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Little House On The Prairie - General Discussion


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14 hours ago, debraran said:

Charles had the gall to be "cash on the barrel" unless it was him. He would state it and then forget.

Oleson's "we are so glad to hear that, wise words, cash is best"

Charles "well I just need some seed" Just this one time...

Then they owed Olesons most of the time with a running tab. The funniest thing was him thinking he inherited money and not even waiting for it. We aren't talking about a few baubles, the guy bought out the store and had nothing in bank or his hand. But he was an Ingall's. Then he wants a loan to buy his wife something, for pete's sake, make a few shelves for someone, work an extra job or two. Charles really wasn't always the brightest guy. His kids made more selling honey. ; )

Yep I remember one episode where he said "From now on it's cash on a barrel!"

(next episode)

Charles: Hey Nels put it on my tab

Nels: Charles you're already 25.00 behind! I can't!

Charles: SOME FRIEND YOU ARE! ANY JOB A MAN CAN DO IN THIS WORLD TO MAKE ENDS MEET IS A DECENT JOB!

Harriet: Well you can't make ends meet so clearly you don't have a decent job

 

(Charles divea through window and breaks ribs)

 

Nels: Oh no, not again

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Harriet: Nels, instead of giving Charles more credit when you know he'll do something dumb like climb a tree to get a kite to fall on his ribs, how about just having him pay us in Monopoly money?

Nels: But that isn't legal tender!

Harriet: Yeah, but at least we'd have a bigger advantage over the other players at the start of the game!

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On 1/17/2023 at 4:12 PM, debraran said:

I'm sure she was just making plans for another child to join the family.  : )

 

Maybe but I'll bet there were many times in the next few years Caroline wished she'd just let Charles keep drying that one solitary dish their last morning in Winoka instead of acknowledging Charles wanting to invite Albert to join them to return to Walnut Grove!

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I just saw beginning of Albert's addiction episode. I only like the beginning. I thought the glance at old home was sad and Charles is like "looks like they are keeping it up well". Yes, not renting or doing Airbnb. ; )

I forgot for a moment how Charles had to blame the city for Albert's addiction and bad behavior. That was only reason. Albert had a goal to be a doctor, was smart, could have "interned" with local doc, but Mike wanted an addiction story after his child had trouble. Don't blame the city though, many kids in the city weren't addicts and what about James and his other children? Were they all doomed?

I know peer pressure can be hard but I never bought Albert wanting to fit in that way. Willie would have been even harder to see but Albert wasn't a country bumpkin, he lived in orphanages and on the street for a while.

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9 hours ago, jason88cubs said:

starting to snow..omg...i hope i have enough food!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The irony is that during the 19th century, rural folks rode out blizzards a LOT better than city folks due to having already canned and stored ample stocks of food to tide them through the winter while city folks had gotten SO used to buying street food on a daily basis that many of them had never even bothered to get ice boxes much less stored any tin cans and wound up in serious trouble in blizzards (especially the blizzard of 1888). I think had the Ingallses still lived on a farm instead of in the town of DeSmet, they'd have not been so vulnerable.

Of course, nowadays there are far fewer family farms in the rural US and many folks there live in food deserts- often having nothing but the odd 7-Eleven at a gas station at the junction of state roads dozens of miles away from their homes. While city folks usually have wide selections of grocery stores and restaurants to buy their supplies(and even have them delivered)  in a very short time. Oh, and I've known people  who've commuted from literally the next state to work in the hospital in my city since there are no jobs closer anywhere near their homes!

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6 hours ago, debraran said:

I just saw beginning of Albert's addiction episode. I only like the beginning. I thought the glance at old home was sad and Charles is like "looks like they are keeping it up well". Yes, not renting or doing Airbnb. ; )

I forgot for a moment how Charles had to blame the city for Albert's addiction and bad behavior. That was only reason. Albert had a goal to be a doctor, was smart, could have "interned" with local doc, but Mike wanted an addiction story after his child had trouble. Don't blame the city though, many kids in the city weren't addicts and what about James and his other children? Were they all doomed?

I know peer pressure can be hard but I never bought Albert wanting to fit in that way. Willie would have been even harder to see but Albert wasn't a country bumpkin, he lived in orphanages and on the street for a while.

Of course, the thing that didn't get mentioned is how Mr. Edwards had seriously injured Albert in that drunken wagon accident some months beforehand that threatened to have crippled Albert. Even though Albert did manage not to get crippled, I imagine that he might have developed chronic pain from the injuries- and thus would not have been been so adverse to the idea of 'trying' morphine to see if he could get some relief from the pain. Let's not overlook that more than one Civil War vet DID have chronic debilitating pain from war wounds and wound up as morphine 'fiends' from that rather than guilt over others in their units dying in combat (as in Granville Whipple)!

