'The Waltons': The Original Home Was Reportedly Set on Fire by a Serial Arsonist (2024)

FAQs

What caused the fire in The Waltons home? ›

John-Boy stops by to see his Grandparents at Mrs. Brimmer's. Grandpa asks if John had found the cause of the fire. John-Boy tells him that they found the heater in the bathroom but he then shows him the pipe he found that was still lit where he left it in the hallway.

A fire breaks out and burns most of the house. John-Boy loses his completed novel in order to save Erin.

The show aired from 1971-1981 and won an Emmy in 1974. The original house that served as the backdrop to Hamner's childhood was built in the early 20th century in the village of Schuyler in Nelson County, where it still stands today.

The Walton's made use of many period appropriate buildings, sets and locations. Being a domestic, family based drama much of the action was staged in and around the Walton family home. While the interiors were filmed on Stage 26 of the former Burbank studios, the house exterior was filmed on the jungle set.

The Waltons - Season 4 Episode 19: The Burnout (2) - Metacritic.

G.W. was killed in a training accident at Camp Lee.

Mary Ellen and Erin move to Charlottesville into an apartment to be on their own. John tries to get a large lumber contract. Grandpa Zeb (Will Greer) has died and everyone is mourning. Neighbor Flossie Brimmer has also died.

In it, The Waltons star Tom Bower said that Curt was killed off after he asked for a raise. Then Curt was killed at Pearl Harbor in the 1978 season, and Mary Ellen found new love with Arlington Wescott Jonesy Jones (Richard Gililand) while taking premed courses.

Episode 1 The Foundling A six-year old deaf and mute girl is abandoned on the Waltons' doorstep and the family teaches her sign language, allowing her parents to understand how to communicate with their little girl.

April 14, 1999, Motion Picture & Television Fund, Los Angeles, CA

Ellen Corby / Died

Is the Walton family still alive? ›

Overview. The three most prominent living members (Jim, Rob, and Alice Walton) have consistently been in the top twenty of the Forbes 400 list since 2001, as were John ( d. 2005) and Helen (d. 2007) prior to their deaths.

In real life, John-Boy was indeed Hamner, creator and narrator of the show as well as author of Spencer's Mountain. Now he is gone. He was 92, a veteran of World War II, one of America's best-loved writers and, as the narrator of The Waltons, a much-loved voice.

While the television series took place on a fictional "Walton's Mountain," in Virginia, and the book on "Spencer's Mountain" in Wyoming, both are actually based on Hamner's hometown of Schuyler, VA. Consequently, it should come as no surprise that the Walton's Mountain Museum is located right here in Schuyler, VA.

While filmed on location in California, the fictional Walton family would have been at home in the tiny town of about 300 residents 40 minutes southwest of Charlottesville, Va., in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The real life John-Boy, Earl Hamner Jr., who created 'The Waltons,' dies at age 92. LOS ANGELES — Earl Hamner Jr., the versatile and prolific writer who drew upon his Depression-era upbringing in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia to create one of television's most beloved family shows, The Waltons, has died.

In 1981, The Waltons was in the middle of a new season when CBS suddenly announced in January that the episodes airing that year would comprise the family drama's final season.

Measuring about 1,600 square feet, this white clapboard building has just one bathroom, and as many as four of the famous family's eight children would share one of the three bedrooms.

Season 2, Episode 10: “The Thanksgiving Story”

A life-threatening accident at a lumber mill threatens John-Boy's college aspirations as the Waltons prepare for their Thanksgiving dinner. On IMDb, a viewer ranked this as their favorite episode, giving particular props to Thomas' “great” acting in the hour.

Michael Learned, who played mom Olivia Walton, had a foolproof way of handling dinner scenes — she just didn't eat the food! "We always joke about how Michael Learned never actually ate," Norton remembers. Learned would move the food around her plate or say her line right before she put food in her mouth.

