Was Don Knotts Really A Military Drill Instructor?
When Jim Nabors found out that his Gomer Pyle character from The Andy Griffith Show was getting a spin-off in which the filling station attendant becomes a U.S. Marine, he researched how to act like a young recruit. “I started visiting Marine bases in Southern California,” Nabors told the Chicago Tribune, as reported by MeTV. “I studied training manuals as though the drill instructor were really looking over my shoulder.”
Getting advice from actual Marines makes sense. But Nabors also got some unexpected training from the guy who played Barney Fife, the deputy who carried a bullet in his pocket because he couldn’t be trusted with a loaded pistol. “I had to learn how to handle a rifle,” Nabors revealed. “You'll never guess who gave me pointers — Don Knotts, good old Barney Fife from the Griffith Show. Don was an army drill instructor during World War II and an expert in the manual of arms.”
Of course no one would guess. Knotts made a living playing nervous cowards who shook in their boots at the first hint of danger. While Nabors is likely telling the truth about Knotts giving him some rifle lessons, the gullible Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. star was mistaken about his comedy coworker’s military background.
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Internet myth debunker Snopes went after this rumor in 2003, based on online users making claims like, “I heard that Don Knotts was the most feared drill instructor on Parris Island during World War II.”
False, says Snopes. While it’s true that Knotts did serve in the military, he was no drill sergeant. In real life, he served his country as a ventriloquist.
Knotts was trying his hand as an entertainer when he was drafted by the Army in 1943. So Knotts was an enlisted man during World War II, but the Army assigned him to a special services unit rather than the front lines. His tour of duty was spent in the Pacific Islands entertaining the troops in a G.I. variety show. After his time in the Army was up, Knotts ditched the dummy in favor of comedy, landing funny roles on the radio before eventually hitting it big on The Andy Griffith Show.
Snopes reported that several false rumors about celebrities serving in the military were perpetuated online, including John Denver as a Vietnam-era Army sniper, Mr. Rogers as a tattooed marksman with confirmed kills and Captain Kangaroo as a World War II hero in Iwo Jima. Only Bob Keeshan, who played the good Captain, was in the military.
And like Knotts, Captain Kangaroo never saw any action.