‘Little House on the Prairie’: Melissa Gilbert Described Her Relationship With Michael Landon As a ‘Kinship’
Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert developed a close bond working together on Little House on the Prairie. Playing father and daughter on screen, the two actors shared a special friendship where Gilbert viewed him as “my Pa” even off camera.
Michael Landon treated Melissa Gilbert as a ‘peer’
Gilbert was just nine years old when she was introduced to Michael Landon at her audition for the role of Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie. Landon created the series after leaving Bonanza, serving as executive producer and lead character Charles Ingalls.
“I met Michael Landon in the winter of 1973,” Gilbert wrote in My Prairie Cookbook. “I had no idea who he was. All I knew was that my family was making an awfully big deal out of the fact that I was going to meet him. When the moment came that I first walked into the casting office and saw him, I knew why everyone had made such a big deal about him.”
The Little House alum raved of Landon’s charisma and noted how he treated her as an equal rather than a child.
“He was magnetic, warm, charming, and super funny,” she remarked. “The moment I looked into his eyes, I felt safe. He was one of those people whose smile lights up their whole self. … He also didn’t talk to me like I was just a kid. He talked to me like I was his peer. He made me feel like he respected my ability as a professional.”
Melissa Gilbert praised Michael Landon as a person and professional
Gilbert looked back at their initial meeting as the start of a major significant relationship that would last a lifetime. Their father-daughter bond onscreen carried over when the cameras weren’t rolling.
“I didn’t know it at the time, but that first moment with Mike would be one of the defining moments of my life,” the former Little House star wrote. “We struck up an instant friendship. I would even go so far as to call it a kinship. Whenever I was with him, I believed completely that I was his Half-Pint and he was my Pa.”
With Gilbert basically growing up on the set of Little House, she gained wisdom from Landon that she applied to her career as well as her personal life.
“Everything I know and honor about being a professional in my industry, I learned from him,” Gilbert explained. “I also learned lessons from him about life, family, and love.”
‘Little House’ star recalled Michael Landon’s iconic laugh
Gilbert cherished Landon’s sense of humor, where he often played practical jokes on set. Yet her boss always knew when it was time to get back to business.
“Mike had the greatest laugh you’d ever want to hear,” she shared. “It was infectious. When he laughed, I could see the boy that he once was. He was so full of mischief, and yet, when it was time to buckle down and do the work, he did it, and he did it brilliantly.”
Landon died of pancreatic cancer in 1991, though Gilbert still clearly carries a special place for him in her heart.
“There really hasn’t been another person like him in our business,” Gilbert said. “Nor has there been another person like him in my life. I loved him. I loved him as a mentor, as a friend, and as my Pa. I always, always will.”
