A bronze statue of Don Knotts — the actor best known for playing Deputy Barney Fife on The Andy Griffith Show — stands in downtown Morgantown, where he was born and raised. Knotts won five Emmy Awards for that role and was one of the most recognizable comic actors of American television's golden era. The statue is a proud piece of local heritage from a city that doesn't always have obvious reasons to boast.
The figure captures Knotts in character as Barney Fife, with the exaggerated nervousness and wide-eyed expression that made the character memorable. It's a short detour from the main sights — the kind of thing that adds personality to a walkable downtown. Morgantown also names a street near the city center in his honor.