Melissa Gilbert Movies
Actress Melissa Gilbert literally grew up before our eyes in the role of Laura Ingalls on the TV series Little House on the Prairie. A professional from the age of 3, Gilbert was ten years old when she assumed the role of Laura, and in her mid-20s when Little House branched off into a handful of TV movies in the 1980s. Outside of this series, Gilbert was the uncrowned queen of the TV remakes: She starred as young Helen Keller in 1979's The Miracle Worker, played the title role in 1980's The Diary of Anne Frank, and assumed the old Natalie Wood role in 1981's Splendor in the Grass. More recently, she has been showing up in made-for-TV biopics, e.g. Babymaker: The Dr. Cecil Jacobson Story (1993) and Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck Story (1994). Gilbert's latter-day series-TV work has included the parts of Kate Delany in Sweet Justice and Rochelle in Stand By Your Man; she has also been heard as the voice of Barbara Gordon, aka Batgirl, in the daily Batman: The Animated Series. In all of these, she has been billed under her married name of Gilbert-Brinkman (her marriage to Bo Brinkman has since dissolved). Melissa Gilbert is the sister of Sara Gilbert, who played Darlene on TV's Roseanne; her grandfather, Harry Crane, was one of the creators of the Jackie Gleason series The Honeymooners.Though she continued to work, often in TV movies, her career took a shift when she got deeply involved with the Screen Actors Guild, eventually being elected as president of the organization and serving in that capacity from 2001-2005. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
Melissa Gilbert acquits herself well in this old-fashioned family drama about a gritty Texas orphan named Charlie (Gilbert), a substitute parent for her brothers, determined to succeed in life by converting an unmanageable rodeo horse into an equestrian champion. The transformation from equine dross to championship dressage is not an easy road, and helping Charlie is the often tipsy but tough Foster (Richard Farnsworth), as well as Matt, the man who captures her heart (Michael Schoeffling). After they succeed in training the actually talented horse, they head for the blue grass and bluer blood of Kentucky, where the equestrian and racing elite hold court over all, including newcomers from Texas. Now they have to coax the horse to make it through the formal dressage, cross-country, and jumping competitions -- and to do that in top form. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Farnsworth, Melissa Gilbert, (more)
- 1977
Originally known as Christmas Miracle in Caulfield, USA, this made-for-TV film concerns the true story of striking coal workers who are imprisoned in a collapsed mine on Christmas Eve, 1951. ~ John Bush, Rovi
- 1980
The diary of teenaged Holocaust victim Anne Frank was first published in book form in 1952, then adapted into a Pulitzer Prize-winning stage play by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett two years later. Director George Stevens converted The Diary of Anne Frank into a film in 1959, an effort which required three hours' running time. This TV movie version, which first aired November 17, 1980, telescopes the material into two hours, downplaying the story's suspense in favor of character development. Melissa Gilbert stars as Anne Frank; Maximilian Schell and Joan Plowright play her parents; Melora Marshall is seen as Anne's sister, Margot. Doris Roberts and James Coco are cast as the Van Daans, with Scott Jacoby as their son (and Anne's first love), Peter. Clive Revill appears as fussy, obnoxious dentist Dussel. Rounding out the cast are Erik Holland and Anne Wyndham as the non-Jewish Dutch citizens who hid Anne, her family, Dussel, and the Van Daans in a tiny Amsterdam garret for two years during World War II. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Melissa Gilbert, Maximilian Schell, (more)
- 1990
Drawn from the novel by Kate Wilhelm, this made-for-cable thriller stars Melissa Gilbert as a grieving young mother who doubts her sanity after seeing the daughter she lost in a car accident. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
In a casting twist, this remake of Arthur Penn's The Miracle Worker casts Patty Duke, who won an Oscar for her work as Helen Keller in the original, as Annie Sullivan, the woman who taught the deaf and blind Keller sign language. (In Penn's original, Sullivan was portrayed by Anne Bancroft.) The story, however remains the same; through perseverance and a bit of luck, Sullivan teaches Keller first to dress herself, then the sign-language alphabet, then finally the means of communication. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi
- Starring:
- Melissa Gilbert, Patty Duke, (more)
- 1999
