Clara Edwards (originally Bertha Edwards, Bertha Johnson and then Clara Johnson) is a

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying individuals, events, or places that are imaginary, or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent with history, fact, or plausibility. In a traditi ...

al character on the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The ...

'' (1960 – 1968). Clara was portrayed by

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a Character (arts), character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek ...

Hope Summers Sarah Hope Summers (June 7, 1902 – June 22, 1979) was an American character actress known for her work on CBS's ''The Andy Griffith Show'' and ''Mayberry RFD'', portraying Clara Edwards. Early life Hope Summers was born in Mattoon, Illinois ...

. Summers appeared as Bertha/Clara in 32 episodes of The Andy Griffith Show and was one of only a few characters (the others being Andy Taylor,

Aunt Bee Aunt Bee is a fictional character from the 1960 American television sitcom ''The Andy Griffith Show''. Played by Frances Bavier, the character migrated to the spinoff ''Mayberry R.F.D.'' (1968–1971) when ''The Andy Griffith Show'' ended its run ...

, and

Opie Taylor Opie Taylor is a fictional character played by Ron Howard in the American television program '' The Andy Griffith Show'', which was televised on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968. Opie Taylor appeared in 209 of the 249 episodes of '' ...

) who appeared in all eight seasons of the show's run. The character migrated to the show's spin-off series ''

Mayberry R.F.D. ''Mayberry R.F.D.'' (abbreviation for Rural Free Delivery) is an American television series produced as a spin-off continuation of ''The Andy Griffith Show''. When star Andy Griffith decided to leave his series, most of the supporting character ...

Overview

Clara lives in the fictional community of Mayberry,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

on "The Andy Griffith Show" (TAGS) and "Mayberry RFD". Clara's best friend is her past classmate Aunt Bee. The two women have a warm, yet competitive relationship, which began on a high school basketball team. Clara is something of a gossiper. She occasionally causes friction between Bee and Andy with her idle talk. The friendly rivalry between Bee and Clara would continue with such domestic contests as jarring pickles (TAGS, "The Pickle Story, Episode#31)", and planting prize roses (TAGS, "Only a Rose", Episode #212). In "The Pickle Story", TAGS, episode#31, Clara and Bee both compete for a blue ribbon at the county fair with their entries of

pickles Pickles may refer to: Dogs * Pickles (dog) (died 1967), a dog that found the stolen World Cup trophy in 1966 * Pickles (pickleball), a dog often cited as the name origin for the sport of pickleball * Mr. Pickles, the titular demonic dog in an ...

. Clara wins the ribbon. Clara is a descendant of the town's settlers, and a widow. (However, in Episode 14 of Season 6, she pointedly tells the guest character, Harlan Robinson, played by

Woody Chambliss Woodrow Lewis Chambliss (October 14, 1914 in Bowie, Texas – January 8, 1981 in Ojai, California) was an American character actor who appeared in both feature films and television. He is probably best known for his appearances as several cha ...

, that she is not "Mrs." but "Miss" Edwards.) She has a brother (who never appears on the show), and an adult nephew Ferdie, who makes one appearance. She also has a son, Gale, who never appears on the show. She occasionally looks after

Sheriff Andy Taylor A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

and son Opie, when their Aunt Bee is out of town. Clara and Bee rival for the attentions of visiting single gentlemen, one of whom is Hubert Saint John, who takes a fancy to Bee as she reminds him of his late wife. When Bee cuts ties, Clara attempts to charm him. For a dozen years straight, Clara won blue ribbons for her pickles at the Mayberry County Fair, and annoyingly trumps every Mayberry flower contest. She is the

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

at All Souls Church. Along with Bee, she composes a pro Mayberry anthem ("My Home Town"). Clara teaches Opie piano, and joins his rock group as pianist/ manager. She, Bee and friend Myrtle, take a free trip to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. As a prominent church lady, and later, town council member ("Mayberry RFD"), she heavy-handedly asserts herself on such matters as parades ("Mayberry's Float", RFD episode #39), and scorning such locals as Howard (TAGS, "Howard The Comedian", episode #216 and "The Panel Show", RFD episode #6), and Millie ("The Church Play", RFD episode #8). In season one of TAGS, the character appeared twice (including Episode #23) as "Bertha Edwards". In the second season she became "Clara Johnson" and remained so until the fifth-season episode "The Pageant," when she morphed into "Clara Edwards." She remained Clara Edwards until the end of the series' run with the exception of "Bargain Day" when Mr. Foley refers to her as Mrs. Johnson. In spite of the name changes, the character was the same.

References

* ''The Andy Griffith Show: The Complete Series''. Paramount, 2007. * Beck, Ken, and Clark, Jim. ''The Andy Griffith Show Book''. St. Martin's Griffin, 2000. * Kelly, Richard. ''The Andy Griffith Show''. Blair, 1984. {{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Clara The Andy Griffith Show characters Fictional characters from North Carolina

Overview

See also

References