In 1974, just after the demise of the long-running Western "Bonanza", the National Broadcasting Company laid plans for a two-hour television film with the same family-oriented quality as its predecessor. Michael Landon, who had helped propel "Bonanza" to success, was commissioned by the network to produce a film based on a best-selling series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. That film was "Little House On The Prairie". The movie told of a post-Civil War young pioneer family struggling to make ends meet on a small house on the prairie hills of Kansas, with disasterous consequences. The film ends sadly with the group leaving their treasured home (having been driven out by Government order) for another life. The film left audiences wondering what would happen to this family called the Ingalls? The question was answered in a subsequent television series that ran for eight years. The series version of "Little House" had the Ingalls finally establishing life in a small town called Walnut Grove, Minnesota. There, they would meet their "harvest of friends" from a good-natured minister to a loner-turned-family man, from a pesky housewife to a hard-working lumber man. At the helm of its run was the heart and soul of the show, Michael Landon, who served as executive producer for the entire run of the series. He also frequently wrote and directed. His good friend and co-star, Victor French, also had a hand in directing. When the original series ended its run in 1982, Michael Landon left Walnut Grove. But viewers wanted the exploits of Walnut Grove to continue, so "Little House" was brought back briefly for the 1982-83 fall season, re-tooled and re-built around co-star Melissa Gilbert, and re-titled "Little House: A New Beginning". Replacing the Ingalls were a country-life family called the Carters, but most of the major characters from the previous series remained. Unfortunately, the show's ratings were dismal, and not even occasional guest appearances by Michael Landon and Allison Arngrim ("Nellie") would save the show. When "...A New Beginning" was canceled, the storyline was left without some type of closure. So NBC decided to produce three tele-films to wrap up "Little House" forever. The first, broadcast in 1983, called "Look Back To Yesterday", more or less wrapped up the storyline of Albert Ingalls. The following year, in the spring of 1984, NBC aired "The Last Farewell", which purported to have brought the entire series to a conclusion with the destruction of Walnut Grove. Although it was the last "Little House" story to be filmed, it was not the last to be broadcast, for NBC had one final "Little House" telefilm that had not previously aired...it was a Christmas story called "Bless All The Dear Children", about the kidnapping of Laura's baby girl Rose. This aired in December of 1984. Since the last "Little House" telefilm, several members of the cast (including Michael Landon) have passed on. But a piece of the man who brought "Little House" and several other shows (including "Father Murphy" and "Highway To Heaven") is kept alive by Melissa Gilbert (his "Little House" co-star) through her son, Michael Garrett Boxletiner. Meanwhile, the rights to "Little House" are now held by Paramount Pictures, which recently acquired WorldVision/Spelling Entertainment, the former owners of "Little House". The show itself continues to be seen every day in many countries around the world (including TBS Superstation) and in many different languages. As for the future of "Little
House", a big-screen theatrical motion picture is in development at Universal
Pictures, assuring fans of the continuation of the legacy that the late
Laura
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