Special Events

A SPECIAL EVENING HONORING FILM ICON: DON KNOTTS

One of the most recognized and beloved comedic actors in the world, Don Knotts was perhaps best known for his portrayal of the bumbling Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on the enormously popular 1960’s TV sitcom The Andy Griffith Show (a role which earned him five Emmy Awards). With a film career that spanned almost fifty years, Knotts made his screen debut in the 1958 film version of No Time for Sergeants. He went on to star in The Incredible Mr. Limpet, The Ghost and Mr. Chicken, The Reluctant Astronaut, The Love God?, How to Frame a Figg, and The Shakiest Gun in the West, among others. In 1970, Knotts starred in his own TV variety series, and then teamed with Tim Conway in the motion pictures The Private Eyes , The Apple Dumpling Gang, and The Prize Fighter. Knotts played the magical TV repairman in Pleasantville (1998), was the voice of T.W. Turtle in Cats Don't Dance, and Turkey Lurkey in the 2005 Disney comedy Chicken Little. Sadly, the world lost Don Knotts on February 25, 2006.

The Independence Film Fest celebrates his long and prolific career with a touching tribute at The Sangre de Cristo Arts Center during the 2008 IFFC’s Pueblo Edition (Sept. 26-28) with his daughter, actress Karen Knotts, who will share her memories of her father and perfom excerpts from her new one woman show, “Tied Up in Knotts”.