Based on Kathleen Kane's novel Pocketful of Paradise, the fanciful TV movie The Soul Collector stars Bruce Greenwood in the title role. As an emissary from Heaven, Zachariah (Greenwood) helps recently departed souls to make a smooth and happy transition from life to death. But after showing signs of boredom and carelessness in his work, Zachariah is brought before supervising soul collector Mordecai (Ossie Davis), who "sentences" him to be a mortal for 30 days. While serving out his term, Zachariah falls in love with Rebecca (Melissa Gilbert), the widow of a man he'd "collected" earlier. As Zachariah struggles to help Rebecca save her farm from her creditors, Mordecai wonders if he's done the right thing in forcing Zachariah to experience humanity firsthand. Filmed just outside Austin, TX, The Soul Collector posted excellent ratings for CBS when the film first aired on October 24, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Bruce Greenwood, Ossie Davis, (more)
While going through the possessions left behind by her recently deceased father, a prominent and well-respected judge, High-powered attorney Natalie Jones (Melissa Gilbert) is shocked to come across a worn, yellowed snapshot showing her father in a warm embrace with famed rodeo trick rider Maggie Mae Jarrat. It soon develops that, unbeknownst to Natalie, Maggie and her dad had once been married. Hoping to get the full story, Natalie leaves her cosmopolitan surrounding and heads to wild horse country in Longmont, California, where she meets the late Maggie's gritty, tough-minded daughter Jess (Lindsay Wagner). The bond that slowly but surely develops between the two women leads Natalie to champion Jess' cause when greedy rancher Tom Grove (Grainger Hines) and his cronies begin killing off Jess' free-roaming horses so as not to "mongrelize" their own purebred stock. And, as a bonus, Natalie falls in love with dedicated local veterinarian Sam Nelson (Brian Wimmer). Made for cable, Thicker Than Water debuted March 12, 2005 on the Hallmark channel. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
In this drama, the mother of an autistic boy and his teacher are frequently at odds. But when they learn that the boy has been molested, the two must unite to discover the abuser's identity. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Patty Duke, Melissa Gilbert, (more)
- 1998
All that has been keeping the marriage of Scott and Michelle Tanner (Bruce Boxleitner, Melissa Gilbert) together is their commitment to save their 17-year-old son Mark (Zack Graham) from a drug habit. Now Mark has been killed in a bank robbery--and worse, his dad Scott, a hostage negotiator, was there when it happened. Convinced that Mark had been withdrawing money to buy drugs, the Tanners feel they have completely failed, and a divorce is inevitable. It is up to Monica (Roma Downey), here posing as Scott's partner, to prove that the couple's efforts have not been in vain--and this requires a very special screening of the documentary video Mark was working on just before he died. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 2000
"Inspired by actual events", this made-for-TV drama stars Melissa Gilbert ad Donielle, who since childhood has been blessed--or cursed--with a Sixth Sense. It all began at her best friend's funeral, when 8-year-old Donielle was seized with a vision which indicated that her friend had been murdered by his own father. Disowned by her family and ostracized by the community, Donielle learns the hard way to keep her premonitions to herself. By the time she has reached adulthood, Donielle is a rootless single mother, travelling from town to town with her children to avoid coming in close contact with anything that might retrigger her paranormal gifts. But upon arriving in a small town where the citizens are being terrorized by a serial killer, Donielle again begins experiencing horrible visions--and this time, maybe someone will listen...and believe...A Vision of Murder: The Story of Donielle first aired February 9, 2000, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- 1993
Melissa Gilbert-Boxleitner and Mel Harris star as two female police officers fighting the police force in this made-for-TV movie about sexual harassment in the workplace. After Miranda Berkley (Harris) breaks up with her boyfriend/superior officer, she and her partner find themselves on-the-job without any support from fellow officers. They lodge a formal complaint against their superiors and are then forced to suffer the consequences from their angry male colleagues. Based on a true story, this made-for-TV movie debuted on May 11, 1993. ~ Bernadette McCallion, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mel Harris, Melissa Gilbert, (more)
- 1992
In the process of trying to rediscover her identity, a young amnesiac leads herself and her employer on an investigation into her past that leads them into danger. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi
- 1990
Without Her Consent is a better than average "issue of the week" TV movie. This week's issue is rape--specifically, acquaintance rape. Melissa Gilbert plays a young woman who is sexually assaulted by a man (Scott Valentine) whom she has known for quite some time. She files charges, but he claims in court that she invited the attack. Barry Tubb costars as Gilbert's boyfriend, who seeks other avenues of redress when the courts fail him. Based on a true story, Without Her Consent debuted on January 14, 1990. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
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