RIP (Again) Andy Griffith

NEWS: News of the death of actor Andy Griffith, who passed away in 2012, began recirculating online in July 2015.

In July 2015, a number of social media users mourned the (presumed recent) loss of actor Andy Griffith:

While Griffith's passing was indeed a loss to legions of his fans, the star of Matlock and The Andy Griffith Show did not die in mid-2015. Griffith left quite a while ago, dying at the age of 86 on 3 July 2012. This was clearly stated in both an image and story that went viral three years after the actor's death:

Andy Griffith, who brought his signature role as Andy Taylor, sheriff of Mayberry on 'The Andy Griffith Show' to TV from 1960 to 1968, died this morning at his longtime home in Dare County, N.C., better known as the Outer Banks. He was 86.

While it's unclear why this story began to recirculate around social media in 2015, the most likely explanation is that someone misread a post celebrating the anniversary of the actor's death for a breaking news story.