The love stories carried over behind the scenes. Ma and Pa Walton — Ralph Waite and Michael Learned — quietly fell on love on set. And remember Jason and Toni, who we just mentioned in the prior paragraph? Well, actors Jon Walmsley and Lisa Harrison tied the knot in real life in 1979!

How true to life was The Waltons? ›

Real lives

All of the Waltons were based on real people — Hamner's family, his grandfather and grandmother, his father and mother, and his brothers and sisters, of whom there were seven in the show but eight in real life.

87 years (1911–1999)

Ellen Corby / Age at death

The actor returned full time in Season Seven, experiencing the death of her on-screen husband. But she was forced to leave again in Season Eight due to her health.

Mary Ellen marries Dr. Curtis Willard and they have 1 child, John Curtis, before he is lost and presumed dead after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Eventually she remarries Arlington Westcott Jones "Jonesy" and together they have 2 children, Clay and Katie.

He then finds a career in television where he serves as a news anchor. He meets Janet Gilchrist who is an editor for Harper's magazine. The two are married on Walton's Mountain.

Storyline. Mary Ellen tracks down her husband, Curt, who was presumed dead after Pearl Harbor. She finds a very changed man. Erin quits Pickett Metal Products when Jonesy is hired to replace her.

until she wasn't. In The Waltons episode "The Revelation," John-Boy proposes to his girlfriend Daisy, and when she said yes, it was a real moment on the show. But by the episode's end, Daisy has called off the wedding, and the next time we see her, Daisy is just an old flame to John-Boy, never to be rekindled.

The Tempest - The Waltons (Season 9, Episode 10) | Apple TV. S9 E10: Mary Ellen finds Curt alive in Florida, but he's a very different man.

The Waltons ran on CBS from 1972 to 1981. The cast was four years into filming when Corby suffered a stroke that impaired her movement and speech. She took off from the show for over a season for medical reasons and returned in the 1977-1978 season, bringing her stroke into the storyline.

'The Waltons' star Michael Learned 'never slept' with TV husband Ralph Waite, 'but our love was so deep'

How many Walton kids are still alive? ›

Heirs include Sam's three living children--Rob, Jim and Alice--his daughter-in-law Christy and her son Lukas, plus Bud's two daughters, Ann and Nancy. Rob Walton served as chairman for more than two decades and remains on the board, alongside current chairman Greg Penner, his son-in-law.

He left his ownership in Walmart to his wife and their children: Rob Walton succeeded his father as the Chairman of Walmart, and John Walton was a director until his death in a 2005 plane crash.

Walmart is owned majorly by the Walton family as well as institutional shareholders. The company's origin traces back to Sam Walton, so it's not so surprising that his descendants are the major owners of Walmart. The company's board comprises independent directors, Walmart executives, and members of the Walton family.

Chicago-based billionaire Lukas Walton, 36, is one of Sam's grandchildren – and one of the richest millennials in the world. However, life wasn't always easy for the San Diego-born heir. So who is Lukas Walton, what is his role in the Walmart empire, and how much has he inherited?

Although Becker appeared in eight episodes of The Waltons and came back for the reunion movies, Drew and Elizabeth never tied the knot on the series.

On the screen, the Waltons were obviously a large, tight family. That same spirit carried behind-the-scenes, as well. For the young stars who played the seven children of John and Olivia, their costars became like siblings. After all, they grew up and worked together for nearly a decade.

James Hamner, 67, the youngest son in a family immortalized by "The Waltons" on television and the model for the character Jim-Bob Walton, died April 1 at his home in Charlottesville. He had emphysema and heart ailments.

As a novelist, he is best known for Spencer's Mountain, which was inspired by his own childhood and formed the basis for both the film of the same name and the television series The Waltons, for which he provided voice-over narration. Earl Hamner Jr. Earl Henry Hamner Jr.

"I hope that you'll remember this house as I do," Earl Hamner narrates in the closing moments of the final episode of The Waltons.