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Even though I can't watch the later episodes on LHOP, I did have on The Last Summer while I cleaned today. I don't know why I tear up with Ruthie saying goodbye to Jason but I do. Except for her really bad wig (a common trend on LHOP) I liked Vera Miles as Ruthie so much more than his mom (who was a jerk) or any of the characters then. Seeing Jason liking Ruthie wasn't the same as Laura with all her older friends, it seemed more real with him helping her and Dewey. Then Blanche came on and TV went off. : )

 

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That brings up that it is time for my semi-annual rant: 

THERE WAS A FIRE AND BLANCHE TOOK THE BABY OUT, WHEREAS NEITHER MARY NOR ADAM NOR ANY OF THE OTHER ADULTS DID. BLANCHE IS AN ORANGUTAN IN CASE WE WEREN'T CLEAR. 

Thank you. See you in 6 months. 

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4 hours ago, debraran said:

Even though I can't watch the later episodes on LHOP, I did have on The Last Summer while I cleaned today. I don't know why I tear up with Ruthie saying goodbye to Jason but I do. Except for her really bad wig (a common trend on LHOP) I liked Vera Miles as Ruthie so much more than his mom (who was a jerk) or any of the characters then. Seeing Jason liking Ruthie wasn't the same as Laura with all her older friends, it seemed more real with him helping her and Dewey. Then Blanche came on and TV went off. : )

 

I don't know this episode, but they really go to that "befriend an old person before they die" well a lot, don't they? 

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4 hours ago, Superclam said:

I don't know this episode, but they really go to that "befriend an old person before they die" well a lot, don't they? 

Albert and the old casket maker guy popped right into my head when i read this.

Edited by crazy8s
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6 hours ago, crazy8s said:

Albert and the old casket maker guy popped right into my head when i read this.

Yes, that was a job too so similar but Albert was older. I liked how they tried to teach antisemitism in a LHOP way (much more realistic than some with racism) but that again was "meet older person, they die" No wonder the banker left town!

 

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23 hours ago, debraran said:

Even though I can't watch the later episodes on LHOP, I did have on The Last Summer while I cleaned today. I don't know why I tear up with Ruthie saying goodbye to Jason but I do. Except for her really bad wig (a common trend on LHOP) I liked Vera Miles as Ruthie so much more than his mom (who was a jerk) or any of the characters then. Seeing Jason liking Ruthie wasn't the same as Laura with all her older friends, it seemed more real with him helping her and Dewey. Then Blanche came on and TV went off. : )

 

Wait, that was Vera Miles???? Today I learned . . .

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5 hours ago, jird said:

Wait, that was Vera Miles???? Today I learned . . .

She was beautiful, was on a Bonanza too (weren't most guests?) but they put her in the most awful wig. This pic doesn't do it justice, it was like a white toupee dropped on her brown hair. I don't know who did hair/makeup but it was usually awful.

She was beautiful in "real" life. https://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/person/131567|150420/Vera-Miles/#overview

image.png

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I can’t stand “The Last Summer” because I think that Faux Ma (Mrs. Carter) is so cold and nasty about the whole situation with Ruthie. Lady, get on your broom and get the hell out of the Little House.

On 1/29/2023 at 2:55 PM, Superclam said:

That brings up that it is time for my semi-annual rant: 

THERE WAS A FIRE AND BLANCHE TOOK THE BABY OUT, WHEREAS NEITHER MARY NOR ADAM NOR ANY OF THE OTHER ADULTS DID. BLANCHE IS AN ORANGUTAN IN CASE WE WEREN'T CLEAR. 

For that alone, Blanche deserved to be added to the opening credits. Can’t you just see her disembodied head appearing after Victor French’s in that cheapass “New Beginning” intro? “Blanche as Blanche”

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3 hours ago, Egg McMuffin said:

I can’t stand “The Last Summer” because I think that Faux Ma (Mrs. Carter) is so cold and nasty about the whole situation with Ruthie. Lady, get on your broom and get the hell out of the Little House.

For that alone, Blanche deserved to be added to the opening credits. Can’t you just see her disembodied head appearing after Victor French’s in that cheapass “New Beginning” intro? “Blanche as Blanche”

Yes, she ruined her birthday and broke her sons heart. She could have talked to Ruthie or husband later but geez, she was a witch.

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11 hours ago, CountryGirl said:

Sarah Carter, you are no Ma. Not even Ma 2.0 - not by a country mile.

After the way Sarah totally pooh-poohed Jason's gift to her (to say nothing of ALL the hard work he'd put in) and fouled his friendship with poor old dying Ruthie, Sarah would be lucky to get air in a jar for any future presents. And, yeah, why didn't John attempt to speak up on his younger son's behalf instead of just letting his ungrateful co-parent sour their son's generosity,etc.? John must have taken lessons from Almanzo 'Log-Bump' Wilder who'd stood by and said/did nothing while his own spouse Laura eviscerated his depressed niece after  suicide attempt!

