AlloCiné had the chance to meet Melissa Sue Anderson, who plays the sweet Marie in “Little House on the Prairie” at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival. The actress spoke about the end of the series that changed her life…
Fifty years ago, American audiences discovered Little House on the Prairie for the first time, a historical series about a family of pioneers that has managed to stand the test of time. As proof, part of the cast was at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival a few weeks ago to meet their fans, who came in large numbers.
The opportunity for them to look back on the success of this family series and to share some anecdotes. AlloCiné was lucky enough to be able to speak with Melissa Sue Anderson, who plays the sweet Mary, the eldest of the Ingalls.
At 61, the actress still has a twinkle in her eye when she talks about Little House on the Prairie. It must be said that it is a role that changed her life, even if it gave her some complexes. Her character follows an interesting trajectory: Mary loses her sight and leaves her family to join a school for the blind in the neighboring town. Where she will meet her future husband.
“I can’t bring myself to…”
After experiencing traumatic events – such as losing her baby in a tragic fire – Mary eventually finds peace by caring for other blind children. Melissa Sue Anderson left the show in 1981, two years before it ended. She was therefore not present on set when all the residents of Walnut Grove decided to blow up the town in the final episode.
“I never wanted to watch this episode. I can’t bring myself to see the city in this state. I want to remember this show and Walnut Grove in its good times… To be completely honest, I don’t even remember my last day of filming. I had reached the end, I had played everything I had to play as a blind woman. Above all, I remember being torn between “I don’t want this to end” and “I have to move on”. But I only want to remember the good moments of this experience”.
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We understand his choice all the more since the teams really blew up the sets of Little House on the Prairie in the last episode. In her autobiography, Melissa Gilbert (Laura Ingalls) reveals that Michael Landon (Charles Ingalls) was unhappy about the cancellation of his series. And so that the network could not reuse the sets in another production, he preferred to…blow everything up.
