Bernard "Barney" Fife[nb 1] is a fictional character in the American television program The Andy Griffith Show, portrayed by comic actor Don Knotts.

When he saw the episode of The Danny Thomas Show featuring Andy Taylor, he called Griffith suggesting that his sheriff character might reasonably need a deputy.

Griffith later recalled that Don Knotts' contribution was the show's saving grace because he was uncomfortable with the original concept to have Andy Taylor being the comic lead.

He presents himself as an expert on such diverse subjects as firearms, martial arts, women, singing, wilderness survival, psychology, and American history.

Although he believes himself a skilled singer, he has a tin ear, as highlighted in "Barney and the Choir" and "The Song Festers", although at other times, when he is not trying to show off, he has a pleasant singing voice, performing duets with Andy and his guitar.

In a case where he believed an ex-convict was coming back to Mayberry to attack Sheriff Taylor, he deputized Goober Pyle and Otis Campbell (who are even more inept) and attempted to provide 24-hour protection for the sheriff, although in fact no threat existed and the bodyguards did little except interfere with each other ("High Noon in Mayberry").

He sometimes attempts to modernize the department by acquiring equipment of little use in sleepy Mayberry, such as an intercom system for the jailhouse ("The Great Filling Station Robbery"), and a search-and-rescue dog ("Barney's Bloodhound").

After numerous negligent discharges (usually with a Smith & Wesson or Colt .38 caliber revolver), Andy restricts Barney to carrying his gun unloaded, with only one bullet in his shirt pocket, "in case of an emergency".

Barney was nevertheless proud of his war record: "I did my part in helping to whip the dreaded Hun", he boasted in the episode "Quiet Sam".

By the fourth-season episode "Up in Barney's Room", he is residing in Mrs. Mendelbright's boarding house, where she forbids him from owning either a hot plate or light bulb over 40 watts.

Barney's main girlfriend is a local girl, Thelma Lou (Betty Lynn), whom he eventually marries in Return to Mayberr], a 1986 NBC movie.

After that, the character remained mostly offscreen for the remainder of the show, although Knotts made five guest appearances as Barney Fife in the last three seasons.

As the series had several writers, occasional continuity errors occurred, most frequently in Barney's middle name, which changed each time it was referenced.

This includes various storylines showing Barney’s innocent disruptions of Andy’s romantic pursuits; his professional incompetence in allowing prisoners to escape; and, his unorthodox approach to police work, among other things.

He is featured in these The Andy Griffith Show episodes: Calling a police officer or authority figure "Barney Fife" has become an American slang term for gross ineptitude or overzealousness.

A notable example occurred during the Scott Peterson case, in which the defendant's mother referred to the local police captain as "Barney Fife".

In Freakazoid "Toby Danger" when a out of control giant robot is destroying Las Vegas, Nevada, there is a cameo of a Barney Fife deputy sheriff in a crowd.

Knotts' portrayal of Barney Fife earned him five Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, the most in that category.