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Of course, what's ironic about Sarah being such a sourpuss mother to Jason is that in the last few years Pamela Roylance has participated in LHOTP reunions and podcasts along with her character's sons and the three have all been happy to see each other and eager participants. IOW, Miss Royland seems about as far from her character as Hersha Parady was from Alice in terms of being a much more likable and interesting person offstage!

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On 2/4/2023 at 7:38 AM, Blergh said:

Of course, what's ironic about Sarah being such a sourpuss mother to Jason is that in the last few years Pamela Roylance has participated in LHOTP reunions and podcasts along with her character's sons and the three have all been happy to see each other and eager participants. IOW, Miss Royland seems about as far from her character as Hersha Parady was from Alice in terms of being a much more likable and interesting person offstage!

With many of these things, the less popular players seem to like to go and fans are forgiving since time lessens memory and they just want something from their LHOP days. So many are gone or never did the reunions. Alison and Melissa are the stars now and used the popularity to keep themselves going (Alison more I think) Dean fans like his involvement too. I would have only gone if close and Richard Bull was there and Katherine but alas that didn't happen. I like Alison but I always wondered why "Albert" Matt never made one but they did go on talk shows. He might have and I missed it.

I also found it glaring that Jon Gilbert was gone and no one will talk about him, not so much at reunion but anything about him. People he acted with, Matt, Sherri, his wife (although they might not have asked back then) anyone who had scenes with him, did they have a relationship outside of the show? Alison has actually fibbed in a funny way about him doing plays or being a monk but everyone attests to the pics online being false and he isn't a stockbroker wherever (although that guy must get some weird calls at work) Only Richard Bull spoke of his dysfunctional home and I think it's sad. I hope he's well and I'm sorry they show made him decide show business wasn't for him and neither was anyone attached to it. He did keep in touch for a bit with his TV parents and Melissa Sue knew someone he knew but not for too long. I hope he is well. In "google/Internet" world it really is hard to be invisible if you work but I respect his bowing out.

Edited by debraran
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Amazingly during a 'Stars in the House' podcast, when the hosts recounted that MG as well as Matthew and Patrick Labortyeaux had been adopted, MG piped up that Jonathan Gilbert had ALSO been adopted which the others concurred but literally said NOTHING else about him the rest of the time on the- either to address his time on LHTOP much less allude to what any of them believe might have become of him since. Nor did the hosts bother to ask any followup questions. Do you think some or all of them might have told the hosts NOT to go into any detail about Mr. Gilbert beforehand as a condition of them participating in this podcast raising monies for charity?

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2 hours ago, Blergh said:

Amazingly during a 'Stars in the House' podcast, when the hosts recounted that MG as well as Matthew and Patrick Labortyeaux had been adopted, MG piped up that Jonathan Gilbert had ALSO been adopted which the others concurred but literally said NOTHING else about him the rest of the time on the- either to address his time on LHTOP much less allude to what any of them believe might have become of him since. Nor did the hosts bother to ask any followup questions. Do you think some of all of them might have told the hosts NOT to go into any detail about Mr. Gilbert beforehand as a condition of them participating in this podcast raising monies for charity?

I think so...back then, I thought of abuse that he might have had or something not talked about on TV. I don't know why, because most things are. If he got caught up in the law, homeless, etc. you'd know. Something went on where MG or her sister Sara and most of the cast that were with him over a decade (!) say nothing. I respected his on TV parents for giving him big kudos for his acting (which Alison poo-pooed a bit) and saying out of all the kids, he was the smartest and best behaved. Really no gossip. Richard said he loved having him as a tv son and said his mom heavily favored Melissa and ignored him. I think Katherine alluded to things too. Richard said he made some money over the years, took it said goodbye but for that type of behavior, you must really hate or dislike most around you if not mentally ill. Melissa did look at first but never said if cops found him and if some heard from him, I'm sure he kept in touch for a while. One fan who knew people said no picture ever online was him, although the greying guy they show is close. The brunette looks nothing like him. I can't believe after over 10 years of working with someone, Matt or any of the boys will mention him. An author said he knew somethings but you could tell he was very close to the vest. I think accusations of wrong doing without a report or the person there to back it up is just gossip so I respect they wont do that but it's very hard to drop off the face of the earth and I wish someone knew he was at least alive. If he went to college, there would be credible records (in US anyway) If he worked for any company with SS # they'd have that information. Now he's too old and it's been too long. Just so sad or maybe for him, a nightmare ended and his life began.

Edited by debraran
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Miss Arngrim did somewhat imply that Mr. Gilbert had been somewhat neglected as a child by his adoptive family when she recounted a story of being a guest at the Gilberts with both Melissa and Jonathan somewhat picking at their chicken and rice dishes which got Mrs. Gilbert (or whatever name she was using) to say that if they didn't like their food Alison could have ALL of their food and taking away their plates and piling it onto Alison's! Although Miss Arngrim recounted that she had had no real meal beforehand and she WAS hungry (and had room for all three portions), she was somewhat embarrassed for the Gilbert sibs. Anyway, she tried to explain away Mr. Gilbert's reluctance to chow down  via saying(I'm paraphrasing )'for all anyone in that house would have known, he could have already  gone somewhere else for a three-course meal'.

