Once, when Knotts visited the set of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” Carrey paid tribute. Its early mix of live action and animation was a forerunner of such later films as “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” and “Space Jam.”Īt one point, Jim Carrey was said to be considering starring in a “Limpet” remake, although the project has yet to materialize. “Limpet,” the tale of a meek man who is transformed into a fish, has particularly won recent acclaim. The latter two were made as part of a five-picture deal with Universal Pictures. Chicken” (1966) and “The Reluctant Astronaut” (1967). One of the bits, “The Weatherman,” concerned a TV forecaster forced to wing it after the meteorology report fails to make it to the studio by air time.ĭuring the mid to late 1960s, in a largely unsuccessful bid for major film stardom, Knotts made a series of family films that many connoisseurs now say were critically underappreciated at the time. Knotts first rose to prominence in the late 1950s, joining Louis Nye and other comedy players on “The Steve Allen Show.” In 1961, United Artists Records released a comedy album entitled “Don Knotts: An Evening with Me,” which featured various takeoffs on the “nervous man” routine the comic had made famous on Allen’s show. The new generation came to appreciate his highly physical brand of acting that, at its best, was in the tradition of silent-film greats such as Buster Keaton, Stan Laurel and Harold Lloyd. Turtle in the 1997 animated feature “Cats Don’t Dance.”Īs he grew older, Knotts became a lodestar for younger comic actors. He also did guest spots in 2005 on NBC’s “Las Vegas” and Fox’s “That ‘70s Show.” He occasionally co-headlined in live comedy shows with Tim Conway, his sometime co-star in Disney films such as “The Apple Dumpling Gang.” Knotts also appeared as the TV repairman in director Gary Ross’s whimsical 1998 comedy “Pleasantville,” and voiced the part of T.W.

He lent his distinctive, high-pitched voice as Turkey Mayor in Walt Disney’s animated family film “Chicken Little,” which was released in November 2005. Knotts, who lived in West Los Angeles, died Friday night of lung cancer at UCLA Medical Center, according to Sherwin Bash, his longtime manager.įamily members said that his longtime friend Griffth was one of his last visitors at Cedars on Friday night.ĭespite health problems, Knotts had kept working in recent months. Don Knotts, the saucer-eyed, scarecrow-thin comic actor best known for his roles as the high-strung small-town deputy Barney Fife on the 1960s CBS series “The Andy Griffith Show” and the leisure-suit-clad landlord Ralph Furley on ABC’s ‘70s sitcom “Three’s Company,” has died.

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