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Friday, February 4, 2011

Melissa Gilbert

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Melissa Ellen Gilbert (born May 8, 1964) is an American actress, writer, and producer, primarily in movies and television. Gilbert is best known as a child actress who co-starred as Charles Ingalls's (played by Michael Landon) second daughter, Laura Ingalls Wilder, on the dramatic television series Little House on the Prairie (1974–1984). As an adult, she has a very long list of acting, voicework, writing, producing, and directing credits. Melissa also served two terms as President of the Screen Actors Guild. On June 9, 2009, her autobiography Prairie Tale: A Memoir was released.



Family and early career

Born in Los Angeles, California, Gilbert was adopted one day later by actor and comedianPaul Gilbert (born Ed MacMahon, he changed his name to Paul Gilbert to get a Screen Actors Guild card)and his wife, dancer and actress Barbara Crane, the daughter of The Honeymooners creator Harry Crane. The couple later adopted a son,Jonathan Gilbert, who co-starred with Melissa as Willie Oleson on Little House on the Prairie. When Melissa was 8, her parents divorced. Barbara then married Harold Abeles, and together they had biological daughter Sara Rebecca Abeles (the actress known professionally as Sara Gilbert), born on January 29, 1975. On February 12, 1975, Paul Gilbert suffered a stroke and died at the age of 56. Barbara and Harold Abeles' marriage later ended in divorce.
With Hollywood connections in her family background and a natural ability for entertaining at a very young age, Gilbert had already done dozens of commercials, including one for Alpo dog food with Lorne Greene (Michael Landon's television father on Bonanza). She tried out for the role of Laura Ingalls, Charles Ingalls' middle daughter, on NBC's 2-hour pilot of the book Little House on the Prairie. Growing up she was unfamiliar with Landon, having never met him or watched Bonanza. She attended school with his daughter, Leslie Landon who guested onLittle House as a teen and then played school teacher Etta Plumb during the last season. It was Leslie who informed her that she had won the role of Laura, beating out over 500 child actresses for this 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. A rift, however, developed between Michael Landon and Gilbert after the revelation of Landon's affair with Little House's young makeup artist, Cindy Clerico.
Gilbert had no contact with Landon after Little House ended during the 1983/1984 season. Seven years later, on May 9, 1991, when she saw a gaunt-looking Landon on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson discussing his pancreatic cancer, she was compelled to finally telephone him. 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.


Career after Little House

Gilbert at the Starlight Theatre in Kansas City, MO. in June 2010
Gilbert has continued to work regularly, mainly in television. She starred as Jean Donovan in the biopicChoices of the Heart (1983), and as Anna Sheridan in three episodes of Babylon 5 with husband Bruce Boxleitner in 1996. She is known as "The Queen of the television movies and mini-series" having starred in over 45 of them since the late 1970s. During the three months of filming for the television mini-series, Zoya, in St. Petersburg, London, Paris, Montreal, and New York, she was pregnant with her second child.
In 2006, Gilbert appeared as Shari Noble, a patient looking to reconstruct her nipples after committingzoophilia with her dog in a season 4 episode of Nip/Tuck.
Gilbert regularly keeps in contact with her friend Alison Arngrim, who played her nemesis Nellie Oleson onLittle House on the Prairie. Although their respective characters were enemies for years, in real life, they are close friends.
In 2008 and through 2009, Gilbert plays 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 stars Kara Lindsay as Laura. The show ran through October 19 and is on a US National tour for 2009–10. The tour ended in June 2010 at Starlight Theatre in Kansas City, Missouri.
For her contribution to the television industry, Gilbert has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6429 Hollywood Blvd in 1985. Her then fiance, Rob Lowe, was present with her when her star was unveiled during the ceremony. She is one of the youngest actresses to have been honored with a star.


Screen Actor's Guild Presidency

Melissa won the Screen Actors Guild presidency in 2001 after a contentious election in which she ultimately beat her opponent, Rhoda actress Valerie Harper, 21,351 votes to 12,613 votes after a second vote was taken. In 2003, she was re-elected, defeating Kent McCord with 50% of the vote to his 42%.  In July 2005, she announced that she would not seek a third term and she was succeeded by Alan Rosenberg, who assumed the Guild presidency on September 25.


Personal life

At 17, she reconnected with then little-known actor Rob Lowe, also 17. They met briefly when they were about 14. In 1981, Melissa, in her convertible, saw Lowe stopped next to her at a red light. Gilbert dated Lowe on-and-off for six years. During this time, both had affairs with other famous people. Melissa dated Tom Cruise, John Cusack, Scott Baio, and Billy Idol. After Lowe's failed romance with Princess Stéphanie, he suddenly proposed to Gilbert. While making wedding plans, Gilbert found out she was pregnant. Upon being informed of the pregnancy, Lowe ended their relationship. Gilbert miscarried days later.
Heart-broken, Gilbert left for New York City to star in the play A Shayna Maidel. Gilbert was set up with actor Bo Brinkman, a cousin of actorsRandy Quaid and Dennis Quaid. The couple married on February 22, 1988, only seven weeks after she ended her relationship with Rob Lowe. Gilbert became pregnant months later. US Magazine featured a very pregnant Gilbert wrapped in a sheer sheet and named her one of "America's Ten Most Beautiful Women" in 1988. On May 1, 1989, she gave birth to Dakota Paul Brinkman. After Dakota's birth, the couple began to have marital problems and divorced in 1992.
Only weeks after Gilbert's divorce filing, Bruce Boxleitner's ex-wife (Kathryn Holcomb) set Bruce up with Gilbert. Holcomb by then was married to actor Ian Ogilvy. Gilbert had met Boxleitner as a teenager when they both were on Battle of the Network Stars. Gilbert introduced herself as she had a pin-up of him in her locker. Boxleitner ignored her as she was a teen and he was many years older than her. The couple was on-and-off for over a year. They were engaged twice and Boxleitner broke up with her each time. After re-uniting for a third time, they finally married on January 1, 1995 in her mother's living room. Gilbert quickly became pregnant, but went into premature labor more than two months before her due date. She gave birth to a son, Michael Garrett Boxleitner, named in honor of Michael Landon, on October 6, 1995. His middle name is in honor of Garret Peckinpah, her friend Sandy Peckinpah's son, who had died suddenly of meningitis at age 16.
Gilbert is also stepmother to Boxleitner's two sons with Holcomb, Sam (b. 1980) and Lee (b. 1985).
She has battled alcoholism and drug abuse, which she wrote about in her 2009 autobiography.
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. It was discovered during a doctor's visit that she had been playing the role of Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the touring musicalLittle House on the Prairie with a broken back for months.