IMO, this somewhat implied that she believed that Jonathan had been left to his own devises with no one in that home caring what he was up to as long as he showed up to eat and sleep.

Of course, what's also a bit sad in retrospect is that for all the praises MG had for ML for stepping up to the plate and becoming 'her Pa' after her own [adoptive] father had died, neither she nor anyone else has ever hinted that ML attempted to do the same for Jonathan.

Yes, I agree that if Mr. Gilbert's still in this world, I hope he's had a happy, satisfying adulthood (and his privacy would need to be respected) but it's sad that no one in his original [adoptive] family seemed to care that he seemed to have washed his hands of them and none of his LHOTP colleagues bothered to keep up with him (even via mutual acquaintances) for more than a few years after the show's end.

Since it's known that he was adopted by the Gilberts as an infant, perhaps shortly after he seemed to have washed his hands of the Gilbert clan, he might have somehow discovered who his  bio parents were and what his original name was - and changed his name BACK to that to ensure his anonymity. If so, then not only could he have easily gotten legal employment in the US using his SS# with no LHTOP fans being able to look it up but he could have even gone to college and graduated under said name with none of the fans being the wiser.

Edited by Blergh
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6 hours ago, Blergh said:

Miss Arngrim did somewhat imply that Mr. Gilbert had been somewhat neglected as a child by his adoptive family when she recounted a story of being a guest at the Gilberts with both Melissa and Jonathan somewhat picking at their chicken and rice dishes which got Mrs. Gilbert (or whatever name she was using) to say that if they didn't like their food Alison could have ALL of their food and taking away their plates and piling it onto Alison's! Although Miss Arngrim recounted that she had had no real meal beforehand and she WAS hungry (and had room for all three portions), she was somewhat embarrassed for the Gilbert sibs. Anyway, she tried to explain away Mr. Gilbert's reluctance to chow down  via saying(I'm paraphrasing )'for all anyone in that house would have known, he could have already  gone somewhere else for a three-course meal'.

IMO, this somewhat implied that she believed that Jonathan had been left to his own devises with no one in that home caring what he was up to as long as he showed up to eat and sleep.

Of course, what's also a bit sad in retrospect is that for all the praises MG had for ML for stepping up to the plate and becoming 'her Pa' after her own [adoptive] father had died, neither she nor anyone else has ever hinted that ML attempted to do the same for Jonathan.

Yes, I agree that if Mr. Gilbert's still in this world, I hope he's had a happy, satisfying adulthood (and his privacy would need to be respected) but it's sad that no one in his original [adoptive] family seemed to care that he seemed to have washed his hands of them and none of his LHOTP colleagues bothered to keep up with him (even via mutual acquaintances) for more than a few years after the show's end.

Since it's known that he was adopted by the Gilberts as an infant, perhaps shortly after he seemed to have washed his hands of the Gilbert clan, he might have somehow discovered who his  bio parents were and what his original name was - and changed his name BACK to that to ensure his anonymity. If so, then not only could he have easily gotten legal employment in the US using his SS# with no LHTOP fans being able to look it up but he could have even gone to college and graduated under said name with none of the fans being the wiser.

In a book I gave a fan, Praire Memories I think, by a French author, he interviewed 5 of the stars and Richard or Katherine (or both) said the mom heavily favored Melissa and someone on the forum said Melissa resented him coming into the family so might not have treated him well either. I never confused photo ops with real life. If I can make up a fantasy in my head, I will keep yours. I like it.

I know he wasn't a big star or that important but someone would have loved to see him somewhere and take a photo. He might have changed a lot now but not then. Melissa G said she saw him three times since he left and made peace with it, but no one says "Where? How?" Very odd how followup questions aren't asked. I don't think a lot of love lost. Michael befriended Melissa but I don't recall any guys. Maybe if he lived, he might have touched on Jon, IDK.  One the Carrie twins kept in touch but again lost touch as he moved.

The Internet is so funny, they'll have a bio of him and his wife Keren and pics and they guy is nothing like Jon. He's a stockbroker in NYC but it's like unlike he had plastic surgery, that's not him.

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Having Jonathan Gilbert  finding out his original name then legally changing his back to it after permanently splitting from his adoptive family is one of the few scenarios I can think of re him being able to have totally dropped off the radar for nearly forty years!

