Melissa Gilbert

Gilbert was born in Los Angeles, California, on May 8, 1964, to a newly engaged couple, Kathy Wood and David Darlington, and placed for adoption immediately after birth.^[1] She was adopted one day later by actor and comedian Paul Gilbert^[3] and his wife, dancer and actress Barbara Crane, the daughter of The Honeymooners creator Harry Crane. The Gilberts later adopted a son, Jonathan, who co-starred on Little House on the Prairie.

Gilbert's parents divorced when she was 6 years old. Her mother then married attorney Harold Abeles, and together they had biological daughter Sara Rebecca Abeles (the actress known professionally as Sara Gilbert) on January 29, 1975.

On February 13, 1976, Paul Gilbert died. Although 11-year-old Melissa was told that he had suffered a stroke, she found out years later that he had been a VA patient who dealt with constant pain and that he had taken his own life. The marriage of Barbara and Harold Abeles later ended in divorce.^[4] According to her biography, Gilbert was raised in her adoptive mother's Jewish religion,^[5] but did not have any formal religious education or conversion ceremony.^[6]

Little House on the Prairie edit

Gilbert's earliest television appearances were in dozens of commercials, including one for Alpo dog food with Lorne Greene (Michael Landon's television father on Bonanza). She also attended school with Landon's daughter, Leslie Landon. It was Leslie who informed her that she had won the role of Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie, beating out over 500 child actresses for the part. The pilot was shot in 1973 and was a ratings success. Almost a year later, Gilbert began filming the series. Gilbert became extremely close to the Landon family after her adoptive father died. However, a rift developed between Michael Landon and Gilbert after the revelation of Landon's affair with Little House's young makeup artist, Cindy Clerico.^[7]

Gilbert had limited contact with Landon after Little House ended during the 1983–84 season. Seven years later, she was contacted by Landon's family and upon news of his condition, paid him a heartfelt visit following his May 9, 1991, appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson where he discussed his pancreatic cancer. She visited Landon at his Malibu home where he was, by then, bedridden, and they spent the afternoon together. Landon died one week later. When Gilbert gave birth to her son with second husband Bruce Boxleitner on October 6, 1995, they named him Michael, in honor of Landon.^[8]

Career after Little House edit

Gilbert has continued to work regularly, mainly in television. She starred as Jean Donovan in the biopic Choices of the Heart (1983), and as Anna Sheridan in three episodes of Babylon 5 with then-husband Boxleitner in 1996. She also provided the voice of Batgirl on the 1990s Batman: The Animated Series, though she would be replaced by voice actress Tara Strong for the series' follow-up The New Batman Adventures.

For her contribution to the television industry, Gilbert received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6429 Hollywood Blvd in 1985.^[9] Her then-fiancé, Rob Lowe, was present with her when her star was unveiled during the ceremony.^[10]

In 1998, she was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. In 2006, Gilbert appeared as Shari Noble, a patient looking to reconstruct her nipples after committing zoophilia with her dog in a season four episode of Nip/Tuck.

In 2008 and through 2009, Gilbert played Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the musical adaptation of Little House on the Prairie. This world premiere production at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis was directed by Francesca Zambello and also starred Kara Lindsay as Laura. The show ran through October 19 and was on a US National tour for 2009–10.^[11][12] The tour ended in June 2010 at Starlight Theatre in Kansas City, Missouri.

In March and April 2018, Gilbert starred in an Off-Off-Broadway, limited-run production of Geraldine Aron's 2001 one-woman play 2001 My Brilliant Divorce.^[13]

Dancing with the Stars edit

In March 2012, Gilbert joined the cast of celebrity contestants on season 14 of Dancing with the Stars. She was paired with Maksim Chmerkovskiy. During week four's show, while dancing the Paso Doble, she fell and hit her head on Maksim's leg and suffered a mild concussion and was taken to a hospital. She went home to recuperate, but returned to continue in the competition.^[14] In week eight of competition, she was eliminated, finishing in fifth place.

Screen Actors Guild presidency (2001–2005) edit

Gilbert was elected president of the Screen Actors Guild in 2001 after a contentious candidacy, in which she ultimately beat her opponent, Rhoda actress Valerie Harper.^[15] In 2003, she was re-elected, defeating Kent McCord with 50% of the vote to his 42%.^[16] In July 2005, she announced that she would not seek a third term.^[17]

2016 congressional campaign edit

On August 10, 2015, Gilbert announced her campaign for Michigan's 8th congressional district in the 2016 elections to the United States House of Representatives.^[18][19][20] Gilbert, who was the presumptive Democratic nominee in the district, dropped out of the race in May 2016, citing health issues.^[21]

In 2022, Gilbert launched a lifestyle app aimed at women called Modern Prairie.^[22][23]

Relationships edit

Gilbert was married to actor Bo Brinkman from 1988-1994,^[24] and to actor Bruce Boxleitner from 1995-2011.^[24]

In January 2013, Gilbert's representative confirmed her engagement to actor Timothy Busfield.^[25] They married on April 24, 2013,^[26] lived in Howell, Michigan, from 2013 to 2018,^[27] and moved to New York City late in 2018.^[28] Also in 2018, the couple purchased a cottage in the Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York. Gilbert and Busfield have been renovating the cottage and intend to live there permanently. ^[29]

Tax issues edit

Following her announcement as a candidate for U.S. Representative from Michigan, a spokesperson for her opponent's campaign referred to Gilbert as a "tax cheat". Gilbert owed $360,000 in back federal taxes and $112,000 in California state taxes.^[30] Gilbert responded by stating that this is not true, that the tax debt was an outgrowth of a stalled acting career, the economy, and divorce.^[31] She also stated that she had negotiated a repayment plan with the IRS.^[30]

Health issues edit

In her late thirties, Gilbert battled addiction to prescription medication and alcohol. ^[32]

While playing the role of Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the touring musical Little House on the Prairie, a visit to the doctor revealed that Gilbert had been working with a broken back for months. On July 22, 2010, Gilbert underwent surgery to replace a disc as well as fuse a vertebra in her lower spine. The surgery was described as a complete success.^[33]

In January 2015, Gilbert decided to have her breast implants removed for health reasons.^[34]

Film edit

Television edit

• Gilbert, Melissa (2009). Prairie Tale: A Memoir (1st ed.). Gallery Books. ISBN 978-1-416-59914-2.
• Daisy and Josephine (2014)^[35]
• My Prairie Cookbook: Memories and Frontier Food from My Little House to Yours (2014).^[36]
• Back to the Prairie: A Home Remade, A Life Rediscovered. (2022)^[37]

• Melissa Gilbert on X

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Melissa Gilbert.

• Melissa Gilbert at IMDb
• Melissa Gilbert at Internet Broadway Database
• Melissa Gilbert at the Internet Off-Broadway Database
• Melissa Gilbert at The Interviews: An Oral History of Television
• Appearances on C-SPAN
• Biography - Official SAG-AFTRA website
• Biography - Official Little House on the Prairie website