“The Wedding” recap!

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you're listening right now to the Little House fiftieth
Anniversary Podcast, we know something about you. We know that
you're obsessed with Little House of the Prairie.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
For more than half a century, Little House on the Prairie,
the series, and the books have been bright lights for
people all over the world who seek out goodness, decency,
and human connection.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
Here on the Little House fiftieth Anniversary Podcast, we celebrate
everything that made Little House so special.

Speaker 2 (00:28):
The stories, the characters, the actors, and the messages that
have made Little House iconic family television and a.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
Perfect counterpoint to a world that feels like it's going
off the rails every day.

Speaker 3 (00:39):
Where is Michael Landon when we meet him most I'm
your host, Pamela Bob And.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
I'm your Prairie bitch Alice.

Speaker 4 (00:47):
At Aringrem and I'm Dean Butler, our hashtag imaginary boyfriend.
Join us for our loving, quirky, and often irreverent conversations
about the finest family drama in the history of television
and the imperfect people who.

Speaker 2 (01:02):
Made it that way, presented by our devoted patrons and
visit Seami Valley dot com.

Speaker 3 (01:09):
Hello, everybody, I was busily typing a note and then
we went live. Hello, how are you? I'm Pamela Bob
your host creator and start living on a prairie. I'm
super fan. I am here with our prairie bitch in France.

Speaker 1 (01:26):
That's right, Alisham.

Speaker 3 (01:29):
And also our wonderful hashtag imaginary boyfriend beauty but Tuty
Dean Butler.

Speaker 5 (01:35):
Hi, good, yeah, so good today.

Speaker 3 (01:43):
It's because I called you Cuty but Tuty, isn't it.
I know he doesn't want to be Allison. You're still
in France, girl.

Speaker 1 (01:54):
I'm in Perry, I am in Perie. I will be
all over France by the end of this. I'll gone
to the north, the south. I've been way out, way
out east, which is fun and uh and that's why,
because you know, when I do these shows, we get
the French, but we get anybody who's like in the region.
So if I if I start heading up north, people
start coming in from Belgium and I go to east.

(02:14):
Were all these people from Germany at my show? I
don't know, Wow, Germans who lives near the border. They
speak French English and whatever spoke English. I don't know
what are they getting that they have any I do
with the hell I'm talking about I don't know, but
the Germans showed up, and the French showed up, and
then you start getting the Swiss, and you get down
to and you certain people to start coming in from
all the border countries.

Speaker 3 (02:34):
You're so into Continental. Have you ever seen that Key
and Peel sketch that they do. It's you know, they
were on Comedy Central, K and Pil and they do
a sketch where he's at it. He's at it, you know,
just a regular like holiday and or whatever, and they're like,
you can you know, you help yourself to the Continental
breakfast and he's like Continental and he.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
Goes through all of Christopher walked down.

Speaker 5 (03:01):
Yeah, that's what.

Speaker 3 (03:05):
That was funny too. Anyway, indeed, wish thing. Sorry I
cut you off, No, no.

Speaker 5 (03:09):
I was to say so. While while Allison is doing
her bilingual Trilingual Jane Fonda Jane Fonda workout through France.
So then another group of us are here in southern
California prepping for the big event in seam Valley on
December twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth, Our Little House in the

(03:31):
Prairie cast Reunion at Stratharn Park in Seami Valley. Check
out tickets at Little House on the prairiecast Reunions dot com.
So be shooting more social media packages, signing contracts, doing
all the things that we have to do to put
this in the works. I think this is going to
be a lovely Christmas event.

Speaker 3 (03:52):
And so we have Thanksgiving event in New York, Christmas
event in California, and then do you guys get to
rest in January? I don't know.

Speaker 5 (04:02):
I would maybe for yeah, what do you no? Actually, well,
I have a crazy January ahead of me. But it's
not it's not.

Speaker 1 (04:14):
Kind of open. But around my birthday I talked to
this restaurant that I love more than anything else, and
what gives them the plug we love Jimney john Superbank
fire this place. Oh that's right, I said, what if
we went there on my birthday? We had books shining,
book shining, It's Lake Dean.

Speaker 5 (04:29):
I'm up for that. We did talk about that's calendar.
I remember part of my crazy January.

Speaker 3 (04:35):
I remember last year Allison was like, after this fiftieth year,
finally in January I get to relax. It will all
be over. And little did we all know that it
was just the beginning. Yes, I know it has.

Speaker 6 (04:48):
Continued crazy crazy, So now so we do. So you're caboarding.

Speaker 5 (04:54):
I'm here prepping for Seeming Valley on November sixteenth, before
we go to New York for our live podcast, Alison,
you and I are meeting in Lincoln, Rhode Island for
the Chocolate Expo, which my mouth is watering for as
we think about.

Speaker 1 (05:11):
That, I'm straight in from San Francisco. Show in San Francisco,
get me some dim sum downtown, and then jump on
the plane and come over and have chocolate all day
with you.

Speaker 5 (05:23):
Would you know you have a favorite?

Speaker 6 (05:24):
You have a favorite din sum place in San Francisco?

Speaker 5 (05:27):
I do.

Speaker 1 (05:28):
I do not remember the name of it. I stumbled
upon it the last time I was there. I went, Yes,
the scallion pancakes.

Speaker 5 (05:37):
Oh good, Oh, scallion pancakes.

Speaker 1 (05:41):
Have you never had a stallion pancakes?

Speaker 6 (05:45):
I've never. I've never had a scallion pant I just think.

Speaker 3 (05:49):
A crunchy thing scounts their divine scallon pancakes.

Speaker 1 (05:53):
Amazing.

Speaker 6 (05:54):
What do you put on it? Do you put syrup
on it?

Speaker 5 (05:57):
No?

Speaker 3 (05:57):
No, no, no they have You can dip it in
a flood sauce.

Speaker 5 (06:03):
I think pancakes. That's how pedestrian.

Speaker 6 (06:06):
I am.

Speaker 5 (06:06):
I think of pancake, and I'm thinking of sugar maple syrupy.

Speaker 1 (06:12):
Little things. And there's shrimp and chicken thingies and you can.

Speaker 3 (06:16):
Yes, sometimes there's there's be them. You can make them.
They're really okay, very good, Dean.

Speaker 5 (06:23):
I know I need to get it, and I grew
up in the Bay Area, but I don't know some pancakes.
So yeah, yeah, yeah, so well this is that'll be fun.
But today we have something I think a really special
episode today.

Speaker 6 (06:41):
That we're going to talk about.

Speaker 5 (06:42):
One that's I think awesome for Melissa Sue Anderson Boomer
and let's let's let's let's get to this.

Speaker 3 (06:51):
Okay, everybody from Prairie Partners and UB and go and
visits valley. This is the Little House fiftieth anniversary podcast,
which would be weird if it wasn't since we're talking
about a little house in the Prairie episode. Yeah, just
say okay, I'm just gonna say it. Today's episode. You'll

(07:24):
never hear the word sand storm the same ever again.
After this one. Deem hit it. What are we talking about?

Speaker 5 (07:30):
Okay? Yeah, I no, okay, so today, yeah, now clearly
this is and we will talk. For those of you
who don't know the Anbler's connection to this episode, it's
really epic.

Speaker 6 (07:43):
So we're gonna we'll talk about that.

Speaker 5 (07:45):
But today we look back on one of Little House's
most loved episodes. It's season five, episode nine, the Wedding.

Speaker 3 (07:55):
And we are jumping ahead because we haven't covered any
Adam episodes yet or even Mary going blind we haven't
covered yet. But yeah, I don't care. We're going to sandstorm,
all right, go deep?

Speaker 6 (08:05):
Yeah, yeah, gor to stand it.

Speaker 5 (08:07):
So The Wedding premiered on November sixth, nineteen seventy eight.
This was a big Sweeps week episode for the Little House,
written by Arthur Heinemann, directed by Michael Landon. Michael always
did the sweeps episodes. I mean, these were the ones.
These were the episodes. So you have premieres in September,

(08:29):
November sweeps, February sweeps, May sweeps. These are the episodes
that are all about generating big numbers so the network
can control its advertising rates. The outcomes of these episodes
were critically important in the television business at that time,
and this one scored a.

Speaker 3 (08:50):
Huge Can I ask a question before we get to
the synopsis, when you knew it was a giant sweeps
episode and you get the script and you're like, oh, wow,
this is about my character. Did that feel like pressure
or was that exciting and awesome? Like?

Speaker 5 (09:05):
Was it?

Speaker 3 (09:06):
Okay?

Speaker 1 (09:07):
I was always excited, but well, like the back to
school thing and the Percival thing the Twins, I knew
that was like a big was like, oh, well, down
the hill on the wheelchair, I'm like, oh, it must
be some kind of sweep something or yes it was
like yeah, no, it was.

Speaker 3 (09:20):
It was Days of Thundered, Days of Torment whatever that
episode is called, Days of.

Speaker 1 (09:27):
That Sweet I will never dream.

Speaker 5 (09:33):
Okay, all right, so Allison, what is the wedding?

