by Sonja J. Keith

Ken Beck will return to the 501 in September to share his work on books related to “The Andy Griffith Show” and his experience as a features and entertainment writer in Tennessee.

Art on the Green in Conway will present Beck during its CityTalks series at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21.

Beck grew up in Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas and Oklahoma. “I live in Tennessee and I love Arkansas, too,” he said.

A 1970 graduate of Sylvan Hills High School and a 1974 graduate of Harding College (now Harding University), Beck’s professional career has included work as a schoolteacher and a newspaper features and entertainment writer. He has also co-authored a series of books related to “The Andy Griffith Show,” which Beck describes as “the best American TV series ever made.”

Beck’s love of the TV show began when he was in the third grade in Sheridan, when “The Andy Griffith Show” premiered in 1960. He enjoyed the show and identified with the character of Opie, played by Ron Howard. Later in life and the show in re-runs, Beck said he now tends to relate more with Andy’s character.

While the series is more than 50 years old, Beck said it is still enjoyed because it has “heart.”  He said Griffith was a perfectionist and worked 16 hours a day on the show, which Beck describes as timeless. While some viewers in their 20s and 30s might be turned off because it was presented in black and white, Beck said the show still has appeal. “The characters are so well defined and the writing is so good.”

While the shows were created to be entertainment, the shows carried a lesson, Beck said, adding that two companies have used the series for Sunday school curriculum. “It has a wonderful message of faith, of a father and son’s relationship, and of friendship.”

With his journalism degree, Beck became a teacher and football coach. He also served as sponsor of the yearbook and newspaper in a small Tennessee high school for three years before joining The Tennessean. He became a features and entertainment writer, and served as the editor of the paper’s Sunday entertainment magazine.

“I had no idea what I was getting in to,” Beck said, adding that he felt like Gomer Pyle.

Beck said the entertainment magazine took 60 percent to 70 percent of his time to produce, allowing time to pursue other ideas for content. “I’ve always been nostalgic,” Beck said, explaining that when someone from the 50s or 60s was coming out with a new show or movie, he would call the network to do a phone interview for a story in the newspaper. He said the number of celebrities he interviewed was about 1,000.

“I talked with so many stars from when I grew up.”

Beck’s interview with Mr. Rogers is one of the most memorable. “He was exactly what you saw on TV. He was a kind and thoughtful person.”

In addition, Beck wrote an entertainment Q&A column, called Ask Ken Beck, and answered more than 12,000 questions about TV, film and music. He also wrote feature stories about Tennessee residents – “ordinary people with extraordinary stories to tell.”

While at the newspaper, Beck met Jim Clark, founder of The Andy Griffith Show Rerun Watchers Club, which led to their collaboration on a series of nearly a dozen books about their favorite TV show, including The Andy Griffith Show Book, Aunt Bee’s Mayberry Cookbook, Mayberry Memories and Goober in a Nutshell.

Their first book published in 1985, a year before a reunion of the show’s cast. Beck and Clark were invited to the set. “They liked us because of the book,” Beck said, adding that it was a surreal experience. “It was remarkable to just walk up to Jim Nabors, Don Knotts or Ron Howard and just talk to them. It was a highlight of my life.”

The success of Aunt Bee’s Cookbook led to more than 10 more entertainment themed cookbooks. The two also dabbled in entertainment pop culture with such books as The Amazing, Colossal, Book of Horror Trivia and The Encyclopedia of TV Pets.

Beck and his brother, Terry, who lives in Arkansas, teamed to write Amazing Arkansas, a book of cool facts about the Land of Opportunity that was a best seller in the state. 

Beck continues to write every day as a freelance feature writer for several community newspapers in Middle Tennessee. He and Clark still have book ideas spinning in their heads. 

CityTalks 2018 is a series of authentic conversations with creative individuals across the spectrum – designers, journalists, chefs, authors and interior designers. 

The presentations are free and open to the public. Reservations are appreciated.

Art on the Green – which is celebrating its fifth anniversary in September – is an art gallery and advisory service featuring original works by more than 30 artists. For more about Art on the Green, visit artonthegreen.net or call 501.205.1922.

Sonja Keith
Co-owner 501 Advertising and Publishing/Publisher of 501 LIFE

A native of New Iberia, La., Sonja is a graduate of Hartman High School (Johnson County) and Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia. Sonja is active in the community, serving on various boards and committees including the Conway Regional Women’s Council, the UCA Reynolds Community Council and the Faulkner County Council on Aging. A daughter of Mary and Stan Clinesmith of Conway, she has three younger sisters, Tricia, Stacey and Lori. Sonja and her husband, Tom, have four grown children – James, Emily, Laura and Joe. The family attends Grace United Methodist Church in Conway.