Some actors look to the people around them for inspiration. A neighbor's odd habit, a friend's mannerism or even a stranger's way of speaking can find its way into a performance. Others look inward, pulling from their own experiences and emotions to bring a character to life.

In an interview with The Bangor Daily News, Howard McNear said that he built his most famous character by stretching out truths about himself and the way he behaved in everyday life.

"He's a sort of nervous wreck and you can't be on too much with it," McNear said.

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McNear had a ton of acting experience before setting foot in Mayberry, but he became globally famous for playing Floyd the barber on The Andy Griffith Show.

His jittery delivery and habit of leaving sentences hanging made Floyd a lovable goofball. McNear's characterization was unlike anything else on the show and became one of its funniest recurring elements.

So where did Floyd come from? According to McNear, the answer wasn't as complicated as you might think.

"I think perhaps it's my own mannerisms — exaggerated, of course," McNear said. "I've often wondered if such portrayals aren't built up from the subconscious. I've worked with practically all the big comics and have arrived at that conclusion after analyzing their techniques."

"As a young fellow, I was painfully shy. I'm still shy," McNear continued. "I really feel perfectly at home only when I'm on stage. Meeting people is far harder for me than being behind the footlights; perhaps that's because I can feel I'm someone else when I'm acting. I was trained for an architect because my father was an architect and bank vault engineer."