Entertainment Tonight ET Online ETOnline.com

George Lindsey -- who played Goober Pyle on The Andy Griffith Show -- died on Sunday morning, according to CNN. He was 83.

RELATED: Most Shocking Celebrity Deaths of All Time

The actor's family told the news source that he passed away after a brief illness.

"George Lindsey was my friend," said Andy Griffith, 85, in a statement that accompanied the Lindsey family's announcement. "I had great respect for his talent and his human spirit."

George joined The Andy Griffith Show, playing Gomer Pyle's country-bumpkin cousin in 1964, four years before the end of the show's eight-year run.

"George Lindsey -- warm intelligent lovable," Ron Howard tweeted on Sunday. "He generated lots of laughs & raised a lot of money for Special Olympics RIP George."