On a more lighthearted note, in that 'Stars in the House' podcast I saw they dug up and replayed a Japanese TV commercial for soft-dough packaged cookies called 'Country Ma'am' that featured a Japanese-dubbed Karen Grassle wearing a rather formal, Victorian high-necked tea outfit and apron ringing a dinner bell to contemporary (1970's)  evidently US-American kids in overalls to 'serve' the cookies. She related that it actually had been filmed in California near a real barn by the Japanese company. However, the Japanese film crew had found the grass so brown that they painstakingly PAINTED it a rather intense green so she and the rest of the cast had to wait for it to dry. What I liked the most about it was that she actually displayed a sense of humor about herself! I wish she had included that story (and similar stories) in her autobio!

 

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20 hours ago, Blergh said:

Having Jonathan Gilbert  finding out his original name then legally changing his back to it after permanently splitting from his adoptive family is one of the few scenarios I can think of re him being able to have totally dropped off the radar for nearly forty years!

On a more lighthearted note, in that 'Stars in the House' podcast I saw they dug up and replayed a Japanese TV commercial for soft-dough packaged cookies called 'Country Ma'am' that featured a Japanese-dubbed Karen Grassle wearing a rather formal, Victorian high-necked tea outfit and apron ringing a dinner bell to contemporary (1970's)  evidently US-American kids in overalls to 'serve' the cookies. She related that it actually had been filmed in California near a real barn by the Japanese company. However, the Japanese film crew had found the grass so brown that they painstakingly PAINTED it a rather intense green so she and the rest of the cast had to wait for it to dry. What I liked the most about it was that she actually displayed a sense of humor about herself! I wish she had included that story (and similar stories) in her autobio!

 

I liked how she mentioned good things about Melissa Sue but I guess I lot was negative. I did see Kevin Hogan in a new light some characters being "always there" but seeing a new side of him.  Did she think the Gil Gerard thing was funny? I could have gone my lifetime without knowing thatl😜

I wonder how much, whether famous or not so famous, your book is changed by the editor. Put more of this in or that. I didn't mind her honesty about work, Melissa G and others didn't dispute it, but a little levity would have gone a long way. You don't want to read a memoir and feel sad or "blah" when done. The memoir I would have LOVED to read would have been Katherine's for sure. She was ballsy and honest and funny.

MSA book was a little boring but like reading scripts and seeing it through her eyes and I didn't wish I didn't read it. She admitted what she could remember and not and had a lot of class never putting down MG and Alison even though they did it to her. Even complimented Alison. She was honest about Michael and said she made up before he was sick and showed pics of her wedding with him. Her maturity in what she said, I felt a permanent 👍after that. Alison's was funny but she could have done without the putdowns. They were children then.

 

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FWIW, Bonnie Bartlett Daniels ( Grace Snider Edwards) has just written her own autobio Middle of the Rainbow: How a Wife, Mother, and Two-Time Emmy Winner Managed to Find Herself (2023). OK, it covers a surprising range of subjects including having endured rather dysfunctional parents and, for the first part of her union with William Daniels, a somewhat unconventional union of 71 years that barely survived the first ten years but has grown to be a genuine mutual  love match in their twilight time. Be warned that it does occasionally get a bit graphic in describing sexual assaults which  may be triggering for some readers and/or discomfiting to others. However, she does tell a rather compelling account and has met a very wide assortment of famous, infamous and otherwise memorable folks in her nine decades.

 Anyway, for this SubForum, she does have an entire chapter to LHOTP in which she said she enjoyed the cast and crew as well as the work. Oh, and she had befriended Miss MacGregor when they both performed in the 1950's soap Love of Life and had a great deal of fun catching up with her as well as performing with her in the more recent production! She was quite moved by Patricia Neal's determination and resolve after having survived a rather devastating series of strokes a few years before.  She also praised ML for listening to her suggestion on how to better light an emotional scene and implementing said suggestion despite adding an hour to the production time. Oh, and she enjoyed working with Victor French a great deal and was sad that when he amscrayed for Carter Country, she also was out  and never to return.  In any case, LHOTP seemed as though it had been a fun, rewarding interlude for her.

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7 hours ago, Blergh said:

FWIW, Bonnie Bartlett Daniels ( Grace Snider Edwards) has just written her own autobio Middle of the Rainbow: How a Wife, Mother, and Two-Time Emmy Winner Managed to Find Herself (2023). OK, it covers a surprising range of subjects including having endured rather dysfunctional parents and, for the first part of her union with William Daniels, a somewhat unconventional union of 71 years that barely survived the first ten years but has grown to be a genuine mutual  love match in their twilight time. Be warned that it does occasionally get a bit graphic in describing sexual assaults which  may be triggering for some readers and/or discomfiting to others. However, she does tell a rather compelling account and has met a very wide assortment of famous, infamous and otherwise memorable folks in her nine decades.

