The Waltons (1972)

Watchseries; This is my favorite show! I have my own Top 100 TV Shows and this show is #1. I don't know exactly what it is about this show that attracts me to it so much. I love it though. I have every show's name memorized. Some of my favorite characters are Leslie Winston as Cindy Brunson Walton, Lisa Harrison as Toni Hazelton Walton, Mary Beth McDonough as Erin Walton Northridge, Kami Cotler as Elizabeth Walton, Jon Walmsley as Jason Walton, Will Geer as Zebulon "Grandpa" Walton, Robert Donner as Yancy Tucker, Merie Earle as Maude Gormley, David W. Harper as James Robert "Jim Bob" Walton, Eric Scott as Ben Walton, and Ellen Corby as Esther "Grandma" Walton. I loved all of the characters even the ones I did not mention.

This is my favorite show! I have my own Top 100 TV Shows and this show is #1. I don't know exactly what it is about this show that attracts me to it so much. I love it though. I have every show's name memorized. Some of my favorite characters are Leslie Winston as Cindy Brunson Walton, Lisa Harrison as Toni Hazelton Walton, Mary Beth McDonough as Erin Walton Northridge, Kami Cotler as Elizabeth Walton, Jon Walmsley as Jason Walton, Will Geer as Zebulon "Grandpa" Walton, Robert Donner as Yancy Tucker, Merie Earle as Maude Gormley, David W. Harper as James Robert "Jim Bob" Walton, Eric Scott as Ben Walton, and Ellen Corby as Esther "Grandma" Walton. I loved all of the characters even the ones I did not mention.

The Waltons watchseries. I started in the 70's as a young girl watching The Waltons, and now I have a family that values this all time TV program. My family is not fully The Walton's lifestyle (times have changed), but I (a mom) value the family circle The Waltons TV program provides my family. The togetherness of happy and tough times for The Waltons, gives me hope still to this day, that you can work through anything and still go on. The joy of family support is there in this TV show, and much love, which you don't see on TV today. The Waltons have grandma, grandpa to run to for love and all there sisters and brothers jump in to help one other. What more can you ask for in a TV program for families? I and my family watch The Waltons as much as I can, more so I do, because I like to see others happy and getting along. All the actors and actress do a outstanding job in this TV program and have a wonderful TV setting to do it on. The mountains and a large family, there is so much to be involved in, such as picnic dinners, fishing, walking to the small store, community activities. Keep running those Waltons TV shows, because I will be tuned in.

The Walton's series and specials really helped so many people to realize that real families do exist and that one can create the love and caring in their own lives that we saw lived on the screen. My family was a good family, but did not have the love and warmth that the Walton's did. But because of the effect the series had on me, I was able to marry and have children, and raise them to have that bond and that love that I did not know was possible until I saw The Walton's. The acting was wonderful and I watch anything that stars Richard Thomas. He can play an evil man just as realistically as the well-loved John Boy,

Will Geer, Grandpa Zeb Walton, died after Season 6 had been completed. Richard Thomas had left after Season 5. The producers should have called it quits after Episodes 1-2 in Season 7, which were a tribute to Grandpa Walton. Their absolute "Jump the Shark" moment came in Season 8 when they introduced not one but two Cousin Olivers (the Brady Bunch had just one) and even a fake John Boy! The two kids were gone by Season 9, and I don't remember any explanation being given. Given Richard Thomas's strong portrayal of John Boy for the first five seasons, the producers should have been smart enough (I know that's expecting a lot) to realize that a Fake John Boy was a terrible idea. Obviously, the producers were more concerned with the Bottom Line than program quality because they fired Ralph Waite after just a few episodes in Season 9 in order to dump his salary. With the real John Boy, Grandpa, Grandma, Mother Olivia, and now John Sr gone from the cast, the remaining cast members lack characters with presence like Thomas's John Boy (the Jim Bob and Elizabeth characters were the worst) and the writers lacked inspiration, so Season 9 was a total embarrassment.

TV Land is showing the series in sequence (for the most part), and I'm enjoying seeing it again, for only the second time. The acting is excellent, as are the production values. The terrible reunion shows of the 90s did not do justice to the series. They "messed" with the chronology, jumping ahead in time, for the sake of historical landmarks, when they should have respected the reality of the series. Granted, the last two seasons were strained, but I am currently viewing Season Six, the first without John-Boy, and it works quite well. Some complain that the series is a 70s version of the 30s/40s, but in 2004, I would not agree. I grew up in Virginia during the 60s, and I definitely feel that the series creators have adequately presented the dignity and attitude of the Southeast. Again, the reunion shows were idiotic. (Did these people never buy new appliances, or pave their driveway? The last reunion, set in 1969, was ridiculous. The characters were ten years younger than they should have been. The youngest child would have been around 41 years old, not 30.)

12/2006 NOTE: The current Walton's home set is NOT the original - just check with the studio.

I watched this show while it was on television in the 1970s. Because I lived in a very urban and hectic setting, it was my solace. I would escape to this show as a psychological refuge - it really was that valuable. I didn't realize it at the time, but this show gave me a kind of hope for humanity that I've not seen on television since. The decay of the American family over the years has demonstrated that even more over time.

I used to look forward to each and every episode, fascinated by John-Boy and his writing. I always loved school and books, and found his writing exploits to be therapeutic and life-changing. It was at this time that I started writing journals. I had the good fortune to run into Richard Thomas in Hollywood after I'd read a book of his poetry. He had become a father to triplets and was very gracious when I mentioned I'd read his book. He was driving a station wagon filled with Pampers while picking up some orange juice at a market near where I lived.

Seeing this family interact among each other was a stark contrast to my own. My mother worked outside the home evenings, and it was my job to co-parent the children that she had with my step-father. As he was the antithesis of Ralph Waite's character, I believe this is part of the reason why this series had such a profound effect upon me. This is ironic, given that my step-father was old enough to be my mother's father. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that perhaps children in challenging familial situations could benefit greatly from viewing this show. Unlike the frothy Brady Bunch, this show presents how the core of a real and loving family could ideally operate.

For sure, the Depression Era setting would make most any modern child grateful for what he or she has today. Just about every earthly family situation is represented, from daily life at that time to careers, courtships, marriages, births, aging, illnesses and deaths.

The integrity of the parents and how they work together as a team is paramount to how this family survives. They also embrace the wisdom of their parents, who reside with them. Each child is nourished in a way that allows each of them to become whom they wish to be. This is the one aspect that mirrors my life, as my own mother was progressive in her thoughts about personal freedom.

The family dynamic between the grandparents is really entertaining and sweet. The program's multi-generational nature accentuates what is usually a bland and forced storyline in family dramas.

The other characters are charming, too, from the store keeper, Ike Godsey, his rather snooty wife, Corabeth, to the elderly Baldwin sisters and their racy "family recipe" (moonshine whiskey) which they inherited from their father. While the women in the Walton household are opposed to alcohol, Grandpa would sneak out to visit the Baldwins for a little refreshment. Other wandering characters in the show could include people as diverse as gypsies and circus acrobats, which always shown a sharp contrast to this family-centric show.

The core of this show is definitely the interactions among the family, whose simple structure and financial struggles during the Depression to live a decent life during the Great Depression. The communication and warmth are human qualities that many families today lack and viewing this show could benefit them as an example of what a truly caring family team looks like. Despite the fact that the story took place so long ago, the familial aspects of the