Jason Wingreen claims that Andy Griffith could go off for no reason and was a bigot

https://classictvhistory.wordpress.com/2010/05/21/an-interview-with-jason-wingreen-part-two/

Later in the eighties, you appeared frequently on Matlock as a judge.

Actually, like Paul Bogart got me into All in the Family, Charlie Dubin was the one who got me into Matlock. He recommended me to the producer for the first one. It was a good one, it had some good stuff in it. Then I did eleven episodes, playing Judge Arthur Beaumont. Whenever they needed a judge that said more than “Overruled” or “Sustained,” when they had a judge who had some dialogue to deal with with Andy Griffith or anyone else, they called on me. They called me their number one judge. And then Andy took the show down to his home in North Carolina, and I was not asked to go down there. If they needed judges, they got them down there.

What was Andy Griffith like?

Well, you know how I told you that Al Melvin was somewhat bigoted? Andy Griffith was greatly bigoted.

Really?

Really. I was present when Andy Griffith was told that there was a scene they were going to do which was originally written out of the script of that episode, [featuring] Matlock’s right-hand man, who was played by a very good young black actor whose name escapes me. And Andy Griffith was given the information by one of the producer’s assistants there that the scene was going to be not eliminated, it was going to be redone, reshot, and some lines would be given back to the black actor. Griffith, very loud, not caring who was on the set at the time – they had visitors of all sorts when they were shooting – said, in a good loud voice, “Oh, sure. Okay. Go ahead, go ahead. Give it to the ni**er. It’s okay. Give it to the ni**er.” Does that tell you something?

That’s disappointing. I’m a big fan of Griffith’s work.

Well, it had nothing to do with his work. Do you know what I say? Do not confuse the actor with the role. I played Hitler once!

[It should be noted that Andy Griffith publicly supported Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential election. – Ed.]