Speaker 6 (09:40):
As the title suggest, what is it about?

Speaker 1 (09:43):
Is there a wedding? Wedding? Well, Mary ingles happily except
Adam Candall's long away to marriage bruise. Oh worst proposal
the history of television, by the way. But we'll get
to that cold when she begins to get the implications
of two blind parents a family in the wedding Mary
Engles and Adam Kentle there's a love tested not by.

Speaker 5 (10:06):
So this is the more this is the more edgy
version of the description of.

Speaker 1 (10:10):
The show, trusted not by spectacle but by doubt and circumstance.
But Adam proposes, Mary hesitates, uncertain the two blind people
can build a life together. Her doubts run deep, and
Melissa su Anderson plays these moments with striking restraint and honesty.

Speaker 3 (10:25):
She's so good.

Speaker 1 (10:27):
There's no melodrama, only the quiet fear of a young
woman who wants to be brave but isn't sure she
can be. But when Susan Goodspeed goes missing during a fear.

Speaker 3 (10:37):
Oh, we'll talk about Susan. Don't get me wrong. We're
gonna talk about Susan.

Speaker 1 (10:42):
Marry rating prairie together, calling to the storm, trusting instinct
in one another. In that shared struggle side by side,
vulnerable but determined, Mary realizes what truly matters, not what
they can't do, but what they can do together. Correct Wait,
punchy version.

Speaker 5 (11:00):
No, let's not go another we I think we've.

Speaker 1 (11:03):
Covered playing find the kid. Grit, Yes, grit, there's lots
of grit. Oh wow, yes, there's a lot of grit
sands things here. But yes, okay, it's this thing is epic.
Now it opens with Adam. We're literally we're hursing and
It's cute because he walks into the room and just

(11:24):
starts going, I have to talk to you about right now.
This is orry, Sarah said, pit down. Then you realize
there's ha ha ha, there's no one in the room.
He's doing me. I love to tell you this important thing.
It's time if we made young bag away. Oh halls
And there are several moments where he can't quite get
it together. He goes in, he tries to propose and
flips out completely and like leaves like.

Speaker 3 (11:46):
Posts and go to the post.

Speaker 1 (11:47):
Cos I don't remember Adam being like this much of
a dork. I just I'm sweet.

Speaker 3 (11:53):
It's so sweet, so cute.

Speaker 1 (11:56):
But he was like I thought he was kind of
the cool.

Speaker 3 (11:58):
But that's why this scene is fun because Okay, just
like super snarky. He's super confident. He's always that way.
But I love when we see him not so sure
of himself like this. It's very tart.

Speaker 1 (12:14):
Hark. He cannot do it. He rehearses the whole thing.
He sounds totally dopey. You can see that. Mary like nos,
she's kind of like uh huh, yeah, like what is
wrong with you that she thinks he's being an idiot.

Speaker 3 (12:25):
It is technically the.

Speaker 1 (12:26):
Worst proposal because then it's like, huh, well, you should
stay in my room. She's like, thank you're freaking pardon
what are you talking about? Well, the guys let me.
He's just like, oh god, really and yes, and she
said you should have had you should you should have
come with me to the post office. And he makes
this noise that this is the moment got me because when,

(12:47):
of course she says yes, and he goes, heyah, do
you guys watch Futurama, the cartoon Futurama. I don't into
the alien Kiff. He turns into Kiff, the shy alien
in the middle of this. And when she finally says

(13:10):
she's gonna marry him and I.

Speaker 6 (13:11):
Got He's sounds like buttad to what you just did there.

Speaker 1 (13:21):
So yeah, yeah, it's amazing. Adam Kendall, mister hot cool guy,
completely loses his mind and managed to blurt out of proposal,
and amazingly she says, yes, thank god, Wait, we'll.

Speaker 6 (13:32):
Be very it's a very sweet.

Speaker 3 (13:34):
Oh it's so endearing, it's so lovely. And this is
the moment Mary says yes. They have a big hug,
and this is the moment when we first see the nails,
the French Yes nails.

Speaker 1 (13:49):
Yes, and a lot of repeatedly through this episode.

Speaker 3 (13:53):
Is again and again, And that's to hold the French tips.
They're shiny, shiny new. They are shiny new acrylics. And
she has to hold her hands like this the whole
episode because she can't move them any other way.

Speaker 1 (14:09):
So and she's hugging him, chatting when she's hugging the
little girl in your face. Now, okay, I'm gonna go there.
You brought it up. And you know I love doing
my nails. Look, this is all sorts of acrylic in
jail and chemicals and stuff on here. These things I
could bunch a hole in a wall with them. Probably
they're totally fake. And I love doing my nails. I

(14:30):
do do that even during the show. I know, I
did not have any sort of crylics during the show.
I would often on the weekend paint my nails many
interesting colors. It's quite a punk up black half the time,
you know. And then but Sunday night with the name
Publish Remover and I don't know, because Melissa Gilbert had
the acrylics, Melissa Sue had the acrylics, they all had
the French tips. It was so in ear ladies, and

(14:54):
they all did and I did not. There were many
actions show and I just, I don't know, call me cuckoo.
I said, I'm on a TV show and I have
a full seven year contract for a TV show where
apparently I live in the eighteen hundreds, don't have nails.

Speaker 3 (15:10):
It all supports my theory that Missus Wilming has an
illegal manny petty production in the basement at her house.
She obviously travels to Winoka because Mary's nails are on point,
very freshly and.

Speaker 1 (15:25):
They're really nice ones. Just if it was any any later, God,
I don't know, the nineteen thirties, maybe we'd.

Speaker 3 (15:32):
Gotten away that Michael Landon was like, yeah, I'm cool
with it. It is weird to me.

Speaker 6 (15:38):
I'm very surprised that he was cool.

Speaker 5 (15:40):
What was the age? Remind me, Alison, what's the age
difference between the two Melissa's.

Speaker 1 (15:46):
Uh, two years? I'm I'm saying it is, well, no,
about a year and a half it's me, then nine
months later is Melissa Sue Anderson, and then like a
year later it's Melissa Melissa Gillbrn I are two years
apart Melissa too, and when you're Clo a year ago.

Speaker 6 (16:02):
Yeah, yeah, I mean I think you know Melissa Sue Anderson.

Speaker 5 (16:09):
I mean, look, you could if you'd done this, you
could have carried this off with Melissa Sue Anderson. You
feel like there is a young woman there.

Speaker 3 (16:17):
Oh, there's a maturity level that's off the chart.

Speaker 5 (16:20):
Absolutely, yeah, yeahsolutely yeah.

Speaker 1 (16:23):
And that's the thing is there again there's an age.
It's again with our lovely husband. So we all had
on the show, none of whom were teenagers. When all
of us girls were teenagers, they woudn't hire twenty something
year old men because that's what they did. And yes,
he's lynn Wood's Like I remember, I think I scribbled
it down somewhere I looked, as I didn't about twenty two,
twenty three, I think.

Speaker 6 (16:45):
Same age will be started.

Speaker 1 (16:47):
Yeah, so he's about twenty three in this and it's
nineteen seventy eight, late seventy eight, So I'm sixteen and
she would have turned sixteen before, but she would have
been fifteen when we're filming it. Wow, she was an
old fifteen.

Speaker 6 (17:05):
She was a different fifteen than Melissa was fifteen.

Speaker 1 (17:08):
She se different fifteen than I was.

Speaker 6 (17:10):
Yes, Melissa, that was fifteen.

Speaker 5 (17:12):
Melissa was a young fifteen, but literally she had just
turned fifteen. Melissa and I are born twelve days apart,
in different years, but she's May eighth, I May twentieth.
So when she had literally just turned fifteen three weeks
before we started.

Speaker 1 (17:32):
Shooting that, well, I was fifty crazy. I was like
I was fourteen, and Melissa Sue was fifteen, was I
don't know, twenty seven, and Melissa Gilbert at fifteen was
eleven and a half. It's that's who we were. That's
and that's when you go to a junior high or
like a high school. Look at the people, like in
the first year, it's crazy. You see people who are

(17:54):
like ninth grade and they're just like, well, yeah, the
same grade, and it's like some people twelve and some
people look twenty and this is like what just happened.
And that's what it was with us three girls.

Speaker 6 (18:06):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (18:06):
I always assumed she was at least sixteen while filming this.
To know that she was fifteen is insane.

Speaker 1 (18:12):
In September, so she would yeah, really she.

Speaker 5 (18:17):
She she had I mean, she had a figure, she
had a presence about her. There was something, and yet
it's so interesting. I mean, you see Melissa Sue today,
she she's so beautifully preserved, She's taken wonderful care of herself.

(18:37):
You don't see this massive change.

Speaker 1 (18:40):
I mean really sporty. She's very sporty, tennis running, running
in tennis.

Speaker 3 (18:45):
Tennis, She's there's an elegance about her.

