"Sure, he'll always be known as Sheriff Andy Taylor, the gentle father to son Opie and the gunless lawman in Mayberry who dispensed a homegrown wisdom on 'The Andy Griffith Show.' Or as disheveled, yet shrewd, Atlanta defense lawyer Ben Matlock.
"But he's now a breakout star of sorts in the critically acclaimed 'Waitress.' He's only a supporting character in a movie starring Keri Russell as Jenna, a top-notch pie maker trying to leave her brutish husband. But Griffith steals the show as the cranky owner of the diner where she works.
" 'I'm glad to be back,' he said. 'I loved working in the film, and I just thought it was actually wonderful.' ..."
Waggoner goes on to mention the critical acclaim that Griffith's work has earned. The Wall Street Journal's Joe Morganstern calling Griffith an "inspired" casting choice: "An octogenarian who looks his age, and looks like he's enjoying it, this comic virtuoso is as commanding as ever, but with a new dimension of restraint; he gives Joe a sly kindness that grows less sly as the old man's fondness for Jenna deepens. The two of them are wonderful together."
Equally important to Griffith is the praise of his friends, including Oscar-winning director Ron Howard, who played Griffith's son, Opie, in "The Andy Griffith Show" -- which airs every day somewhere in the world, Griffith said.
"Ron Howard called me a few mornings ago. He and his wife had seen it and he wanted to tell me how much he liked it. And he thought I was good in it, too," Griffith said. "His father, Rance Howard, called a few days after that, that he had seen it and liked it very much." ...
Griffith is still looking for work. Asked when he'll get a part in a Ron Howard blockbuster, Griffith chuckles again and mentions an earlier phone conversation with Howard. "And he said, 'Sometime, it will happen.' I look forward to it when it does happen.
"At least Ronnie still knows that I'm a pretty good actor."
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