Was 'Green Acres' really 'the place to be'?

 Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C. was the first of the rural based shows to leave the air. However, this wasn't due to its rural theme, but instead to Jim Nabors's desire to move to something else, 'reach for another rung on the ladder, either up or down'.

 Mayberry R.F.D., itself a direct continuation of The Andy Griffith Show (from which Gomer Pyle had spun off) finished number 4 for the year and was renewed for two more seasons.

 Petticoat Junction is another series that is often cited in the purge, but that show was already in decline (due in part to the death of star Bea Benaderet) by the time it was canceled in 1970. 

What made these cancellations puzzling were the fact that they had come prior to 1970, at a time when CBS had yet to air any of their more "sophisticated" shows and gauge their popularity with the television audience.

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