After “The Andy Griffith Show” got its start in the form of a backdoor pilot on “The Danny Thomas Show,” Griffith’s Sheriff Andy Taylor and his son, Opie (Ron Howard), were the only two characters who moved on to the actual series. Frances Bavier became Taylor’s Aunt Bee after initially playing a townsperson, and Don Knotts signed on as bumbling deputy Barney Fife. With just five previous TV roles under his belt, Knotts quickly became a fan favorite and his Fife was firmly established as straight man Taylor’s main comic foil.
At the end of its first season, “The Andy Griffith Show” ranked fourth in the Nielsen ratings and would go on to place no lower than seventh throughout its eight-year run. At 36, Knotts took home the Best Comedy Supporting Actor Emmy for his work during that first year and became the third youngest man to nab the award. 60 years later, he has been surpassed by seven younger actors, two of whom were under 30.
Since 1954, a total of 44 actors have won Emmys for their supporting roles on continuing comedy programs, beginning with Art Carney (“The Jackie Gleason Show”). Including Carney and Knotts, 18 of the winners have pulled off multiple victories.
Scroll through our photo gallery to find out who ranks ahead of Knotts on the list of 10 youngest Best Comedy Supporting Actor Emmy winners. This list also factors in winners of the now-retired variety performance awards, since regular cast members on continuing variety series now compete here.
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10. Don Knotts (‘The Andy Griffith Show,’ 1961)
Image Credit: CBS Age: 36
Role: Barney Fife
Knotts’s portrayal of Fife won him five Emmys from as many nominations. He took home the first three as a regular cast member and the final two as a guest performer. In this case, male and female supporting players competed against each other for the same prize.
Other nominees:
Abby Dalton (“Hennessy”)
Barbara Hale (“Perry Mason”) -
9. David Hyde Pierce (‘Frasier,’ 1995)
Image Credit: NBC Age: 36
Role: Dr. Niles Crane
Pierce’s 11 straight nominations for this series resulted in this and three more wins in 1998, 1999, and 2004. He is the third and most recent actor to earn as many bids for the same show, after leads Alan Alda (“M*A*S*H”) and Ted Danson (“Cheers”).
Other nominees:
Jason Alexander (“Seinfeld”)
Michael Richards (“Seinfeld”)
David Schwimmer (“Friends”)
Rip Torn (“The Larry Sanders Show”) -
8. Art Carney (‘The Jackie Gleason Show,’ 1954)
Image Credit: CBS Age: 35
Role: Various, including Ed Norton
Carney collected three trophies for his iconic performance as Norton on this variety series that briefly morphed into the standalone sitcom “The Honeymooners” before reverting back to its original form. He then picked up two more prizes in 1967 and 1968 for performing on a retooled version of Gleason’s show.
Other nominees:
Ben Alexander (“Dragnet”)
William Frawley (“I Love Lucy”)
Tony Randall (“Mister Peepers”)
Carl Reiner (“Your Show of Shows”) -
7. Carl Reiner (‘Caesar’s Hour,’ 1957)
Image Credit: MGM Studios Age: 34
Role: Various
Reiner worked with Sid Caesar through most of the 1950s and garnered four acting nominations and two wins along the way.
Other nominees:
Art Carney (“The Jackie Gleason Show”)
Paul Ford (“The Phil Silvers Show”)
William Frawley (“I Love Lucy”)
Ed Wynn (“Requiem for a Heavyweight”) -
6. Gary Burghoff (‘M*A*S*H,’ 1977)
Image Credit: CBS Age: 34
Role: Walter “Radar” O’Reilly
Burghoff amassed seven consecutive nominations during his tenure on this series and triumphed on his fifth outing. He was the only cast member to have also appeared in the preceding feature film of the same name.
Other nominees:
Ed Asner (“The Mary Tyler Moore Show”)
Ted Knight (“The Mary Tyler Moore Show”)
Harry Morgan (“M*A*S*H”)
Abe Vigoda (“Barney Miller”) -
5. Chevy Chase (‘Saturday Night Live,’ 1976)
Image Credit: NBC Age: 32
Role: Various
As one of the seven original “Saturday Night Live” cast members, Chase earned acting and writing nominations in two consecutive years and took home both awards on his first try.
Other nominees:
Tim Conway (“The Carol Burnett Show”)
Harvey Korman (“The Carol Burnett Show”) -
4. Wayne Brady (‘Whose Line Is It Anyway?,’ 2003)
Image Credit: ABC Age: 31
Role: Various
Brady has appeared in all but 12 episodes of this unscripted sketch series over 18 seasons. This was the third nomination he received in as many years.
Other nominees:
Dennis Miller (“The Raw Feed”)
Martin Short (“Primetime Glick”)
Jon Stewart (“The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”)
Robin Williams (“Robin Williams: Live on Broadway”) -
3. Sean Hayes (‘Will & Grace,’ 2000)
Image Credit: NBC Age: 30
Role: Jack McFarland
Hayes’s victory was followed by six more consecutive nominations. He later reprised the role when the series came back for three seasons from 2017 to 2020.
Other nominees:
Peter Boyle (“Everybody Loves Raymond”)
Brad Garrett (“Everybody Loves Raymond”)
Peter MacNicol (“Ally McBeal”)
David Hyde Pierce (“Frasier”) -
2. Woody Harrelson (‘Cheers,’ 1989)
Image Credit: NBC Age: 28
Role: Woody Boyd
Harrelson earned six nominations for playing Boyd, the last of which came for his 1999 guest appearance on “Frasier” six years after “Cheers” ended.
Other nominees:
Joe Regalbuto (“Murphy Brown”)
Peter Scolari (“Newhart”)
Meshach Taylor (“Designing Women”)
George Wendt (“Cheers”) -
1. Rob Reiner (‘All in the Family,’ 1974)
Image Credit: CBS Age: 27
Role: Michael Stivic
Reiner’s eight-year performance as Archie Bunker’s son-in-law led to five nominations and two wins, the second of which came in 1978.
Other nominees:
Ed Asner (“The Mary Tyler Moore Show”)
Gary Burghoff (“M*A*S*H”)
Ted Knight (“The Mary Tyler Moore Show”)
McLean Stevenson (“M*A*S*H”)
