Problem was, Mayberry was a fictional town. The guy who played Sheriff Taylor didn't enjoy quite the same reputation as a good ol' boy as Sheriff Taylor his own self, and the woman who played aunt Bea was known frankly as a uh, very difficult person to work with. Hardly the sort who would show kindness to a harmless but lovable drunk, who was also fictional.
At the end of it all, Sheriff Taylor's lovable little son went to Hollywood to produce movies, and was known far and wide, first and foremost as a maniacal atheist, even in real life.
Fictional. First I heard that. 😁
My actual hometown in a suburb outside of Detroit was exactly like Mayfield, though.