 Anyway, for this SubForum, she does have an entire chapter to LHOTP in which she said she enjoyed the cast and crew as well as the work. Oh, and she had befriended Miss MacGregor when they both performed in the 1950's soap Love of Life and had a great deal of fun catching up with her as well as performing with her in the more recent production! She was quite moved by Patricia Neal's determination and resolve after having survived a rather devastating series of strokes a few years before.  She also praised ML for listening to her suggestion on how to better light an emotional scene and implementing said suggestion despite adding an hour to the production time. Oh, and she enjoyed working with Victor French a great deal and was sad that when he amscrayed for Carter Country, she also was out  and never to return.  In any case, LHOTP seemed as though it had been a fun, rewarding interlude for her.

I remember reading an interview where she talked of getting the gumption to talk to ML about changes from Katherine (who else?) : ) She said in her time, it was work and she was never the star of LHOP but I liked her and wished her time with Victor had been longer. I hated he had to lose family again. I think unless I'm blurring stories, but I thought Hersha had a moment of asking for a change too with Katherine helping her. Just a small thing but I guess he ran with an iron hand but had his moments. I think one of them said they never did it again though. lol  They also were friends. From interview:

Years later, while living in California, Hersha often used to look after a free-spirited dog named Lightening, who used to roam the streets of Hollywood. This is how Hersha came to meet and befriend actress Katherine "Scottie" MacGregor, who also looked out for the same dog! It was around that time that MacGregor was starring, as Harriet Oleson, in the television series Little House on the Prairie.

When Hersha starred in a play as Anne Hathaway, the wife of William Shakespeare, MacGregor and her Little House co-star Richard Bull came to see it. They were thoroughly impressed with Hersha's performance, and recommended her to the Little House casting director, as a possible new cast member. This recommendation led to Hersha being cast as a guest star (playing Michael Landon's sister-in-law) in one episode during the third season, before being cast as a regular player in the role of Merlin Olsen's wife, Alice Garvey, for Seasons 4 - 6.

 

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While it seems Miss Parady was friends with both the 'Olesons' (despite her character usually being annoyed by Harriet), I wonder how she got along with Merlin Olsen who played her husband?

 Well,since they both seemed to have been friends with Miss MacGregor, I imagine that she and Miss Bartlett might actually have enough in common to be friends (despite the fact that Grace and Alice were never to meet).

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5 hours ago, Superclam said:

Randomly found this on Yahoo just now; I haven't even read it yet. It includes an interview with Thylvia herself!

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/untold-story-sylvia-most-wtf-140000274.html 

Thanks for that, I can see MG doing that, lol re the "not going to work out" But I don't believe it's a favorite of LHOP fans at all. It got good ratings because sadly, rape and things like that bring in viewers but it wasn't LHOP kind of stuff. He did it for ratings but deep down no one really wanted that, the true fans gravitate to the beginning which was about faith, love, and fake prairie living. Not clowns, rape, abuse and fires.

I would have rather seen Albert married than addicted and killed sort of but alas no input from fans. ; )

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The only good things that came out of that episode were:

(1). Ma putting Albert in his place when he tried to school her about his feelings of true wub: "And Don't Ever Raise Your Voice To Me While You Live In This House."

(2). It gave birth to one of the best forum names ever (TWOP), "Pa, Ma, and the Mime That Raped Sylvia."

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6 hours ago, CountryGirl said:

The only good things that came out of that episode were:

(1). Ma putting Albert in his place when he tried to school her about his feelings of true wub: "And Don't Ever Raise Your Voice To Me While You Live In This House."

(2). It gave birth to one of the best forum names ever (TWOP), "Pa, Ma, and the Mime That Raped Sylvia."

It was one of the most infamous NOT 'beloved' episodes,IMO! And I agree that it was GREAT seeing Caroline truly show her grit by insisting on respect from her still minor son instead of caving! It took a LOT to get Caroline's dander up and this likely had been the last straw of YEARS of Albert's taking her for granted despite her having kept him well-fed,clean-clothed,etc. .

One of the most cringeworthy revelations in the interview with Miss Barash was that they used the scene of Sylvia Webb's . . . disturbing male DNA Donor calling  Sylvia a 'whore' - for Miss Barash's audition!🤢 The only consolation to that was that she said that the colleague who played Mr. Webb(Royal Dano [1922-1994]) was actually quite nice to her offcamera.

Oh,and it turns out that she had been friends with both the Labortyeaux bros in school beforehand.

Oddly enough, she also claimed that she had at least been led to believe that Sylvia was intended to be a permanent regular character as Albert's wife but she believed that MG(of all folks) killed that arc and hastened Sylvia's demise. However, it's hard to believe that the show would have attempted much less pulled it off.

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15 hours ago, Blergh said:

Oddly enough, she also claimed that she had at least been led to believe that Sylvia was intended to be a permanent regular character as Albert's wife but she believed that MG(of all folks) killed that arc and hastened Sylvia's demise. However, it's hard to believe that the show would have attempted much less pulled it off.

Yeah, and somehow it seems implausible that MG would have had that kind of power had ML (and others) wanted to go through with it.

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12 hours ago, Pirpana said:

Yeah, and somehow it seems implausible that MG would have had that kind of power had ML (and others) wanted to go through with it.

