyanne, left him in 1991 (they have two grown children). "I suppose we grew apart," says Lindsey, who lives alone in a Nashville mansion. Going from town to town as Goober can be "a lonely life," he admits, "but I really like what I do." More important, says Lindsey, "I finally like who I am."
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