TV icon Andy Griffith dies at age 86

It's the end of an era. TV icon Andy Griffith, who broadcast small-town wisdom with his 1960s classic "The Andy Griffith Show" and returned to the tube in the '80s with "Matlock," died Tuesday at age 86, according to WITN News in North Carolina, which was informed of the actor's death by his friend former University of North Carolina president Bill Friday. As "Andy Griffith Show" thoughts of Aunt Bee, Opie, Barney Fife and the rest of the Mayberry gang ricochet around our heads, we remember Griffith fondly. Ron Howard, who played his TV son Opie, does too. "His pursuit of excellence and the joy he took in creating served generations & shaped my life," he tweeted. "I'm forever grateful. RIP Andy."