Speaker 5 (18:47):
She's very there is I completely an understated quality that's
really lovely. So all right, so this episode, I also
want to say about it as we start this, because
I noticed some watching this. I don't know how the
two of you picked up on this. There is not
a huge amount of content in the show. This show

(19:09):
is very very lean in terms of what is said, Michael,
This episode is very cinematic in the way that it is.
Although it was a box show, I mean it was
in it was on the lot, it was at Big Sky,
it was so you're not hugely opened up, but lots
of long slow shots in this that move us through

(19:33):
time without a lot of content being advanced. This is
very clear.

Speaker 1 (19:42):
There's not even like really a B story.

Speaker 6 (19:45):
Well yeah, because they.

Speaker 5 (19:48):
Yes, that's sort of a B story, and then you
could say the other B story could have been leaving
Laura and Albert with Carrie.

Speaker 6 (19:55):
I mean there was a seed of a B story
that was never.

Speaker 1 (19:58):
To going back in the A story. There's not really
a full that's one of those episodes. It's just it's this,
it's this.

Speaker 6 (20:06):
Right right, all right? I have very very spare in
the way it's written very.

Speaker 1 (20:14):
And then now, of course everyone gets excited because she's
getting married, so it's got something they because now how
do they tell now we had the things, we didn't
have the phone yet. Remember we did the phone episode,
but we didn't do the phone, So it's telegram, right,
and everyon's hysterica going, well, they sent a telegram? Uh
to tell them? And later Ma even tells Laura when

(20:34):
they're living it's okay, you can send a telegram if
there's an emergency.

Speaker 5 (20:39):
Is it just that?

Speaker 1 (20:40):
So when did they just suddenly start going telegram? And
I don't know that I heard mentioned that they had.
I guess they had a telegram machine in the post
office app that would be a thing then totally even
before you goes but man, they're just like, well, we
got a telegram and then we send a telegram and
you could say it like they're using it every five minutes,
and they've never mentioned it like that day and suddenly

(21:01):
everybody sending a damn telegram.

Speaker 6 (21:03):
It was there, was there telegram was there.

Speaker 1 (21:11):
In the apparently at some point. I think we did
see that at some point, not in this episode. Some
d D and that that makes sense. You would have
that even before you had a phone, but you'd still
have wires. I don't know. She leaves the kids alone,
and yes, it's the prairie and Laura's taking care of

(21:31):
the kids many time. But when she says you can
send it, so if there's an emergency, you should leave
the house with the kids in it and whatever bad
thing is happening and walk the like two miles to
down to the post office with whatever money that you
don't have and send a telegram. What No, that that
that telegraphs are doesn't completely make all. If she said
you could go to so and so neighbor and have

(21:53):
them ride anything. The telegram thing is odd. It's like
an ad for the telegram company or something. It's like.

Speaker 6 (22:01):
And they're not just leaving for a weekend.

Speaker 5 (22:03):
They're leaving for a week from Thursday, which means that
they're leaving Tuesday or Wednesday, Ye to go. I mean,
this is not an insignificant amount of time that you
are leaving Laura and Albert to care for Carrie and
Grace completely apart. I mean, this is one of those

(22:24):
things you just have to sort of suspend disbelief that
this is probably not something that.

Speaker 6 (22:29):
You would do.

Speaker 1 (22:32):
Now. Now there are farm kids and you kind of
go nowadays, you go, they get no phone and they're
in the middle of freaking nowhere. But then they're like, well,
we're always in the middle of nowhere, and she's been
taking care of the short of a fire. They should
be fine.

Speaker 3 (22:43):
But ten days, yeah, it's a long time.

Speaker 6 (22:46):
Ten days.

Speaker 1 (22:48):
That's a long time to be And if you read
the books now, I don't think they totally did that.
It's like, yeah, just one of those yeah they do.
They all go in the town to the train. Wait,
isn't the train like in Mankato wanted how did they
get the train? The train is not new?

Speaker 5 (23:06):
How they get how did they get back to mister
did nels?

Speaker 1 (23:12):
Nells gave them a ride? Mister Olson is miraculously in
this and gave them all a ride in some huge wagon.

Speaker 3 (23:19):
Mister Olson. That lovely scene where he tells pop, come
back here, come back here, and he gives that's right,
that little singing bird music box to give Mary, and
it's so obvious he likes her so much more than
his own daughter, and it's that's the dearest. So I
buy that Nells took them to the to the track

(23:40):
that makes sense, beautiful.

Speaker 1 (23:43):
They get to ride to number three train in So.

Speaker 5 (23:47):
We're in Jamestown seeing James.

Speaker 1 (23:50):
Having just been there and going, oh my god, this
is just now the prison. Missus Olsen wants to give
them a clock and okay, lots of marks. I'm sure
about what the blind people going to do with the clock.
It's very pretty thick. Neils quite sensibly says, here with
the music box, Bertie think that they can hear it's adorable.

(24:13):
Little Birdie goes to it, just lovely, but he does,
oh she's been my pet. And it's like, wait, I
thought you liked Laura. Wait when did I guess? I know,
I know, I know, I know.

Speaker 3 (24:23):
It's very random. Who's saying that girl has been my
you know, she's been my pet for years?

Speaker 1 (24:27):
Random random, random cookie things happening. Trying, they're so trying
to get to this We've got to get to this
wedding and make this wedding story work. We're just going
to insert a lot of random crazy stuff here. That's
people are gonna go, wait, but how is the thing
with that?

Speaker 5 (24:41):
What?

Speaker 1 (24:42):
Never mind, We're going to the wedding.

Speaker 3 (24:43):
Yep, We're going to the wedding. Indeed, I also want
to say I love that Karen, the way that Karen
kisses her children goodbye, because she really I mean, this
is not any wonder whatsoever I'm saying, but she kisses
them all on the lips, which is exactly what I'm
other would do, like exactly even Mary later on when

(25:04):
she sees her and Mary's, you know, a grown asked
woman about to get married. She even kisses Mary on
the lips. And it's I love seeing that because it's
exactly what a mother does exactly. And I love that
Karen felt, and I love that they all obviously felt
comfortable enough together that this is it was to me,
it just read so authentic.

Speaker 1 (25:25):
I really think it's not always just pat on the head.
If they're really emotional and saying goodbye to their kids,
they will hug them and give them a real kiss.
That's right, that's really interesting.

Speaker 5 (25:37):
I don't think and I'm just thinking about this as
you said that, Pamela, I don't think my mother has
ever kissed you on the lips?

Speaker 1 (25:47):
Interesting would watch me, aren't you are?

Speaker 5 (25:51):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (25:54):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's it. That's it. She just
handed you a martini. That's that's.

Speaker 5 (26:01):
The truth to that too.

Speaker 3 (26:04):
That's that's how the loss are. If you're not though,
if you're if you're, then you're kissing your kids on
the lips. I'm sorry, it's just it's just what we do.

Speaker 5 (26:17):
Kiss definitely lots of lots of wonderful hugs, lots of kids.
I mean, there was no lack of affection. But never
my mother never kissed me on the lips. My grandmother
never kissed me. I mean, you know, I don't. My
father never kissed me in his life on the cheek anyway.

(26:39):
But now towards the end of his life, we were hugging.
Because I come to Los Angeles and bit around actors
who were hugging each other and realized, oh you can
do you know, Okay, that sort of makes and there's nothing,
there's nothing on that. It's just it's like an endearment,
an affection whatever, and I brought that home with me

(27:03):
and that that dynamic changed with my father. There was
there could be genuine affection express that way, but otherwise
it was handshakes, and that's what it.

Speaker 1 (27:16):
Was, your ancestry thing. There are certain absolutely sort of
washed people. Good gift, they would never dream of that,
and then people who were Italian or friends just everybody's
slobbern all over each other.

Speaker 5 (27:28):
Yeah. Well, and at the end of that scene with
the music box, you see Charles give Nells a wonderful
hug at the end of that scene.

Speaker 3 (27:36):
Because very affectionate for other men on this show consistently,
it's a beautiful thing to see, actually gorgeous.

Speaker 1 (27:44):
The Reverend get she gets so excited.

Speaker 5 (27:48):
She got shet, yeah, she's still.

Speaker 1 (27:51):
Just jazz that her kids getting married. And then he says, yeah, wait,
I just happen to have a business trip conveniently plot
hole again, just magic have a business trip over there,
and I can totally make and she goes berserk and
kissing the throat and even he says, I usually that's
not normal.

Speaker 5 (28:07):
Yeah. Well, and you know, and Karen give Karen credit,
she knew how DABS was written to respond to this.
She really turned it up. Yes to that was a
very over and she was just sort of like beside
herself yes, with joy there and gave gave Dabs that

(28:28):
moment that he could respond to.

Speaker 6 (28:30):
That was a very that was very thoughtful.

Speaker 1 (28:34):
The way she did that, I have to say, I
mean feel the episode.

Speaker 3 (28:38):
It is and everyone and it is so good. I mean,
obviously missus Sue Anderson like give her all the words.

Speaker 1 (28:43):
She's incredible.

Speaker 3 (28:44):
But Karen Karen delivered a beautiful, subtle performance in this
as well, where she wasn't ever a helicopter mom.

Speaker 5 (28:54):
It was.

