Jason Bateman looks unrecognizable with long hair as fans joke he play a Jesus or Little House on the Prairie role

Table Of Content

• Jason Bateman looks unrecognizable with long hair as fans joke he play a Jesus or Little House on the Prairie role
• Jonathan Gilbert as Willie Oleson
• Laura's worst enemy was Melissa Gilbert's best friend
• From bear traps to bank robberies, Jason Bateman’s ‘Little House on the Prairie’ character endured a lot
• Michael Landon didn’t "tinker" with perfection.
• Little House on the Prairie was a good place to be a child actor
• Michael Landon

The show managed to have as many water cooler-worthy twists as "Game of Thrones," and fans are still boggling over some of them. Even back in 1974, Michael Landon was pointing out to People that the show needed to generate a lot of material — more than the seven books they'd optioned could reasonably give them. But when it wasn't time for work, it was time for play, and the play could get as enthusiastic and goofy as anyone could possibly want. Inseparable buddies Melissa Gilbert and Alison Arngrim were constantly playing together.

Jason Bateman looks unrecognizable with long hair as fans joke he play a Jesus or Little House on the Prairie role

In an interview with Pop Culture Retro, Labyorteaux looked back at being cast in the series. Everybody wanted to work on it, they wanted to work with Landon, they knew it was such a family crew and cast, and it was something that everyone strove to work towards. Matthew Labyorteaux first appeared on Little House on the Prairie in 1976 as a younger Charles Ingalls in flashbacks.

Jonathan Gilbert as Willie Oleson

Adapted from Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved books, this series captivated viewers with over 200 episodes over nine seasons, plus three TV movies. Within the show's universe, the defiant citizens of Walnut Grove decide to destroy their town because they'd rather see it turned to rubble than have it fall into the hands of a ruthless developer. The sets were in Simi Valley, built on leased land, and one of the conditions in the original agreement was that the network would leave the land more or less as they found it.

Laura's worst enemy was Melissa Gilbert's best friend

In the early ’80s, Jason Bateman appeared in the classic TV drama Little House on the Prairie. Since 2020 he has co-hosted the comedy podcast SmartLess with Will Arnett and Sean Hayes. Bateman, on the other hand, was an actual character on "Little House." Starting in the seventh season, he played Jason Cooper, an orphan the Ingalls family takes in. The main man of the little house, Charles Ingalls, or Pa, was a hard-working, honest, salt-of-the-earth kind of guy.

From bear traps to bank robberies, Jason Bateman’s ‘Little House on the Prairie’ character endured a lot

She did return to California eventually and landed a part in Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Earp. In 2008, she became the spokeswoman for Premier Bathrooms, a maker of bathing supplies for the elderly. Luckily, we’ve had a little invention since the 1800s called the Internet, and we were able to track some of our favorite cast members down. Some of those tears might've been from whoever oversaw the show's continuity because NBC wound up making the strange call to reverse the last two episodes' air dates. "Little House on the Prairie" seems like it should be classic Americana, the kind of show that's barely comprehensible to countries that don't have some general cultural nostalgia about pioneer days.

Michael Landon was like a father on the set of ‘Little House on the Prairie’

Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support. Whether you come to HuffPost for updates on the 2024 presidential race, hard-hitting investigations into critical issues facing our country today, or trending stories that make you laugh, we appreciate you. The truth is, news costs money to produce, and we are proud that we have never put our stories behind an expensive paywall. It was also at the 2011 dinner that former President Barack Obama mocked Trump for his birther conspiracy theories and role on The Apprentice reality TV show, some speculating that encouraged the real estate mogul to run for the White House. A tough gig before a tough crowd, Biden’s at-times tense relationship with the press will be placed to one side for one night, but that will not stop reporters and news executives from appraising his performance.

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They had sleepovers at each other’s homes and became partners in crime when it came to playing pranks on their co-stars. The season 1 episode “The Voice of Tinker Jones” was directed by Leo Penn, who cast his wife, Eileen Ryan, in the episode—and also brought in his 13-year-old son Sean to play an uncredited schoolboy. Jason Bateman’s memorable portrayal of James Cooper Ingalls on ‘Little House on the Prairie’ remains an important part of American television history. His impressive career and dedication to the arts serve as an inspiration to many, and his talents as an actor, director, and producer continue to entertain and inspire audiences worldwide. Butler has appeared in multiple TV shows, including The New Gidget as Jeff 'Moondoggie' Griffin and Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Hank Summers, Buffy's dad. On stage, he starred as Rapunzel's Prince in the original Broadway production of Into the Woods.

