Melissa Gilbert's (Halfpint) interview in the last DVD set

:woohooo: Okay, I finally have the entire LHOTP DVD collection. :idance:
Last night I watched the interviews with the two Melissas. I thought it's be fun to talk about it. This thread will be for Melissa Gilbert and I'll make another one for Melissa Sue Anderson.


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Oh I just loved Halpint's interview I got teary eyed at the end of her interview.

It's great to hear actors talk about what happened on the set, behind the scenes, etc...
I wish I could have known Michael Landon, he seemed like such a funny guy.

Melissa is good for saying this... I thought it was funny.. she said that Michael used to tease her because of her buck teeth. He said that she could eat an apple through a fence...
Only Michael could say things like that... *shakes head*

Melissa also talked about the scene in Sweet Sixteen when Almanzo notices her (Laura) for the first time. Melissa said that she hadn't even dated yet and here was this man looking at her in this new way. Melissa said she got nervous or scared because a guy had never looked at her that way before. So to get through the scene she kept reminding herself that she was playing Laura... that Almanzo was looking at LAURA that way :shifty:

There are many more things to say... but want everyone who has seen the interview to also comment. What did u guys think?

I absolutely loved this interview. Melissa was very warm and charming--as always. It is abundantly obvious that she has fond memories of the show and Michael.

I remember her talking about the scene outside the school house in Curry when Almanzo notices her for the first time and how much it wigged her out. I like hearing the story of Laura and Almanzo from her perspective, because in old articles in TV and magazines, we got a chance to find out how Dean felt about it--how he saw Melissa as untouchable because of her age and how challenging he found it. But by the start of Season 8 Melissa was dating and Dean felt it would be different.

Like you, I feel there are so many things to say, but I will leave it with this last note for now. We have often talked on this board how the producers and writers tried to recapture Laura and Nellie's rivalry with Jenny and Nancy, but Melissa says this was not true.

I look forward to hearing everyone else's comments on this interview.

Cheryl

bethandmanly wrote:

We have often talked on this board how the producers and writers tried to recapture Laura and Nellie's rivalry with Jenny and Nancy, but Melissa says this was not true.

That's right. As Laura grew, the show changed. She married and lived in a new home. The Ingalls left... so the Carters were there as friends for Laura and Almanzo. Laura had a friend in Sarah and Almanzo in John.

I guess as much as we liked the Ingalls living in that Little House, we have to accept that things change... We had already seen many storylines involving the ingalls... so maybe it was time for a new family to be there.

On the other hand, I wished we could have seen stories of the Ingalls in the new town where they went to. I watched the beginning of The Last Farewell last night and I noticed how nice the house was that Charles & Caroline lived at. I mean, it even looked a little better than the Oleson's house.
I wish I could have seen Caroline's expression and the kids reactions to living in that house... as opposed to living in the Little House... it sure was a BIG change! lol

:cabn:

Which DVDs was this interview on? (Melissa Gilbert's)
I agree- it's a lot of fun finding out stuff that happened behind the scenes! I've only watched Dean Butler's interviews and he seemed to have such fond memories of the show. They all seemed so down-to-earth and appreciated their fans, and the time they had on the show. To me, that is what makes the success of the show!! My admiration for Melissa Gilbert has grown, since rewatching LHotP lately. I can see her grow as an actress and as a person. Yay Melissa!!!

Elaine11 wrote:

Which DVDs was this interview on? (Melissa Gilbert's)

This is on the last DVD set which has that 3 movies (Last Farewell, Look Back to Yesterday & Bless all the dear Children)

If you get a chance to watch some of the commentaries by Alison Arngrim I would do it. She is funny and so knowledgeable about things. I don't know how many seasons have commentaries, but I watched her commentary of the two-part episode "Back to School" in Season 6 and the one for the Season 7 episode "Come Let us Reason Together" which is where Nellie and Percival's twins are born.

Alison shared so much about the characters in these episodes and the actors who portrayed them. And she had so many fond memories of Steve Tracy(Percival).

Cheryl