Filmography


Films

YearFilmRoleNotes
1977Circus, Lions, Tigers and Melissas Too-
Christmas Miracle in Caufield, U.S.A.Kelly SullivanTV movie
1979Nutcracker FantasyClaraVoice
The Miracle WorkerHelen KellerTV movie / Nominated for an Emmy Award
1980The Diary of Anne FrankAnne FrankTV movie
1981Splendor in the GrassWilma Dean 'Deanie' LoomisTV movie
1983Choices of the HeartJean DonovanTV movie
Little House: Look Back to YesterdayLaura Ingalls WilderTV movie
Little House: Bless All the Dear ChildrenLaura Ingalls WilderTV movie
1984Little House: The Last FarewellLaura Ingalls WilderTV movie
Family SecretsSara CallowayTV movie
1985SylvesterCharlie
1986Drug Free Kids: A Parents' Guide-Direct-to-video
ChoicesTerry GrangerTV movie
The Penalty PhaseLeah FurmanTV movie
1987Blood Vows: The Story of a Mafia WifeMarianTV movie
1988Killer InstinctDr. Lisa DaVitoTV movie
1989Ice HouseKay
1990Without Her ConsentEmily BriggsTV movie
Forbidden NightsJudith ShapiroTV movie
Joshua's HeartClaudiaTV movie
DonorDr. Kristine LiptonTV movie
The LookalikeGina/JenniferTV movie
1992With a VengeanceJanet King/VanessaTV movie
1993Family of StrangersJulieTV movie
With Hostile IntentMiranda BerkleyTV movie
Shattered Trust: The Shari Karney StoryShari KarneyTV movie
House of SecretsMarion RavinelTV movie
Dying to RememberLynn MatthewsTV movie
1994The Babymaker: The Dr. Cecil Jacobson StoryMary BennettTV movie
Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck StoryMelissa PrenticeTV movie
Cries from the HeartKarenTV movie
1995ZoyaZoya OssipovTV movie
1996Christmas in My Hometown
(a.k.a. A Holiday for Love)		Emma MurphyTV movie
1997Seduction in a Small TownSarah JenksTV movie
Childhood Sweetheart?Karen CarlsonTV movie
1998Her Own RulesMeredith SandersTV movie
1999Murder at 75 BirchGwen TodsonTV movie
The Soul CollectorRebeccaTV movie
Switched at BirthSarah BarlowTV movie
2000A Vision of Murder: The Story of DonielleDonielleTV movie
2001SanctuaryJo Ellen HathawayTV movie
2003Hollywood Wives: The New GenerationTaylor SingerTV movie
2004Heart of the StormCassie Broadbeck
2005Thicker Than WaterNatalie JonesTV movie
2007Sacrifices of the Heart originally titled Spring ThawKate Weston/Anne WestonTV movie
Safe HarbourOpheliaDirect-to-video


TV series

YearTitleRoleSeasonsNotes
1974–83Little House on the PrairieLaura Ingalls Wilder1–9Won two Young Artist Awards. Also nominated for a Golden Globe Award
1992Stand By Your ManRochelle Dumphy1
1992–95Batman: The Animated SeriesBarbara Gordon/Batgirl2–3Voice
1994–95Sweet JusticeKate Delacroy1


TV appearances

YearTitleSeasonRoleEpisodeNotes
1972Gunsmoke18Spratt's Child"The Judgement"Episode 4
Emergency!2Jenny"Dinner Date"Episode 10
1978The Love Boat2Rocky"Julie's Dilemma/Who's Who/Rocky"Episode 3
1985Faerie Tale Theatre4Gerda"The Snow Queen"Episode 2
1991The Hidden Room1-"Spirit Cabinet"Episode 4
1996Babylon 53Anna Sheridan"War Without End: Part 2"
"Shadow Dancing"
"Z'ha'dum"		Episode 17
Episode 21
Episode 22
1998The Outer Limits4Teresa Janovitch"Relativity Theory"Episode 6
Touched by an Angel5Michelle Tanner"The Peacemaker"Episode 10
2002Providence4Lorna Berlin"Smoke and Mirrors"Episode 21
Presidio Med1Grace Bennett"Once Upon a Family"Episode 7
20057th Heaven9Marie Wagner"Honor Thy Mother"Episode 18
2006Nip/Tuck4Shari Noble"Shari Noble"Episode 4
2009Chelsea Lately3Herself"Chelsea Lately"Episode 131
2010The Talk1Herself - Guest-Episode 29

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