All I can think of is that, as per Miss Arngrim, MG evidently was the unofficial junior boss of all the minor performers  and perhaps Miss Barash might have made the leap that MG actually would have had the power to alter intended storylines.

Regardless, it does strain all credulity to think that the hostile, small-minded, victim-blaming/shaming Walnut Grove citizenry would have somehow done 180's to have welcomed a teenaged rape victim as Mrs. Albert Ingalls (to say nothing of all the above embracing her eventual child known to be sired by a rapist).

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On 12/15/2022 at 2:31 AM, debraran said:

I found it odd but I guess not really, since LHOP is fiction on TV, that Harriet had a small store. Women didn't really run stores, they shopped more. From what little I read, factory work or teachers. I loved seeing her doing it, maybe she could have in small pockets of the world but can you imagine it? Women couldn't vote, had trouble with credit/banking

I found this interesting about women being lured into department stores, escaping home for a while to shop. https://www.history.com/news/how-19th-century-women-used-department-stores-to-gain-their-freedom

I am utterly shocked being born after this date, women couldn't have a bank account until 1960s? Good Lord, you go Harriet, own that store and we know she had bank acct. I'll take that fiction over many of the other unbelievable things on the show.

https://www.oneadvisorypartners.com/blog/the-history-of-women-and-money-in-the-united-states-in-honor-of-womens-history-month

I know more about British women's power than Americans' at that time, but femmes sole, or single women, had greater power to control their finances than married women, and did run their own shops here and there. A single womam of means was in a much better position than a married woman.  So it's not unprecedented that Harriet would have run her own shop before she married Nels.

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4 hours ago, Brn2bwild said:

I know more about British women's power than Americans' at that time, but femmes sole, or single women, had greater power to control their finances than married women, and did run their own shops here and there. A single womam of means was in a much better position than a married woman.  So it's not unprecedented that Harriet would have run her own shop before she married Nels.

True but it was hardly typical or easy back then.

Moreover, as confirmed by that episode in which a women's suffrage campaigner appeared, any properties belonging to never-married, widowed or divorced women whether they had inherited them or earned them, by the contemporary laws,these would automatically become the SOLE properties of their new husbands upon the women getting married. IOW, the usually sympathetic Nels appeared to have been a fortune-hunter re Harriet's property at the start of their marriage (and Harriet was encouraging hithero unknown suitors to do the same to Nellie via gifting Nellie her 'very own hotel and restaurant' for a grad present).

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4 hours ago, Blergh said:

True but it was hardly typical or easy back then.

Moreover, as confirmed by that episode in which a women's suffrage campaigner appeared, any properties belonging to never-married, widowed or divorced women whether they had inherited them or earned them, by the contemporary laws,these would automatically become the SOLE properties of their new husbands upon the women getting married. IOW, the usually sympathetic Nels appeared to have been a fortune-hunter re Harriet's property at the start of their marriage (and Harriet was encouraging hithero unknown suitors to do the same to Nellie via gifting Nellie her 'very own hotel and restaurant' for a grad present).

That was sad since Nellie was very bright and could have gone to school to be a teacher or whatever women were allowed to do. Nel's did marry Harriet with shop but he was smart too and I'm sure at Princeton could have been secure in another profession. I didn't mind suspending reality for LHOP but they did gloss over how backward many things were then. As noted above, rape and babies and marrying would just be pure gossip and nastiness but shows like this usually clean it up with death. They treated Hester Sue very well although Joe Kagen had a harder time. Didn't Hester Sue go to mass but he had to be "voted in". Geez, how Christian of them. True but still. Hester Sue really had no issues working in "Mayberry "Walnut Grove. Caroline got more pay for working at restaurant than she ever would have gotten in any other job (not that it made it easy for the Ingall's) but women usually got the short end of the stick in most areas.

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I wonder why the Olesons didn't rename 'Caroline's Restaurant and Hotel' to 'Hester-Sue's. ..' after Miss Grassle's departure? I mean, they'd already changed the name from 'Nellie's' (at Percival's urging) to draw in more customers who preferred Ma's cooking to Nellie's (and kept that name even after Percival encouraged her to improve her culinary skills)..  Yet, once Caroline decamped for the mean city of Burr Oak [?!], wouldn't customers have wondered where she was and why the restaurant was still named for her? And Hester-Sue seemed to have had a strong customer base on her own! Also, neither Caroline nor Hester-Sue owned the building nor were related to Nellie or the Olesons who, evidently, kept managing if not having outrightly legally acquired the establishment after the Daltons/Cohens departure!

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On 2/10/2023 at 1:59 PM, Pirpana said:

Yeah, and somehow it seems implausible that MG would have had that kind of power had ML (and others) wanted to go through with it.

Melissa Gilbert clearly didn't want to be paired with a 25-year old dude (and frankly I don't blame her) but she had to do it anyway. I don't believe she had that kind of power. Michael Landon and 1970's/80's tv in general were very much of "you toe the line or you're easily replaced" cutthroat mindset.

