That episode used race as a joke too. Rob Petry was convinced that the hospital mixed up his newborn with that of another couple's. When he had the other couple stop by his home, he immediately realized he was wrong because the couple was black. It was rare for tv to inject this type of humor then.

olivant, I recall only a couple episodes of Andy Griffith with black people, but they were extras without speaking parts. Didn't Jack Benny feature a black character in his show in the 50s? Also, The Little Rascals and Our Gang had Buckwheat, whom I liked more than Alfalfa, but not as much as Froggy.