Speaker 3 (28:57):
Just the way she did it was so thoughtful, so
so so thoughtful. Okay, now what happens? Oh, I have
a question. I have a question, and I know many
fans have this question. Okay, so mom, pop, they arrive
in Renoka. Yay, everyone's getting married. Yay. Here's the question.

(29:18):
We're talking about hair, Melissa Sue Anderson's hair, which we
have noticed many, many, many journeys. We've been on a
hair journey with Mary and we will until the rest, right,
But why doesn't Mary wear her hair in a bun?

Speaker 5 (29:36):
That's interesting?

Speaker 1 (29:37):
Why is she not married yet? She still young?

Speaker 3 (29:41):
She never wears her hair, and even after she gets married,
she never wears her hair in a bunue. This is
a fan question for the ages. We were like, I
don't understand how she's the only one that doesn't wear.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
Her hair's Also, I mean, okay, Laura kept the braide.
Why past the age that she really would have kept
the braids alive? Would anything a ponytail down or something?
And then exactly Mary never has braids in the books.
In the books married right, but in the real that
hair is down, and that hair stays down. Doesn't even
go up up on your right when all the married

(30:12):
women get it up in the buck. She's teaching school.
You think it'd be up in a butt. You're right,
She's a teacher's supposed to go up.

Speaker 5 (30:17):
In a butt.

Speaker 1 (30:18):
Nope, doesn't get done. And then Carrie, Carrie's hair is down.
Does Carrie get braids later? Carrie later she gets the
ladder years yes, like beyond when yeah, you're a character
and this is your hair, this is your hair. I
don't get rid of the ringlets till season nine when
I come home to visit and I have that giant, exploding,

(30:39):
weird pop porn thing in my hand. But I have ringlets.
I'm I'm like almost twenty years old and a married
woman with children, and I still have ringlets. What the
hell is that? No nobody's wearing that hair to ringlets.
Even they did the cute thing Wig.

Speaker 3 (30:56):
Was iconic, like I get as being in the show,
like we can't change that look that is so specifically Nelly.
But Mary didn't have an iconic hair look.

Speaker 1 (31:07):
Apparently she did know that beautiful long blonde hair people
talk about all the time. Character.

Speaker 3 (31:13):
Here's my other question, then, was there not a flat
iron or a blow dryer to get rid of the
frizz on the side of her hair? I don't understand.
Were they just air drying people's hair and it's been like,
here's a burrette, put it up? What?

Speaker 1 (31:29):
Why?

Speaker 5 (31:30):
Why?

Speaker 1 (31:31):
Why?

Speaker 3 (31:32):
These are the things that I think about, and I
know the fans thing I know, but I know this
is the thing that fans have talked about. Also, the many,
many hair journeys of Melissa to Anderson.

Speaker 1 (31:46):
Now I okay, now I have a question because again,
like sir, the episodes, we're going to take a plot
thing and go whatever. So they come into town and
they mentioned they do mention that that is the hotel
they used to work out. It's a mess. It was
that better when we worked terribly dusty.

Speaker 5 (32:04):
There's dust everywhere.

Speaker 1 (32:07):
Bring this place up. Okay, A they just left that
hotel because I went. And that was October ninth that
episodes five and six aired where they were working in
the hotel and left, and we are now on episode
nine in November. It's three freaking weeks ago that they

(32:27):
were in that hotel that we saw them. So I secondly,
didn't we burn it to the ground or did that
fire get put out? Because I remember the fireworks fire
were yes, and that the reason we left the hotel
and went back to Walnut Grove everyone because the Olsen's
moved there, the Garvey's moved there. They found Albert.

Speaker 3 (32:47):
There and they renovated.

Speaker 1 (32:50):
They renovated back to Walnut Grove because there was a
huge explosion of fireworks. I remember me and Catherine and
John having to run down the stairs. But Ah fired
and so there was a big fire and that's when
everyone left. So that was it was a month ago.

Speaker 3 (33:06):
Is the hotel now well consistent?

Speaker 5 (33:11):
These are just details, details, details, details, Let's get on
the people, right.

Speaker 1 (33:18):
Yeah, that's that place they just left. Okay, I don't,
I don't, I don't and this and.

Speaker 5 (33:22):
Of course this plays right the way people watch the
program today. You're watching it, you know, none of that matter, no, no,
in the but it is interesting. Give it the actual chronology.

Speaker 1 (33:36):
Books that they trust. Freaking left now being also surprised.
But I bought this. I bought this. At first, I
was like, what are they talking about? When they sit
down with Adam and Marian start talking about kids? Yes,
and this is what sets wrong. This is what sets wrong.
This is Charles and Caroline start talking about when you're kids. Oh, yes,
and you know, and Adam goes, oh, which kid was

(33:57):
the most trouble and they go, oh her?

Speaker 3 (33:58):
And I'm like, wait, I know, I know, really over Laura?

Speaker 1 (34:08):
Yes, mother, No, Laura, Laura was.

Speaker 6 (34:14):
Carrie obliviously falling into the pond. Yes, you can see that.

Speaker 3 (34:17):
Yes, And because.

Speaker 5 (34:21):
Litery is the troublemaker, yeah, Mary who is the little
parent every minute? That's an interesting That was jarring.

Speaker 1 (34:29):
But then they talk though, and then they sort of like,
oh Mary's true characters revealed that when she was a toddler,
because obviously they have not stories from oh age age
all because by seven or eight, she's sewing and telling
Laura stop doing that, she'll get in trouble. So clearly
it's not then that when she was a tiny baby
toddler she said, oh yes, Lama was pregnant with Laura,

(34:51):
that she was a toddler and she would take off
snow highway whatever, and she just a mile down the.

Speaker 3 (34:58):
Road she ran off. She was a snow drip.

Speaker 1 (35:00):
That when she was a baby, she was apparently a runner,
a runner, and we didn't know this actually.

Speaker 5 (35:09):
What she was.

Speaker 3 (35:10):
That's exactly it. That is I also elson have that notes,
so like since as.

Speaker 1 (35:18):
A toddler, and then maybe that's why she became such
a little proper I'll sit here and do my natal
point child because they were like year old, right, what
marries the trouble spot so that, but then they start
talking about, oh it was so cute because she'd run
away all the time. We couldn't find her for hours,
and she flips out. She does the slow burn of,

(35:42):
oh my god, this is a disaster. They're talking about
normal things that happened. I'm do, I'm doing, you see
the slow burn of She's gonna have complete notes break down,
like what are they saying, and then just in case
we missed it, he walks down the terrifying.

Speaker 5 (35:59):
Yes, reinforcing with this ominous music that David Rose puts
in her head, that this anxiety that's building in her. Yeah,
I mean they definitely again nothing left to chance. We
are going to understand this, what the anxiety, what her problem,

(36:20):
her challenge is here. And but to give Melissa suit credit,
she played it so simplic. She didn't do much. This
is didn't do much.

Speaker 3 (36:31):
This is when I was like, okay, give her all
the awards, which was the following scene where Ma's in
her room and she reveals that she's giving her her
her wedding dress. Yes, and you just see Melissa just
sort of turn aside and break silently break down, and
it is such I mean, just as an actor watching it,

(36:51):
it's just like, oh my god, that's so perfect.

Speaker 1 (36:53):
It's just perfect. It's perfection, and it's so such a
cry we're used to seeing Mary go it just like
because she that girl can turn on and water works.
You could do the thing where she suddenly, oh she's great,
and she doesn't do enough.

Speaker 3 (37:08):
She's like a low burn or just.

Speaker 1 (37:11):
A little water And of course I do love the
whole blind thing, like she she has to just put
her hand on the lace of the collar, go oh,
it's your rinning dressed.

Speaker 3 (37:20):
I know.

Speaker 1 (37:21):
But she is good at that, She's they've established that
that's real, that she was actually that good at that.

Speaker 6 (37:25):
So yeah, no, just so she does this breakdown.

Speaker 5 (37:29):
She can't explain it yet, right, and Ma says, talk to.

Speaker 6 (37:33):
Him, talk to Adam about this. You can't, you know
you can. I don't want to hurt him.

Speaker 5 (37:39):
You can't hurt someone that you did She say, you
can't hurt someone that you love, or you can't hurt
someone who loves you or what?

Speaker 1 (37:49):
How can you hurt him by telling about talking how
you feel you're getting married? This is the whole point
you're supposed to be. And and then Adams again and
little explained.

Speaker 3 (38:00):
Jokes, well, oh that's right, yes, not only that, but
but Mary, what in terms of like talk it out
with Mary translates to Mary just going no, we're not
marrying you, Like there is no conversation.

Speaker 7 (38:16):
What's it's a declaration. She has to just not to
see I'm the guy for you. I'm like, oh my god, Well.

Speaker 5 (38:30):
And you know that's very much Lynwood's kind of humor.
Interestingly enough, I mean, Linwood has that kind of humor.
I was always blown away by Lynwood's ease with his
own comedy. Not necessarily always the way I mean the
character was really straight and maybe something like that, there's

(38:53):
that little moment there, but Linwood as a human being
has a wicked sense of humor.

