By DAVID ONDA
RALEIGH, N.C. - Actor Andy Griffith, who is best known as the star of "The Andy Griffith Show," died Tuesday morning at the age of 86, according to multiple reports.
NBC affiliate WITN confirmed the actor's death with former UNC President Bill Friday, who was a close friend of the star. Friday told the station that Griffith died in his North Carolina home at around 7 a.m.
Griffith made his film debut in the 1957 movie "A Face in the Crowd," which co-starred Patricia Neal and Walter Matthau. However, the actor found his greatest fame on TV, where he starred as Sheriff Andy Taylor in "The Andy Griffith Show," set in fictional Mayberry, North Carolina, from 1960-1968. He went on to appear in the popular legal drama "Matlock" from 1986-1995.
The actor recently appeared in the movies "Waitress" (2007) and "Play the Game" (2008), but had generally remained out of the public eye. In 2005, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W. Bush.
Andy Griffith (source: andygriffith.org)
