Howard Sprague

Howard Sprague is a fictional character on the CBS television sitcom "The Andy Griffith Show" ("TAGS"), and its spin-off "Mayberry R.F.D." He was played by Jack Dodson from 1966-71.

He was characterized by his moustache, bow tie, and a penchant for philosophy and culture. Howard was a repressed Mother's boy who lived with his overbearing and manipulative mother (played by Mabel Albertson). As with all Mayberry characters, the humor is derived from the characters' personas and not from a string of one-liners. Howard was the rural town's milquetoast county clerk. He appeared during the later (and less recognized) color episodes of "The Andy Griffith Show" (and continued onto "Mayberry R.F.D."). While Jack Dodson made an earlier appearance as an insurance agent named Ed*, he first appeared as Howard in the sixth season episode #185, "The County Clerk"

Due to his upbringing, Howard was socially stymied, especially when it came to dating. His mother even tried to thwart a double date he had with Sheriff Andy Taylor, Helen Crump and a nurse by feigning heart palpitations. Later, when Howard was about to join a men's social club, his mother manipulated Goober with a sob story in an attempt to blackball his membership. Opie once said Howard threw a baseball, "just like Aunt Bee".

When his mother remarried and moved to Mount Pilot, Howard sought to metamorphosize into a swinging hipster. Wearing a smoking jacket and ascot, his plain home became a mod bachelor pad, with threshold-beads, and floor pillows. In the episode "Howard's New Life", he sought to improve his drab lifestyle by moving to a Caribbean island (St. Benedict's) to lead the life of a beachcomber, but returned to Mayberry after discovering that a beach-bum's life was no more interesting than that of a county clerk.

Howard's brief love interest/fiancee on "The Andy Griffith Show" was Millie Swanson (Arlene Golonka), a character who later dated Sam Jones (Ken Berry) on the spin-off series "Mayberry R.F.D." Millie and Howard soon realized their incompatibility and mutually agreed to dissolve the relationship right before they were to wed.

Despite his awkwardness, Howard proved to be quite a sportsman. He caught "Old Sam", the much coveted legendary fish in Myer's Lake, thus antagonizing the town's seasoned anglers. He also proved to be an excellent bowler, after joining Emmett Clark's bowling team and astonishing everyone by scoring a perfect game. Howard even parachuted from an airplane to appease a thrill-seeking lady friend on "RFD".

Howard had two brushes with stardom. On "TAGS", he appeared on a television show performing his stand-up comedy act (which consisted of personal affronts to his neighbors and "one-horse" jokes about Mayberry), causing him to be temporarily snubbed by the townsfolk. On the "RFD" episode entitled, "The Panel", Mayberry city council sent him with Emmett Clark to a New York City TV station to promote traditional, small town values. Once there, he did a backspin and became an unabashed New Yorker, replete with a loud, paisley Nehru suit and hair bangs.

In the 1986 television movie "Return to Mayberry", Howard was revisited (along with most of the surviving cast). In a funk about aging, the clerk was seen throughout the movie in various hues of hair color.

He appeared in character on It's Garry Shandling's Show in the 1990 episode, 'The Day Howard Moved In'.

"The Andy Griffith Show" VHS/DVDs listed as "The Best of Howard Sprague" were still available in 2005.

Trivia

* Like Howard, other "TAGS" regulars were first introduced with different names: Hope Summers, who played Clara Edwards, first appeared as Bertha Johnson; Goober Pyle was first called Goober Beasley; and Arlene Golonka, who played Millie Swanson, was introduced as Millie Hutchins.