As for Jonathan Gilbert, I hope he's doing well. It's sad he felt the need to totally break from everyone, but if it's what he had to do, it's what he had to do.

Quote

MSA book was a little boring but like reading scripts and seeing it through her eyes and I didn't wish I didn't read it. She admitted what she could remember and not and had a lot of class never putting down MG and Alison even though they did it to her. Even complimented Alison. She was honest about Michael and said she made up before he was sick and showed pics of her wedding with him. Her maturity in what she said, I felt a permanent 👍after that. Alison's was funny but she could have done without the putdowns. They were children then.

I mean, I haven't heard the best things about Melissa Sue Anderson but she does still look absolutely fabulous. 

I will say that I respect that she kind of just kept it matter of fact and didn't try to spice things up or "get back" at Alison Arngrim. (I mean, I loved "Confessions" but let's be honest, Alison dragged MSA through the mud in that.) 

Edited by methodwriter85
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On 2/11/2023 at 3:27 PM, Blergh said:

I wonder why the Olesons didn't rename 'Caroline's Restaurant and Hotel' to 'Hester-Sue's. ..' after Miss Grassle's departure?

What’s funny is the sign on top of the front porch still said Nellie’s, even after the restaurant and hotel was ostensibly renamed Caroline’s. Only sign painted in he window was changed to Caroline’s. So in the final season, neither of the two characters named in the signage were present on the show.

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On 2/12/2023 at 5:12 PM, methodwriter85 said:

Melissa Gilbert clearly didn't want to be paired with a 25-year old dude (and frankly I don't blame her) but she had to do it anyway. I don't believe she had that kind of power. Michael Landon and 1970's/80's tv in general were very much of "you toe the line or you're easily replaced" cutthroat mindset.

As for Jonathan Gilbert, I hope he's doing well. It's sad he felt the need to totally break from everyone, but if it's what he had to do, it's what he had to do.

I mean, I haven't heard the best things about Melissa Sue Anderson but she does still look absolutely fabulous. 

I will say that I respect that she kind of just kept it matter of fact and didn't try to spice things up or "get back" at Alison Arngrim. (I mean, I loved "Confessions" but let's be honest, Alison dragged MSA through the mud in that.) 

I think Melissa was just more mature than the rest of the kids. At least that is what most adults said about her and some of the kids.  Her mom kept her underfoot. All the adults in interviews said nice things, when most didn't talk of the "kids". Richard Bull said that of Jonathan later on also. (he took a few more years) : ) I also think an unsaid thing by MG etc is that MSA was given an Emmy nod for her best performance on LHOP and Mike was so proud of her. MG was "star" and didn't get one. In that world, good chance that bothered her but not in her head. MSA said in her book, Alison was very shy when she came on the set and in time she warmed up and started being like she was now. She always knew she had a lot of talent etc. I think Melissa Sue did well after LHOP, has a beautiful family in Canada and even "jabs" at her not making an event (which is optional) didn't say she wasn't in state or that she had 3 kids etc. I'm not a "fan" but just don't like when people bully and if someone wont give it back, rises above it, they do it more. I didn't respect Alison for that even if she had no real dirt on her, but it sells books. I think demeaning someone is wrong though when they didn't do anything but not want to hang out with you or do things you were doing on the set.

Re the restaurant sign, I think it was fitting to put Hester Sue on window but I think even for Mike, pushing that an AA woman could have that much influence in that time, wasn't something he felt comfortable doing. She did run the place though. Although fans joke of her breaking into song all the time, she loved how Mike gave her avenue to sing since she had a beautiful voice and at the time, she had a steady job when they weren't always plentiful.

Edited by debraran
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Melissa Sue Anderson comes off as a quiet person who just didn't gibe with goofy kids, which is what Alison and Melissa Gilbert were. She came in, did her job, kept to herself, and went back home. That's the vibe I get from reading her book. It might not make her the warmest or nicest person in Earth, but I could respect that her work life and her personal life were kept pretty separate. I did think she did a fabulous job as the villain in the tv movie Midnight Offerings and it's kind of a shame her career petered out after about 1987. (She settled down and had a family.)

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On 1/22/2023 at 1:37 PM, debraran said:

Willie would have been even harder to see but Albert wasn't a country bumpkin, he lived in orphanages and on the street for a while.

That reminded me of the episode where Nancy runs away when Nellie visits and suddenly a girl who lived most of her life as an orphan didn't have a lick of street smarts. Michael really just wrote whatever the hell he wanted to write.

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2 hours ago, jird said:

Caught the end of Meet Me at thr Fair, and I forgot how much I love Mary's SUPER-DRAMATIC delivery of the line, "All you care about is your balloon!" 😄

Oh whatever PrissPot, you were happily lapping up all of Cass’ flattery. 

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