made a rare appearance at church and pointed to Jesus’ words from John 8:7: “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” But he inadvertently became intoxicated after drinking too much of the “secret recipe” served by the Baldwin sisters, two prim and proper recurring characters who didn’t seem to realize they were bootleggers.Īfter the mishap touched off something of a scandal, John Sr. In 1972’s “The Sinner” episode, a young pastor played by the late John Ritter arrived preaching fire-and-brimstone Bible verses. “I’ve always looked for God in my own way,” he said in one episode.Īn ongoing theme was the appearance in Walton’s Mountain of an outsider - a Jewish family fleeing Nazi persecution, a Black boxer and preacher raising money for a new church, a Hollywood actress who smoked and drank - who met a mixed reception. Olivia was a devout Baptist, but John Sr. and Olivia Walton - played, respectively, by the late Ralph Waite, an ordained minister in real life, and Michael Learned - frequently clashed over their differing approaches to God. “People will joke that it was very saccharine sweet, but I don’t think that it actually was.” “The show frequently told really simple human stories that resonate with people because that’s what life is like,” said Cotler, now an educator in Southern California. Kami Cotler, who was 6 years old when she first starred as youngest sibling Elizabeth in a 1971 holiday TV movie that launched the series, still interacts regularly with such fans via her Facebook page, which has nearly 150,000 followers.Ĭotler said “The Waltons” shared “universal truths” that help explain its lasting popularity. “I just told my kids, ‘One day when I’m old and in my wheelchair … just wheel me in front of ‘The Waltons’ on a continual loop, and I’ll be happy,’” Jackson said. The oldest sibling, he aspired to be a writer and experience the world beyond his humble upbringing. “The Waltons” focused on John Jr., known as John-Boy, played by Richard Thomas and modeled on Hamner. The parents, grandparents and seven children - John Jr., Jason, Mary Ellen, Erin, Ben, Jim-Bob and Elizabeth - were depicted wearing overalls and dresses, praying at meals and overcoming adversity through hard work and grace. A half-century later it still stirs nostalgia among loyal fans who can’t resist taking in cable TV reruns, binging episodes via streaming apps and keeping up with former stars through social media.īased on the life of its creator, the late Earl Hamner Jr., the show followed a large extended family living in a white, two-story farmhouse and running a sawmill in the fictional Blue Ridge foothills town of Walton’s Mountain. “The Waltons” ran for nine seasons and 221 episodes, ranking as high as No. “For example, an atheist comes to town, and we get this whole discussion between atheism and spirituality.” “‘The Waltons’ really did get down and roll around in some very, very serious spiritual themes,” he added. “I think it was an important show, and I think it actually doesn’t get the attention that it deserves,” Thompson said. Millions of others felt the same, and the Thursday night drama about a Depression-era family in rural Virginia became one of TV’s most popular and enduring programs.Īt a time when the networks generally avoided “dangerous” content, “The Waltons” was notable for taking on difficult topics - religion, in particular - said Robert Thompson, director of Syracuse University’s Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture. 14, 1972, the Currys identified closely with the storylines. So when “The Waltons,” set in 1932 and running through World War II, debuted on CBS on Sept. “My dad used to talk about how his dad would go work out of town and send $5 a week to feed and clothe the family.” “The Depression was the seminal time of their lives - the time that was about family and survival and making it through,” said Curry, now a 59-year-old Presbyterian pastor in Owensboro, Kentucky. When Curry was growing up on a farm in northern Texas, his carpenter father and teacher mother often argued playfully over who had a poorer childhood. Matt Curry’s parents were children of the Great Depression, just like “The Waltons” - the beloved TV family whose prime-time series premiered 50 years ago.
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