Lies the small town of Schulyer, Virginia, home of the Hamner family – the real-life family on which the Waltons were based. The mountain town of Schuyler is home to about 400 residents, and there the two-story Hamner family home still stands.

Where were the outdoor scenes of The Waltons filmed? ›

Most of the exterior scenes were shot in Burbank on the backlot known as the Warner Bros. Ranch. Rural areas, such as the Waltons' house, various dirt roads, Ike Godsey's store and Drucilla's Pond were shot on the Jungle set.

Earl Hamner Jr., creator of the hit CBS-TV series The Waltons, attended Richmond College during Boatwright's tenure, and named the fictional Boatwright University where the character of John-Boy Walton attended college after him.

The Hamner House is opened for docent tours or for guests to rent the whole house. This was the home of Earl Hamner who wrote the Walton TV series. A replica of John Walton's truck sits outside. Inside is the kitchen, living room, parents room, John Boy's room, the boys room, and the girls room.

John-Boy takes Jim-Bob to the County Courthouse to look at the birth records. They find Jim-Bob's birth record but they also discover that Jim-Bob had a twin, Joseph Zebulon Walton who died at birth.

Harper playing exactly himself as Jim-Bob, there was a "real Jim-Bob Walton." The man who inspired the character was Jim Hamner, Earl Hamner Jr.'s youngest brother.

Thomas starred as John Boy in the 1971 original about a rural Virginia family, which later inspired the Waltons TV series that aired on CBS for nine seasons from 1972-81. Now, he'll serve as the narrator of the remake, The Waltons' Homecoming, which premieres Sunday on The CW.

The Waltons ran on CBS from 1972 to 1981. The cast was four years into filming when Corby suffered a stroke that impaired her movement and speech. She took off from the show for over a season for medical reasons and returned in the 1977-1978 season, bringing her stroke into the storyline.

Instead, Thomas broke his ankle in two places and the movie filming was delayed by more than a year. Eventually, September 30, 1955 premiered in 1977, but between his motorcycle accident and that premiere date, Thomas bore the pain and continued appearing on The Waltons.

Fans of The Waltons likely noticed that John-Boy, played by Richard Thomas, was using a cane during the show's fifth season. The use of the cane was an effort by the actor to hide an injury he suffered in an accident that could have cost him his life.

The Waltons is an American historical drama television series about a family in rural Virginia during the Great Depression and World War II.

What happened to the real Jim Bob on The Waltons? ›

Harper is not currently active in show business, but does appear at such Waltons-related functions as cast reunions, collectible and memorabilia fairs. After working at a variety of jobs, he went to school to study business.

In November 1976 she suffered a severe stroke and temporarily left the show to recuperate. The stroke she suffered was written into the show and served to explain her absence from the series and provide story material upon her return.

Typically an Orange Squeeze is made with rum, ice, and fresh squeezed oranges in a blender. First acknowledgement of Grandma's "illness," which was introduced into the storyline after Ellen Corby suffered a major stroke in November 1976.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor, John-Boy, like the other men in the family, has to enroll in the military. He eventually becomes a war correspondent, writing for the Stars and Stripes. For a while, some fear that he has vanished, but he returns to Walton's Mountain in the end.

Ralph Waite was fired from his role due to budgetary issues. The show had become more expensive as Waite aged, and at the same time the ratings started to decline. Originally, season 8 was supposed to be the final one.

Elizabeth breaks both legs in a fall from a log pile. When she comes home from the hospital, the family must adjust to her injuries and devise ways to help her walk again, something the Doctors aren't sure she'll be able to do. Earl Hamner Jr.

After The Waltons ended, Cotler auditioned for some roles, but knew she really wanted to go to college instead. "As I began auditioning, I realized that it wasn't as enjoyable as working!" she told VisionTV in 2017. "There wasn't much time between when the show ended and I started university.

Overview. The three most prominent living members (Jim, Rob, and Alice Walton) have consistently been in the top twenty of the Forbes 400 list since 2001, as were John ( d. 2005) and Helen (d. 2007) prior to their deaths.