Melissa Sue Anderson is an American-Canadian actress. She began her career as a child actress after appearing in several commercials in Los Angeles. Anderson is known for her role as Mary Ingalls in the NBC drama series Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983), for which she received a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
Michael Landon was an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza (1959–1973), Charles Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie (1974–1983), and Jonathan Smith in Highway to Heaven (1984–1989). Landon appeared on the cover of TV Guide 22 times, second only to Lucille Ball.
Melissa Ellen Gilbert is an American actress. Gilbert began her career as a child actress in the late 1960s, appearing in numerous commercials and guest starring roles on television. From 1974 to 1983, she starred as Laura Ingalls Wilder, the second oldest daughter of Charles Ingalls on the NBC series Little House on the Prairie. During the run of Little House, Gilbert appeared in several television films, including The Diary of Anne Frank and The Miracle Worker. As an adult, she continued her career mainly in television films. From 2009 to 2010, Gilbert appeared as Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the touring production of Little House on the Prairie, the Musical. In 2012, she was a contestant on season fourteen of the popular reality dance competition show Dancing with the Stars on ABC.
Little House on the Prairie is an American Western historical drama television series about the Ingalls family, who live on a farm on Plum Creek near Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s–90s. Charles, Caroline, Laura, Mary, and Carrie Ingalls are respectively portrayed by Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Melissa Gilbert, Melissa Sue Anderson, and twins Lindsay and Sydney Greenbush. The show is loosely based on Laura Ingalls Wilder's best-selling series of Little House books.
Whiz Kids is an American science fiction adventure television series that originally aired on CBS from October 5, 1983, to June 2, 1984. The show was created by Philip DeGuere, who had also created the detective series Simon & Simon for CBS in 1981, and Bob Shayne and produced by Universal Television. DeGuere also served as executive producer.
Matthew Beard Jr. was an American actor. As a child actor, he was most famous for playing Stymie in the Our Gang short comedy films of 1930–1935. The role was so well known that he adopted the name Stymie Beard, and was so credited in some later roles, such as his 1978 appearance in The Buddy Holly Story.
Victor Edwin French was an American actor and director. He is remembered for roles on the television programs Gunsmoke, Little House on the Prairie, Highway to Heaven, and Carter Country.
David Fitzgerald Doyle was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of John Bosley on the 1970s TV series Charlie's Angels. Doyle and Jaclyn Smith were the only actors to appear in every episode of the show. Doyle also became known later as the first voice of Grandpa Lou on the Nickelodeon series Rugrats.
Robbie Rist is an American actor. He is known for playing Cousin Oliver in The Brady Bunch, Martin in Grady and "Little John" in Big John, Little John. Rist is also known for voicing assorted characters in television shows, games and movies, including Stuffy, the overly-proud stuffed dragon in Doc McStuffins, Whiz in Kidd Video, Star in Balto, Maroda in Final Fantasy X, Choji Akimichi in Naruto, and Michelangelo in the films Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III (1993), and Casey Jones (2011). Additionally, he and director Anthony C. Ferrante provided music for the Sharknado film and the theme song for the Sharknado franchise. He played Ted & Georgia Baxter's adopted son David on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. He was also the voice of the stick man from the Handi Snacks commercials.
Charles Phillip Ingalls was an American pioneer, farmer, government official, musician, and carpenter who was the father of Laura Ingalls Wilder, known for her Little House series of books. He is depicted as the character "Pa" in the books and the television series.
Patrick Francis Labyorteaux is an American actor. In many of his earlier credits, his last name is spelled as "Laborteaux". He is best known for his roles of Andrew "Andy" Garvey on the NBC series Little House on the Prairie as well as Bud Roberts on the CBS series JAG and NCIS.
Andrea Hope Elson is an American retired actress. Beginning her professional career as a child actress and model, Elson is perhaps best known for her television roles as Alice Tyler on the CBS science-fiction adventure series Whiz Kids and as Lynn Tanner on the NBC comedy series ALF, which garnered the teenage actress two Youth in Film Award nominations in 1986 and 1989.
Kim Erica Richards is an American actress, socialite, and television personality. She began her career as a child actress, and rose to prominence from her roles in Nanny and the Professor, Escape to Witch Mountain, and Return from Witch Mountain. In 2010, Richards appeared as a main cast member on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alongside her sister Kyle Richards. She was part of the main cast for the first five seasons and has returned for guest appearances in subsequent seasons.
Dean Butler is a Canadian-American actor and producer of entertainment, sports and documentary programming.
Walker Edmiston was an American actor and puppeteer.
Shattered Spirits is a 1986 American television drama film directed by Robert Greenwald, starring Martin Sheen, Melinda Dillon, Matthew Labyorteaux, Lukas Haas, and Roxana Zal. Sheen plays an alcoholic father who loses his family.
The 4th Youth in Film Awards ceremony, presented by the Youth in Film Association, honored outstanding youth performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film and television for the 1981-1982 season, and took place on November 21, 1982, at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Universal City, California.
The 5th Youth in Film Awards ceremony, presented by the Youth in Film Association, honored outstanding youth performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film, television and theater for the 1982-1983 season, and took place on December 4, 1983, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
Highway to Heaven is an American fantasy drama television series that ran on NBC from September 19, 1984, to August 4, 1989. The series starred Michael Landon as Jonathan Smith, an angel sent to Earth in order to help people in need. Victor French, Landon's co-star from his previous television series, Little House on the Prairie, co-starred as Mark Gordon, a retired policeman who travels with and helps Smith with the tasks or "assignments" to which he is referred. The series was created by Landon, who was the executive producer and also directed most of the show's episodes. French directed many of the remaining episodes. It was Landon's third and final TV series and his only one set in the present day, unlike Little House on the Prairie, and Landon's first TV series, Bonanza, both of which were Westerns. It was the final screen appearance for French, who died two months before the final episode aired, aged 54 years old; Landon went on to appear in two films, one of which was a pilot for a new series, prior to his own death at 54 in 1991.
Todd Daymond Porter is an American former actor and model. Beginning his career as a professional child actor at the age of eight, Porter is perhaps best known for his television roles; as Chris on the Saturday morning children's series Starstuff and as Hamilton Parker on the CBS action-adventure series Whiz Kids.