Speaker 1 (39:00):
It's really weird to see Adam Kenderley so serious and
so this and the Lindoo Boomers were the absolute craziest,
funniest off the wall people you could ever hang out with.
It was just.

Speaker 3 (39:12):
In this scene. All the props to him too, because
the way he handled this scene also is absolutely stunningly beautiful.

Speaker 5 (39:20):
His total door oh my Gosham door moment.

Speaker 1 (39:26):
We just freaks out and he said, well, how how
can this be? Because he got it and said, well
this is it, and he will you keep saying his
whole life, I wasn't going to be able to Now
I've got it. I'm going to marry the beautiful girl
and happily ever after. And now she's saying no, and
he is like literally climbing the walls, just going how
can you wait? No? How can this be happening. How
can what are you doing? What are you doing? No?

Speaker 5 (39:45):
No, no, no, And and we end the second act
with a knock on the door. Paw opens the door
and boy talk about a moment you guys coming together
where Lin would just claim this is I mean, these
these are the these are the moments that made Little

(40:05):
House so powerful for people. Is just this raw, unabashed
emotion and this like looking for comfort and there and
then the look cut to maw the hug end of
back two.

Speaker 3 (40:21):
Dean, have you seen this episode before?

Speaker 5 (40:24):
Yes, I mean I seen pieces of it before, feeling
heels such a good one.

Speaker 1 (40:29):
Okay, so really good.

Speaker 5 (40:31):
So that's hard.

Speaker 1 (40:31):
This is bit she's afraid to have a baby, she's blind.
Let us also not forget she's fifteen. She might possibly
be a little concerned about getting married and giving birth
in the next five minutes. Since she's fifteen and twenty
three arl men, Well.

Speaker 5 (40:48):
Well now you're talking about Melissa Sue Anderson, the young woman,
not necessarily the character.

Speaker 1 (40:54):
How old is Mary? Because Mary is supposed to be
fairly young.

Speaker 3 (40:58):
I thought Mary was six, team.

Speaker 1 (41:01):
Okay, we'll give her a year. Because they they they
were all often vague about ages like they all to
read the books. Nobody says how old anybody is in
the books.

Speaker 3 (41:09):
Like Paul.

Speaker 6 (41:11):
Paul was so emphatic with Laura, you won't get married
until you're eighteen.

Speaker 3 (41:15):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, Mary. It's like, yeah, we like this
guy and she's blind, and what other you're gonna have?
Let her get married.

Speaker 1 (41:24):
Yeah, it was the eighteen hundreds. Somebody was blind. You
were like, oh God, somebody's going to marry them. And
supports the rest are like great, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 5 (41:32):
Yeah, no, I think there's I think there's something to that.
But it's it's very interesting how she has other obstacles.
She didn't need Pa objecting. She's got another line of
emotional distress here that so she doesn't need anything else.

Speaker 6 (41:46):
Let's take a quick break and come back.

Speaker 1 (41:48):
Will be right back when you visit see me Valley, California,
You're stepping into the pages of history. Go from the
pioneers to the President's Explore beautiful ones, old flowers, Hike
through iconic Hollywood locations and injured day aboard the actual
Air Force one at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.

(42:11):
Throughout the summer. Take the Little House fiftieth Anniversary Tour
at Big Sky Movie Ranch less than fifteen minutes from
Los Angeles and thirty minutes from Universal Studios. Semi Valley
has small town charm with big jime history. Go to
visit Seivalley dot com for more information. We are so

(42:31):
grateful to visit seemi Valley dot com for their commitment
to presenting the Little House fiftieth Anniversary podcast.

Speaker 3 (42:40):
Okay, are we back?

Speaker 5 (42:42):
Okay?

Speaker 6 (42:42):
I love the way this starts.

Speaker 8 (42:47):
So we've seen Michael slaughter the fiddle, yes, and we
get to see it again with.

Speaker 1 (42:58):
The harmonica, harmonica, even a harmonica in his hands. I
ran it back and reran it because even harmonica there,
it's like there is no but we've had bad fake fiddling.
Now really bad fake harmonica playing. Oh my god, it's

(43:19):
so bad fake harmonica playing. It's almost worse than the fiddle.

Speaker 5 (43:22):
Quick.

Speaker 1 (43:23):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (43:23):
But you know, and I thought, I don't get it, well,
get it nothing. He can't be good at everything, Michael.

Speaker 5 (43:33):
I think I think there needed to be I don't
know if there was a track on this mean that
that's something that gave him some indication of what the
energy was feeling. Is my feeling is you know, there
are limits to the level that he had time to
go to to deal with everything he was doing, to worry,

(43:56):
or to invest the energy in learning to do the
fiddle perhaps more accurately or in this case harmonica, which
I'm not aware of that I'd never seen him do
that before, and you have, Alison. I just think this
is like he's thinking, this is a gimme. I'm just
going for this, and the audience is just going to

(44:17):
accept it. And that's all.

Speaker 6 (44:20):
Yeah, I mean something something.

Speaker 3 (44:22):
But this, Yeah, I also wrote my notes, well thank
god they're blind, because the looks on their faces while
pauzling the harmonica is terrifying.

Speaker 5 (44:36):
But now this is one of those This is one
of those cinematic moments.

Speaker 6 (44:43):
Okay, we get we're living on.

Speaker 5 (44:44):
Bad harmonica fake for a little while, but what we
are seeing is during this happy jaunty thing done for
the children because because Adam has made that clearly doesn't
want to disappoint the children at this time. So so
we see their joy, their happiness with the sound of
the music, and their misery and Adam and Mary and

(45:07):
Caroline looking miss rough rough appearances.

Speaker 1 (45:12):
They're just sitting there going, oh crap, we're not getting married.

Speaker 5 (45:17):
Well, this is just heartbreaking for everybody, you know. This
is just like you can see these two people, Ma,
Caroline looking at this Pap obviously too busy faking the
harmonic to worry about the emotion that may be happening
at that moment. But but Ma devastated, Mary and Adam devastated,

(45:38):
played against the joy of the children. It's very cinematic.

Speaker 3 (45:42):
It is, Michael, No, it's a great device. But my god,
did they look.

Speaker 5 (45:47):
Yeah, no, exactly and then and then so Caroline can't
take it. She gets up, she walks up the hill
to a tree. Another drop back long shot of paw
walking up the hill to my Again, this is screen
time being consumed hugely in these moments. And then you
have this moment between them, something like we we can't

(46:12):
help them, maybe God can help And here.

Speaker 3 (46:16):
Come the cattle And then how did they do this? Guys?
How did they do that? How did they get how
did they I mean, how did is it easy to
get a herd of cattle to run? Like if you
of course, if you're chasing them doing.

Speaker 1 (46:33):
That, it's the hard part is trying to get your
cows to stay in the field. You open a gate
and go, well.

Speaker 5 (46:41):
Cattle don't. Cattle don't just naturally run around. But when
you've got twenty, you can. You can move these cattle
got it.

Speaker 1 (46:53):
Willy nilly. But if you need them to run a
direct yeah you got them. They go, yeah, yeah, go,
and thews like, oh or is it food time? Are
we going to the water? Something's happening, and they just
they take off.

Speaker 6 (47:05):
So they're running from the sand. They're running from the sandstorm.

Speaker 5 (47:11):
And see, now I had not remembered this moment, so
I'm thinking, what the jeopardy here is? These cattle are
going to stampede these children. That's what I started thinking
was going to happen. I'm watching this, But no, it's
the sandstorm coming and we've got to get to town.

Speaker 6 (47:32):
And here's God. As this is written, here's God.

Speaker 5 (47:38):
He's doing the moment and we cut to blinding sandstorm. Pamela,
this is a moment for you. Let's talk about the sands.

Speaker 3 (47:50):
Okay, So obviously this episode made a very grand impression
on me. I'm growing up.

Speaker 1 (47:59):
Because it's supposed to be August, and yes, sandstorms in
the spring, and they're not. They're in flat er in areas,
and it's not places where there's no country. No, no,
that's what he physically impossible. God did it because you
would actually details details.

Speaker 5 (48:13):
Yeah, it's God has a plan.

Speaker 1 (48:15):
Yes, God decided because in this particular location in Minnesota
at that time, absolutely no, totally physically never ever, let's talk.

Speaker 3 (48:25):
I tell the story, the inspiration. Yes, so this is
a true story. This was probably about twenty years ago
or so. I was with my sister in a small
group of friends at a friend's house and we were
playing dictionary, and my sister and I are on the
same team, and I picked the card and my word

(48:47):
is sandstorm. So I proceed to draw my trying in
my drawing to describe the word sand storm. I draw
a very detailed image of a woman in a big

(49:08):
skirt and a bonnet with swirling lines around and her
arm like this covering her face bonnet, and everyone's going
like dress fire the bonnet, you know, And I'm getting
progressively more and more angry that they cannot very obviously

(49:31):
see that this is sandstorm, because the only thing my
brain went to was not describing sand or storm, but
literally reenacting the merry moment of getting through the sandstorm.
And also my sister was my partner, who's also a
bonnet head, and I was for certain sure that she

(49:52):
would absolutely know what I was drawing was sandstorm. So
the buzzer goes.

