So for all of those out there who said that Gomer Pyle went downhill, I recently enlisted in the Marines and my parents got me the show as a joke. I actually enjoyed it, both in black and white and in color, and I went and got the rest of the seasons. And I grew up in the time of color television and laugh tracks and super special effects. Though the daytime sky at 3 in the morning was always a little odd. And no I don't expect boot to be like this.Poolee Parry USMC

It is true that everyone has the opportunity to voice an opinion on a show, especially a true classic like Gomer Pyle USMC. This is mostly in reference to the switch from black and white to color. Somehow this is the decision of the expenses at the time, not the writers, which I heard was a debate over "I Dream Of Jeannie" in the similar situation when they did the same thing. I can appreciate the older times of black and white and whether or not they're funnier than color is always to one's own evaluation. In my case, the color ones were more enjoyable to watch, to see technology advance at that time so everything was more distinct. And just in passing, two things..I happened to have VCR'd the episode where Gomer accompanies a girl to a party, and she isn't junior high but a 16-year old who has a crush on him - typical teenage crush on an older man in this case, and it wasn't necessarily just for looks. True, in this day and age that would indeed be a big problem, but by the show's standards, it was handled tastefully. And secondly, if I'm not mistaken, the ratings of both shows steadily increased as time went on, and "Andy Griffith" reached #1 in 1967 - a color season, so obviously the feelings of the show "going downhill when it went to color" are a small amount. When I had the chance, I got as many of "Andy Griffith" color episodes videotaped as I could since they were shown so rarely a few years ago. TV Land didn't keep Gomer Pyle on long enough for me to get those, so I'm very ready for the DVD's to be released - have been checking for months.

I been a fan of this show ever since it's debut in 1964, I was ten years old. I sure did laugh at all the things that Gomer got into and even though Sergent Carter yell at Gomer alot, I knew that deep down inside he really like the country boy from Mayberry North Carolina

In 1965 the Gomer Pyle, USMC show was switched from black and white to color. It was necessary to film the color guard and opening and closing scenes for the show in color. This was done at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, in June, 1965. I was in the recruit platoon used for the filming and I am the young Marine marching directly behind Gomer in those scenes. During most of the brief scene Sgt. Carter is between me and the camera, however the angle changes just before the scene closes. We marched from 0730 until 1430 that day just to get those few seconds of film. The platoon was Plt. 130, 1st Recruit Btn. As a side note, during a break in the filming, Frank Sutton (Sgt. Carter) asked me if I ever smiled. Being the young, indoctrinated, Gung Ho recruit I was, my reply was, "Yes Sir. When my Drill Instructor tells me to, sir!" Frank Sutton Rolled his eyes and said to Jim Nabors, "I forgot where we were for a second". After my stint in the Marine Corps, I went into law enforcement and spent more time in front of a TV camera than I cared to. I'm now retired and enjoying life to the fullest.