Little House on the Prairie was a good place to be a child actor

She also appeared on TV shows like Murder, She Wrote and Hotel and played Mrs. Sutherland in the 1994 movie Wyatt Earp. "When I came on the pilot, he was extremely kind and sensitive and a good director and really gave me a chance to find my legs because [TV] was a new medium for me," she told PEOPLE. The show's lasting charm lies in the ensemble cast who brought the characters of Walnut Grove to life. From the unwavering wisdom of Michael Landon's Charles “Pa” Ingalls to Melissa Gilbert's endearing portrayal of Laura, each actor contributed to the show’s legacy.

It was also a creatively and professionally rewarding experience, which meant a lot to the young actors. Although on the show Laura was 17 when she married Almanzo Wilder, in real life Melissa Gilbert was a very innocent, romantically inexperienced 15-year-old whose first kiss was on a sound stage. Her initial kiss with 23-year-old Dean Butler (the actor who played Wilder) was only the third time she’d kissed a “boy” and it squicked her out because he had the tiniest bit of beard stubble. The thought of having to cuddle in bed with him (after the pair had wed on the series) was even more frightening to the teenager. Rachel and Sidney Bush (credited onscreen as “Lindsay Sidney Greenbush” and known as “Sugar Lump” and “Foxy Robin” to everyone on the set) were just 3 years old when they were cast to play the youngest Ingalls daughter.

That’s Sidney falling down while running during the opening credits; the director rotated the girls every few hours in accordance with California labor laws for such young children. In this case, just prior to filming the hillside running scene, he had called for a “Fresh twin, please! ” and Mrs. Bush hastily awoke the napping Sidney and quickly put her little shoes back on … unfortunately, on the wrong feet. Michael Landon thought it was adorable when she tripped and hit the ground and left it in the sequence. Kyle Richards joined the cast of Little House on the Prairie in 1975, playing Alicia Edwards, the adopted daughter of Grace and Isaiah Edwards, for 18 episodes between seasons 2 and 8.

Landon didn’t want the homestead destroyed, so according to Laura’s Prairie, Ivar disassembled the set and took it home with him. At one point he tried to donate the set to Walnut Grove, Minnesota, but Ed Friendly, the owner of the Prairie brand, blocked it. The replica home might be gone, but at least the original still exists. “Bunny,” the episode where Nellie gets thrown from the horse she’d won from Laura in a previous episode and ends up paralyzed, is a fan favorite. The climactic scene occurs shortly after Laura discovers that Nellie can, in fact, walk and has been faking her paralysis just to get attention. She gets her revenge by taking Nellie to the top of a hill in her wheelchair and giving her an almighty shove.

"Little House on the Prairie" ran for nine seasons, letting viewers follow the Ingalls family and the town of Walnut Grove through an epic series of misfortunes and blessings. All good things, however, must come to an end — and "Little House" was no different. But this weird soap opera quality is one of the things that makes "Little House" endure.

Starting in 2017, Bateman directed and starred in the dramatic Netflix series Ozark, earning both Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for his role as a family man who gets caught up with a drug cartel. In 2019, he won an Emmy for Outstanding Direction of a Drama Series, among other major award wins throughout the course of the series. After The Hogan Family ended in 1991, Jason had roles on four series — Simon, Chicago Sons, George & Leo, and Some of My Best Friends—none of which lasted longer than one season.

They first met in the 1980s when Cannon auditioned for Landon's series Father Murphy. She is best known for playing Felice, Donna Martin's mother, on Beverly Hills, 90210. Dean Butler portrayed the character Almanzo Wilder, who later married Laura. Almanzo, lovingly called "Manly" by Laura, also attracted the attention of Nellie Oleson and other young ladies in Walnut Grove. He was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 2004 and died on July 9, 2005. While some of its stars had long careers in Hollywood after the series wrapped, others returned to their theater roots or walked away from showbusiness altogether.