Speaker 6 (49:58):
Off, so with living on a prairie, didn't.

Speaker 3 (50:04):
You, So that the buzzer goes off, and I'm pissed,
like I'm legitimately angry, and the buzzer goes off, and
I like slam down the marker and I'm like sandstorm,
and they all look at me like I am insane.

(50:25):
And finally, I don't remember whether it was my sister
or another friend just went, why didn't you just draw
sand and storm?

Speaker 5 (50:31):
And again, how would you draw storm? How would you
draw stor like cloud.

Speaker 3 (50:35):
Clouds, upper lightning, sand maybe lightning, duh, Like like a
normal person would do. My brain only went to a
little house in the prairie, only went to this scene,
and like was certain, one hundred percent certain that everyone
would know what I'm talking about. Anyway, fast forward a
few years, I get I get a dream. I have

(50:59):
a dream sort of in a lucid, dreamy space, and
this story comes up, the sandstorm story, and I literally
felt like an electric bolt go through my body and
I sat up in bed and I went, this is
a series. This is a serious This is a series
about a woman obsessed the little house in the prairie
who doesn't know what to function in real life, Like

(51:19):
her whole life is filtered by this, and she's an
idiot and doesn't know how to cope. And this is
the first episode. And sure enough, y'all, this is the
first episode. This reenactment. It's a little grander in the series.
There's it's a much bigger party. Well but I literally
reenact this scene. It's it's bigger and funnier. But it

(51:42):
is based on a very, very true story. This is
episode one of living on a.

Speaker 1 (51:46):
Literally happened because of this episode to enter the point
that you woke up of the night and went such it.

Speaker 2 (51:51):
That's it.

Speaker 5 (51:52):
That's the thing.

Speaker 6 (51:52):
I want to understand something.

Speaker 5 (51:57):
So the the look seeing yourself in this way, Yes,
I mean, you don't see yourself as a net and
it's stupid. So so this became because you're so so
not that you are so capable, thank you, you're incredibly capable.

(52:19):
But so you saw this as a device, yes.

Speaker 3 (52:22):
But I also but I also absolutely connect with the
idea of feeling like an outsider, like someone that doesn't
really fit in. I mean pretty much my whole childhood
was that of like, I don't fit in with these
with everyone else, like I like that all feel that
yeah yeah, yeah.

Speaker 1 (52:41):
Yeah, an extreme of you because like an extreme theories.
She can't she doesn't even have a boyfriend, she can't
even handle like a date. No, and you have a
husband and two children.

Speaker 5 (52:54):
Yes, I'm okay, Yeah, I mean you're you're a You're
a guy.

Speaker 6 (52:57):
You're a guide magnet. You're a guy magnet.

Speaker 3 (53:01):
Well I wouldn't say no, you are, okay, Dean Butler,
I'll take it.

Speaker 6 (53:06):
Yeah, I know you are a magnet for me.

Speaker 5 (53:09):
I mean, men love you.

Speaker 3 (53:12):
Sure, great sandstorm anyway. So that but but the all
I've living on a prairie is slightly based on real
truth that I have experienced in my life, Like when
someone compares the show to the Waltons, or when someone
says that Little House is just a family, fluffy friendly show,
and you know, no, it's not. We're living through a

(53:34):
blind school and a fire and a sandstorm and Sylvia
and all of this other stuff, and so you know,
it's it's all slightly based, just just a little enhancement,
but Sandstorm true story and enactment of Susan. Yeah, because because.

Speaker 5 (53:52):
Are you talking about this scream the screaming.

Speaker 3 (53:55):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, but we'll we'll get to that when we.

Speaker 5 (53:57):
Get to so and here's a another section of the show. Again,
very cinematic, very huge amounts of screen time being consumed.
And what was the laundry?

Speaker 6 (54:09):
Yes, what.

Speaker 1 (54:11):
Use?

Speaker 5 (54:11):
I don't know what they I'm thinking is it would
be fullers earth would it be?

Speaker 1 (54:16):
Would be too fine and you'd like, boy, get that
up your nose in your eyes and be dead. I
mean it may it was something grittier that would actually
be sort of testing, but say it, Oh my god,
it's a lot.

Speaker 5 (54:32):
Yeah, that was that would be that would have been
tough to work in that because now and because I
don't think that we were at the point then where today,
if you're doing that in post, you are overlaying a
you know, a a an effect that would make that
would fighten that moment. You would have the wind blowing

(54:52):
perhaps in the scene, but you would add all that
particulate matter later.

Speaker 3 (54:59):
Uh.

Speaker 6 (55:00):
This was this was this was real. Yeah, I mean,
there was in the air was in the air, and
but that's.

Speaker 3 (55:06):
Also why it was so authentic. Listen. I feel this
way about like the original Star Wars movies too. You know,
we didn't have this high tech stuff, but it I
think the original Star Wars works better than the remakes
of it that they did, you know, the later ones
that they did, where they had the computer animation and
they had There's something about that weird seventies earthy organic

(55:28):
special effects thing that works. It really works. I mean
the Superman Chris Reeves Superman, same deal, like they made
magic with zero effects.

Speaker 6 (55:39):
No exactly, you know, exactly.

Speaker 5 (55:41):
Well, this going back to a show we did about
Second Spring and Richard boll And talking about the serialized
nature of this, I think that Star Wars lost its mojo,
you know, big time because they lost that joyous child like.

Speaker 3 (56:00):
Yeah playing figuring it out made.

Speaker 6 (56:03):
Star Wars so magical.

Speaker 1 (56:05):
She started taking it deadly seriously, and then the movies
became deadly serious. And I'm going disposed at that.

Speaker 5 (56:14):
Deadly is what they became.

Speaker 3 (56:16):
Yeah, yeah, I mean, and yet it's.

Speaker 5 (56:17):
Just this massive franchise. If it works, I think they've
rescued it somewhat in years but there was a period
of time where it became obsessed with the technology and
the and the the sort of the heart of it
completely went away.

Speaker 6 (56:33):
Yeah, I mean it really is.

Speaker 3 (56:36):
We're here, let's talk about the sandstorm.

Speaker 5 (56:39):
Sandstorm, Sandstorm and Susan good speed.

Speaker 1 (56:45):
Because they get running back and they get a bunch
of people back in the building. They get a bunch
of people in the back of the building and windows
are breaking, and it's terrible. That guy's got the kids.
That guy who was in like Susan, who was in
seven episodes of the show, David Host, the old guy
who's scooped the kids and gets me in the show.

Speaker 3 (57:03):
Yeah, he was. He was like a high school staple.

Speaker 1 (57:06):
He's in the town. It was a towns person. He
was just there all the time. So he's rescuing them
kids and the windows are breaking and then he counts them.
He calls out their holeman. Notice he doesn't say Billy
Shusy Jimmy. He goes Billy Smith.

Speaker 5 (57:20):
Marvin Marvin Coyle, Marvin Coyle, Marvin Coyle who Marvin Coyle
was our head of post production. We supervised all the
editorial on Little on Bonanza, on Little House on Highway
to Heaven anything Michael did.

Speaker 6 (57:40):
Marvin Coyle was the supervising editor.

Speaker 1 (57:44):
So is it like all crew names?

Speaker 3 (57:45):
Is it gonna be?

Speaker 5 (57:47):
I just recognized immediately.

Speaker 6 (57:49):
I have no idea if there were other names.

Speaker 5 (57:51):
But Marvin's like, oh my god, I mean this is
his moment.

Speaker 1 (57:56):
Yeah, good speed actually is. But then find he says
some good speed and she's not there.

Speaker 6 (58:04):
So where did she go?

Speaker 3 (58:06):
Where did she go? Well, Adam and Mary decide they
are going to Actually Ma first goes out to start
looking and she gets to the head.

Speaker 1 (58:16):
Hurt and dies. It's like, what you're doing? Staff, So
she's aimed.

Speaker 3 (58:20):
She has to go back in anything I'll go and
Mary's like, no, I'm going.

Speaker 6 (58:25):
To my responsibility to right right?

Speaker 1 (58:28):
Then pause them at one point let's.

Speaker 6 (58:32):
Well that's that's that's but pause and the livery.

Speaker 5 (58:36):
At this point, Ma's taken inside and this is this
is the moment, this is the turning point moment here
and what.

Speaker 1 (58:44):
Are these people?

Speaker 6 (58:45):
God has stepped in and interceded in this moment?

Speaker 1 (58:48):
Why did they use their bonnets? So stuff's in their face?
They've gone put the fine faces over your nose, right,
because because you could totally with the bonnet, cover your
nose and when you went on the door, but we
want to see if we're going up, So.

Speaker 3 (59:05):
Then they're going by the sound of Susan screaming, I'm here,
I'm here now listen, here's my here's what chap's my ass.
She's in several episodes, you know, she pops up every

(59:27):
now and then. It's like the favorite child of the
blind great name. So everything that we love about the
children actors on Little House on the Prairie is that
they're not cloying, they're not sugary. They're not like Icky
over saccherin over sweet kids until good Speed, Susan good Speed.

