Melissa Gilbert Movies

Adam (Linwood Boomer) and Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson) return to Walnut Grove, where Adam wants to set up his law practice. His first client turns out to be the most hated man in town: Edgar Mills (Jeff Corey), who is accused of swindling the townsfolk in a wide-ranging scam. At first believing in Mills' innocence, Adam soon learns the painful truth -- but also discovers that Mills' motives were not as sinister as they seem. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the first episode of a two-part story, Albert (Matthew Laborteaux) develops a crush on his classmate Sylvia (Olivia Barash), a 14-year-old girl who has developed early. Sylvia's stern father disapproves of Albert's affections and orders his daughter to ignore the boy. Later on, Sylvia is raped by a masked assailant, whereupon her father demands that she keep her "shame" a secret. The situation worsens when Sylvia discovers that she is pregnant. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Black farmer Joe Kagan (Moses Gunn) sells his Walnut Grove property and moves to Sleepy Eye, where he gets a job at the blind school. Joe's primary motivation is his love for schoolteacher Hester-Sue (Ketty Lester), but she would prefer a wealthier and more worldly husband. Only when she realizes that the man of her dreams may well prove to be a nightmare does Hester-Sue learn to fully appreciate the humbler, but more dependable, Joe. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

It's in-law vs. in-law when the Olesons meet the parents of their son-in-law, Percival (Steve Tracy), for the first time. Inevitably, the hidebound Harriet Oleson (Katherine MacGregor) clashes with Percival's Jewish father, Benjamin (E.M. Margolese), over whether or not Nellie (Alison Arngrim) should raise her unborn child as a Jew or a Gentile. As it turns out, Nellie takes a hand in solving the matter -- by giving birth to twins! ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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, All Movie Guide

After many setbacks, Laura Ingalls (Melissa Gilbert) finally marries Almanzo Wilder (Dean Butler) in the two-part opener of Little House on the Prairie's seventh season. Wedding bells also ring for Laura's childhood nemesis (but now good friend), Nellie Oleson (Alison Arngrim), who weds Percival Dalton (Steve Tracy) -- much to the horror of Nellie's status-climbing mother, Mrs. Oleson (Katherine MacGregor) when it is revealed that "Percival" is actually a Jewish boy named Isaac Cohen. Nellie herself resolves this problem by giving birth to twins, then announcing that one baby will be raised Christian, the other Jewish! Meanwhile, recently widowed Jonathan Garvey (Merlin Olsen) teams with Laura's dad, Charles Ingalls (Michael Landon), to set up a warehouse business headquartered in Sleepy Eye, the same town where Laura and Almanzo now live and work as teachers. Also, we are re-introduced to Laura's blind older sister, Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson), and her equally blind husband, Adam Kendall (Linwood Boomer), likewise employed as teachers. A freak accident restores Adam's sight, whereupon he decides to go to law school -- after first reassuring Mary that his ability to see will not in any way dim their love. As the season draws to a close, Laura finds that she is pregnant. And in the two-part season seven finale, "The Lost Ones," Charles Ingalls decides to adopt a brace of orphans, James and Cassandra Cooper (played respectively by Jason Bateman and Missy Francis). ~ All Movie Guide

In the first episode of a two-part story, an accident unexpectedly restores Adam Kendall's (Linwood Boomer) eyesight. Although Adam is exultant, his still-blind wife, Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson), is worried that he will fall out of love with her. Meanwhile, Percival Dalton (Steve Tracy) proves to be more than a match for his ever-contentious mother-in-law, Harriet Oleson (Katherine MacGregor). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

New bride Laura (Melissa Gilbert) suspects that her husband, Almanzo (Dean Butler), is cheating on her. Worse still, she is convinced that the other woman is her dear friend Brenda Sue Longworth (Tisch Raye). The disconsolate Laura moves back with her parents, and before long she has made her problem everybody's problem. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Pete Ellerbee (William Traylor), Walnut Grove's legendary football hero, returns to town to coach the high school team. To Pete, winning isn't everything, it's the only thing -- and this attitude proves to be hard thing for the team members to live up to, especially his own son. Pete's win-at-all-costs methods result in a near tragedy when Albert Ingalls (Matthew Laborteaux) risks serious injury during a game. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Widowed farmer Jonathan Garvey (Merlin Oleson) and his son Andy (Patrick Laborteaux) move to the town of Sleepy Eye so that Jonathan can start a freight business. Unfortunately, he is repeatedly robbed of his meager belongings by a gang of local toughs. Deciding to end this crime wave on his own, Jonathan becomes the local deputy sheriff -- and his first arrest results in a brutal beating for Andy. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In the conclusion of a two-part story, Laura (Melissa Gilbert) tries to get over the departure of her fiancé, Almanzo (Dean Butler), by helping her sister Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson) and brother-in-law Adam (Linwood Boomer) set up a new school for the blind in the town of Sleepy Eye. As fate would have it, this is the same town where Almanzo has relocated -- and when she sees her beloved in a compromising situation with a saloon gal, Laura angrily breaks off her engagement. Things change dramatically when Laura discovers a remarkable secret about Almanzo while nursing him through an illness. And Laura's father, Charles (Michael Landon), is prompted to reconsider his insistence that the girl wait until she is 18 to get married. But what of the still-blossoming romance between Nellie Oleson (Alison Arngrim) and Percival Dalton (Steve Tracy)? This was the final episode of Little House on the Prairie's sixth season. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Newly certified as a schoolteacher, 16-year-old Laura (Melissa Gilbert) accepts a temporary teaching job in a nearby town. Almanzo (Dean Butler) offers to drive Laura to her new assignment -- a gesture made strictly out of friendship for the girl. But in the course of the journey, Almanzo suddenly realizes that he truly loves Laura. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide