kəmˈiːdiən nˈɑːts hæd wˈʌn sˈɛvɹəl ˈɛmi ɐwˈɔːɹdz æz smˈɔːltˈaʊn kˈɑːmɪk ʃˈɛɹɪfs dˈɛpjuːɾi bˈɑːɹni fˈaɪf ɪnðə nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti ˈeɪt tˈɛlᵻvˌɪʒən sˈɪtkɑːm ðɪ ˈændi ɡɹˈɪfɪθ ʃˈoʊ bˌʌt lˈɛft ðə ʃˈoʊ æz ɐ ɹˈɛɡjʊlɚɹ æt ðɪ ˈɛnd ʌv ɪts fˈɪfθ sˈiːzən nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti fˈoːɹ nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti fˈaɪv tə pɚsˈuː ɐ kɚɹˈɪɹ ɪn fˈiːtʃɚ fˈɪlmz wɪð jˌuːnɪvˈɜːsəl pˈɪktʃɚz.
Comedian Knotts had won several Emmy Awards as small-town comic sheriff's deputy Barney Fife in the 1960–1968 television sitcom The Andy Griffith Show but left the show as a regular at the end of its fifth season (1964–1965) to pursue a career in feature films with Universal Pictures.