(59:55):
I can't stand Susan good Speed is like everything all
of those kids were not on this show.

Speaker 1 (01:00:02):
Right, Like she wrote Wenna be Oh my god, they.

Speaker 9 (01:00:07):
Wrote her so overly sweet and this is not just
and this episode is actually the least of it. There
are other episodes that she's in that you just want
to throw your shoe at the TV because.

Speaker 3 (01:00:18):
She's so she's so over the top, ridiculous, goodie too shoey. Now, sorry,
don't come at me, bonnet heads, don't But I know
you agree. I know they agree with me. I am
not alone in this anyway. We'll get back to the show.
So now, Susan, I'm here, Susan, I'm here, Susan. And

(01:00:43):
guess where she is. She's under She's under the Albert stairs.
That's where they Albert.

Speaker 1 (01:00:48):
That's where Albert was.

Speaker 3 (01:00:50):
So they rescue Susan, who's having a total panic attack.
Clearly that's totally understandable. And then the nails more nails.

Speaker 5 (01:01:01):
Before okay, before that, before they hear Susan Goodspeed's voice
before they're setting out there, says I think Mary says
something like we'll never find them, and Adam that moment happens.
Adam says, no, no, we will find them. When I
set my mind to something, I do it. And she

(01:01:21):
responds yes, that's the difference between us, and she responds
I'm that way too, Yes, keep it here we are.

Speaker 1 (01:01:30):
Yeah. He repeatedly, like Fears the mind killer, he keeps
repeatedly saying, no, you can't be afraid of stuff. I've
been afraid my whole life. I do it anyway. This
is how I've survived this long being blonde. I go,
I can't do it, Yes, I can't, And I make
myself do it. That's what you gotta do. That's how
we survive when we're blind. That this is what we're doing.
And she starts going, Okay, she finally gets it, and

(01:01:53):
he's been saying, yes, we're afraid, duh, we're blind, and
but this is what and she liked and goes dar
and dives into that same story and he gets it
and he's right, he's right. You can't let fear rule you.

Speaker 5 (01:02:06):
What can you right, No, exactly, And this does speak
to the fact that if in that whatever those moments
are going to be in her life, she's I don't know,
if you know how you prought The audience is processing
this immediately, that that she has the stuff and she's
showing in a crisis, even though she doesn't think it,

(01:02:29):
that she has everything she needs to manage this.

Speaker 3 (01:02:33):
Listen, if she can get those acrylic friend tips, she
can have a baby. We can do this thing. Because
she's heading Susan because she can't move her hands in
any other way because the nails are too long, so
it's flat, flat fingers, flat hands.

Speaker 1 (01:02:52):
She's like, yes, I put one, Yes we can because
we did it together. And then they kiss and then
they completely freaking make out. They told you they do
in the basement and the girl there's a child three
feet away from them, and it was blind and they
just start making.

Speaker 5 (01:03:10):
Out and then like mo and pop, he crawls underneath
and he says, I assume everything's okay now something like that.

Speaker 6 (01:03:23):
He essentially says that.

Speaker 1 (01:03:26):
All over each other and.

Speaker 3 (01:03:28):
Then there and they laugh like ha ha, he caught us. Yes,
we're good, and then they go back at it.

Speaker 1 (01:03:36):
They make out. It's like it's like the nails and
the lady like they go, they go, and they totally
smooth each other's faces off in a sandstorm and the
base very sandy, sand smooth.

Speaker 5 (01:03:50):
And before that moment, of course, what after rescuing Susan
and hugging her and assuring her that everything's okay, Mary says,
will you be the flower girl in my wedding?

Speaker 6 (01:04:02):
At my wedding too? So it's all fixed.

Speaker 5 (01:04:07):
And that leads to the that leads to the embrace,
the liplock, the palm, and everything's okay and we're we're
off and running.

Speaker 3 (01:04:16):
Now.

Speaker 1 (01:04:17):
Now the family was winning this reverend business because they've
gone reverend the reverend.

Speaker 5 (01:04:22):
And by the way, and that's the end of Back
that's the end of Back three, right now.

Speaker 1 (01:04:27):
This dude. Okay, so we had David Hooks, who was
on seven of the show Forever, the Reverend guy. He's
that blue Fant who established the National Theater the Deaf.
He was hearing that he had deaf parents, and he
later came back with like sign language coordinator for one
of the episodes about a deaf kid. And he was
sign language coordinator on Clan of the Cave Bear.

Speaker 5 (01:04:50):
Wow.

Speaker 1 (01:04:51):
And he is a huge person in Death Circle step Wow.

Speaker 3 (01:04:57):
I love those he was yeah.

Speaker 5 (01:05:01):
Really terrific.

Speaker 1 (01:05:02):
He was in a whole bunch of So he's later
in another episode and yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, he's like awesome, dude,
seriously awesome dude.

Speaker 3 (01:05:09):
Okay, so that's.

Speaker 1 (01:05:11):
That is that's that's a great weapon.

Speaker 3 (01:05:15):
Right, So isn't there because obviously there was this horrific
storm and ps like they're not going to postpone the
wedding maybe a day. Nah, let's just clean wave it
up and get do it.

Speaker 1 (01:05:25):
Reverend lou Fant is nailing it. He's fine, he's great.

Speaker 3 (01:05:28):
We accept him as the Reverend even though it's great.

Speaker 1 (01:05:31):
He's doing a great job.

Speaker 6 (01:05:33):
And then and then the Reverend Alden just picks up
a moment they've seen each other. They there's a hand.

Speaker 5 (01:05:41):
Off, yes, during the joyous in the eyes, joyous in
the smiles of Adam and Mary.

Speaker 1 (01:05:48):
And yeah, they're doing a they're doing Book of Common Prayer.
Actually I'll have to look up what page, but they're
but he's doing the do you take it? And this
and like he walks and in for Richard or for
Bo like just like jumps in the whole thing, and can.

Speaker 3 (01:06:03):
I just lea for this scene? And you know you'd
be seeing paw sweeping up and law is in a
suit with these very seventies, nineteen seventies collar open, like
he's giving us sneak, Like, oh my god, it's so
he so clearly knew exactly what he was doing, exactly
what he was doing. It made me giggle so hard.

(01:06:25):
I was like, Okay, he stepped into the nineteen seventies
for this scene.

Speaker 6 (01:06:30):
That's interesting.

Speaker 1 (01:06:32):
They also went seventies. Like I said, there's all these
little like high nineteen seventies, very modern moments. There are
other traditions where they do this, but in the eighteen hundreds,
if they were doing the dad walking, the girl down
the aisle who gives her way to her mother and
I do is super modern. I know I did read

(01:06:52):
that some in some Jewish traditions they do both parents
and judy to them.

Speaker 3 (01:06:56):
That is what they do, both the mother and the father.
WoT the bride down the island?

Speaker 1 (01:07:00):
They both So hello, Michael Landon, there you go. But
the church Congregationalist church or whatever they were supposed to
be the agendas, I'm not really yeah, but I mean
it's super modern where her mother and I don't.

Speaker 3 (01:07:14):
Okay, can't leave out Carolyn for sure, And I.

Speaker 5 (01:07:19):
Think interesting again, Michael making a choice because of what
this episode is about. This is maybe and Allison, you
may have an opinion about this. It's certainly the longest
wedding ceremony in terms of what is said that I'd
ever seen on Little House. I mean, they really did

(01:07:39):
the ceremony. It's and he's allowing it to sink in.
What's being promised here? What are we committing to each other?
So it's reinforcing that they are going to be this
wonderful team together and they are committing to that together.
So so it's really the dialogue is wonderful. Now the

(01:08:01):
thing I noticed at the very end is that the nails.
Wells okay, okay, okay, we'll talk about the Yeah. So
Adam is given the opportunity to make a promise.

Speaker 6 (01:08:20):
Mary is an asked and and now, and at the
end of that he says, now that you.

Speaker 5 (01:08:26):
Have promised to do this.

Speaker 6 (01:08:27):
I never heard Mary promise to do it, just.

Speaker 5 (01:08:30):
As she had to say no, she said, I do.
But there was another part of us where was I
thought put finger. So I the wed in the name
of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So
it was the ring portion Mary. Now usually he she
would put a ring on him too.

Speaker 1 (01:08:50):
That okay, then all right, way later or as both
spoon over once footage, Well, they don't brand the rancher.

Speaker 3 (01:09:00):
That's it, right, the men did, the man didn't, did
the woman did? Everybody gets I need to talk about
the ring moment because is it? Just Please tell me
you notice this too, he's putting, so do the close
up of the hands once again, nails take a center
stage right like you cannot avoid it. The nails are

(01:09:23):
right there close up, as they are many times in
this episode. He puts the ring on her and her
hand is limp right, he's putting the ring on and
she doesn't. She can help it. Open your fingers so
he can get the ring on. It's like putting it
on a dead fish. Why why were her fingers?

Speaker 2 (01:09:46):
I don't.

