Andy Griffith Donates Personal Collection To UNC

Southern Historical Collection

, Griffith announced Friday.

"I am proud of my connections to Carolina and pleased to know that some results from a lifetime of work on television, film, stage and recordings will have a permanent home in Chapel Hill," said Griffith, who graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1949.

Griffith is in Chapel Hill this weekend to help dedicate the newly renovated Memorial Hall. He gave his first theatrical performance in the historic building.

University officials said the Griffith collection would include manuscripts, recordings, television and film footage and other memorabilia that documents Griffith's 55-year career.

"Andy Griffith is a North Carolina treasure and a national folk hero," UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor James Moeser said. "This generous donation will ensure that his legacy is forever intertwined with a university that is proud of his accomplishments and grateful for all that he has given back."

Griffith starred in "The Andy Griffith Show," which debuted in 1960, for eight years and played the character of Sheriff Andy Taylor.

He later went on to play Ben Matlock, a criminal defense lawyer, in the long-running series "Matlock."

Griffith also has recorded three music albums, and he won a Grammy Award in 1997 for his "I Love to Tell the Story" album.