Speaker 3 (01:09:47):
I cannot, I cannot be the only person who has
noticed this. It is the most awkward thing ever.

Speaker 5 (01:09:56):
You need tell me, Come on, No, I just didn't.
I mean it was it was odd, but I wasn't
thinking about, you know, putting in awkward.

Speaker 3 (01:10:06):
It looks like he can't break on her, like put
straight in your fingers. It looks super awkward, and then
the nails makes it worse.

Speaker 1 (01:10:16):
It's just so weird nice that I think they had
to go for three days about the one because if
you remember Laura and Almams obviously is like, oh quick,
get over to the Reverend Brown, let's do this.

Speaker 3 (01:10:27):
And we didn't even see any of their here, any
of their.

Speaker 1 (01:10:30):
Books. Yes, it was very very private about so it's interesting.
She wrote, you know, endless pages nine books about every
detail of her life. But there was stuff She's like,
it's not that kind of a book. And she doesn't
describe her wedding when she and all moms who get
married the book it leads all up. Oh, the proposal
scene is beautiful. They have the courting, they get all

(01:10:52):
the way to Reverend Brown. Her friend is there, so
and stays, they're the witness, and she says, and then
we were married. And then they go to their parents
in the hemmet and that is it. And they don't
describe anything. When you sit, they tell you up front,
she's not gonna say obey, no kissing, no ring, no nothing,
go to the parents because she said that is a
private moment. We don't put that out there. And so

(01:11:15):
what the actual seconds of the putting on the ring?
And I do I do that Laura? And Amanzel said,
we have no idea because she didn't tell anybody, and
so that was a thing. So they're kind of stuck there.
They know when they go to that wedding they either
have to like not show it or show it very
very simply to keep with the plot with Laura angles
in the books. Because of the books, he doesn't do

(01:11:35):
with this long drun. And then who else is getting
married Carrie? What so if we're gonna have a big
blowout wedding with the vows and everything, you can kiss
the bride and think it's gonna be Mary and Anam.
They're gonna have to carry the banner for this because
Laura isn't having that kind of wedding.

Speaker 5 (01:11:55):
And yet, and yet, the Laura nol Manziel kissed was
highly core poreographed. I mean that if you look at.

Speaker 6 (01:12:02):
That kiss that was I mean, I can tell you
that kiss.

Speaker 5 (01:12:06):
Was completely choreographed so that it was posed so that
it would have a certain look to it. And the
Mary and Adam kiss was a very natural, very nice kiss.
But you're not getting this whole the body language of
the kiss and all of that.

Speaker 6 (01:12:23):
It was a very it was a very.

Speaker 5 (01:12:24):
Simple thing, but so sincere. And it's the declarations here.
I mean, I think that he felt like what was
established in the anxiety and the fear he needed to
push that they were very consciously stepping into this moment
together and making their promises to each other. Other than

(01:12:47):
Mary saying I'm.

Speaker 1 (01:12:50):
You will never know what church Reverdald is. That was
a running thing in the show, and I think that
was very intentional. Michael's person in every nomination of every
possible church everywhere on the planet could go, it's my church,
like you were a Methodist you went, this is so Methodist.
My dad was, you know, raised Scandinavians on the Prairie, went,

(01:13:12):
it seems very Lutheran, which would make sense that we
know the Angles were Congregationalists. But then they did not say,
never do they say, the Reverend Aldan is here from
the Methodist Church, the Presbyterian Church. We know he's not
a priest, he's not Catholic. Although that service got very Catholic,
very Episcopalian in some of the stuff they said. I said,

(01:13:34):
that was very book Father's Son in the Holy Ghost
and the book a cover of like, oh, that's not
very Lutheran, okay, but they that one got like almost
Episcopalian catholic ish, but not like completely. And then the
reverend ad that they never say there's things they do
in the church services that are very Lutherans, that are
very Methodist, they're a Presbyterian. It's like k all over
the place, things that just are pulled out of the air.

(01:13:55):
The hymns are like, well, yeah, that would be okay,
I guess we're doing that. Where these hips, these hips
are they Baptists will know, but people watching what well
I think they're Baptist. Well, I think their Methodist. It
was like the elephant. The elephant is very much everybody
in their own head their church, and I think was

(01:14:15):
done very intentionally that they made it really blurry as
to which service anybody was doing, no question.

Speaker 6 (01:14:21):
I think that was very important. Go ahead.

Speaker 3 (01:14:23):
I also loved how they did a few close ups
on Ma and Pa individually during that ceremony, which is
just so god just so touching and wonderful. Really, No,
they were really want they were.

Speaker 5 (01:14:40):
I think they were really nice in this episode, the
perfume moment where they you know, the perfume moment where
they where she sort of lets him off the hook
for having screwed up, the dust moment in that where
she throws the dust rag Adam and they have a lot.
They could be so so good together.

Speaker 3 (01:15:03):
When they were Michael, you mean Michael and Karen.

Speaker 5 (01:15:06):
Yeah, and Karen could be so so wonderful together, and
when you know, you know how challenging that relationship was.
I just think they deserve, over and over again, just
huge kudos for as good as they could be working together.

Speaker 3 (01:15:22):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (01:15:22):
Yeah, yeah, so you have I love I love you.

Speaker 6 (01:15:27):
Kiss done, It's done.

Speaker 3 (01:15:29):
Freeze frame kiss. Yeah, what a what a epic, epic epic. Yeah,
we don't we don't mind the perky credits for that.
That's still a little little jolly, but still it's okay,
really good epic epic sandstorm episode defining episode, I think

(01:15:55):
and may be excited Mary going blind episodes and the
introduction of Adam and all that suff for us to
do in the future.

Speaker 6 (01:16:06):
Interesting, just the business side of this.

Speaker 5 (01:16:08):
Just for a second, So Little House in that season,
in season five was the number fourteen rated series nationally.
That episode was number one for the week that was.
That was a big time score. And I think Mary
Mary's episodes delivered huge I'll be waving You to Drive

(01:16:32):
Away is the number one episode far and away in
the in the life of the series. It was a
huge number one in the week that had happened. Yes, Mary,
Mary's contribution, Melissa's contribution to the dramatic life of this
series from that perspective, was just huge.

Speaker 3 (01:16:54):
She's amazing. She was amazing.

Speaker 5 (01:16:57):
Yeah, really truly just wonderful. And I and as we've
gone on and we've you know, we've watched more and
more of this, you can really deeply appreciate how wonderful
Melissa Sue was in the show, and in many way
it took a back seat, you know, it was in
a back seat, but quietly so delivered the goods and

(01:17:23):
and you never felt like she wasn't looking for the
recognition she was.

Speaker 6 (01:17:29):
It wasn't any of it. She just delivered the goods. Yeah,
and was was really really wonderful. I think that's it.
Go ahead.

Speaker 1 (01:17:37):
Sorry, I was just saying. The fans loved it too,
because Okay, if they read the books, they know she's
gonna go blind. She's gonna go blind. So they did
the epic going Blind, and they totally sold that that.
They blew out all the stops of that one. And
then when they said, okay, we're not just going to
send you off to the College for the Blind and
have her visibly, but she's going to still be this
huge character and she's gonna give her a gorgeous boyfriend,
she's gonna get married, people went nuts because then like

(01:18:00):
this was their fantasy that well, we like the character,
had something else happened, we could keep seeing her, and
they did. They made stuff up so people.

Speaker 3 (01:18:11):
And I'll say, if if viewers, if listeners want to
know more, I think we talk about this. We talk
about a lot of stuff. But Melissa Anderson was on
our podcast. We did two episodes with their two parter
with her, so go back and revisit those episodes because
she talks a lot about all of this.

Speaker 6 (01:18:28):
Yeah, she's exceptional. She really truly is just a late she's.

Speaker 5 (01:18:33):
Gracious, she's understated, there's such dignity in.

Speaker 6 (01:18:37):
The way she handles herself.

Speaker 5 (01:18:39):
I'm just very, very impressed with Melissa. So she's just awesome. Yep.

Speaker 6 (01:18:45):
Yeah, that that's our show.

Speaker 3 (01:18:49):
That's our show, Sandstorm Baby, that's turning point in my life.
So if you guys want to catch that episode, visit
Little Uh Living on a Prairie tv dot com or YouTube.
You can watch all those episodes. That's right, I'm plugging
myself anyway. Anyway, you guys, that is our show. What

(01:19:12):
a good one. My goodness, loved it, love love I've
watched this episode a million times and of course you
ask oh God, never sick of it. Anyway, all of
our stuff is gonna be in our show notes if
you want to know about all of our events. We're
gonna be in New York City doing our live podcast
event at green Room forty two on November twenty second.
That's a Sunday. You can also live stream it if

(01:19:35):
he can't be there in person, so check all that
out in the show notes. In the meantime, come visit
us at Little House fifty podcast dot com or socials
Little House fifty Podcast. That was a mouthful and sandstorm. Everybody.
Let's hit it, Bob, get the wig. Let's fly with
a lot of time, with a lot of time, a
lot of us in their under the mail. She's gonna

(01:19:58):
have to get a new manicure after this, too dirty

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