Was the Waltons based on a true story?
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.
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.
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.
Bill Hamner (l) died in 1989. His wife, Brenda, lives in the Richmond, Virginia area. Bill's three children are Harold, Hope and Gail. Paul Hamner (r) lives in Tom's River, New Jersey and is retired from the Baker Shoe Store chain.
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.
The house is located at 128 Tree Top Loop, Schuyler, Virginia 22969.
The final episode, titled “The Revel,” aired on June 4, 1981. In the episode, John-Boy goes to New York to pursue his writing career but arrives to find that his manuscript has been rejected. His publisher's secretary gives him enough money to return home and advises him to start a new book. He returned home dejected.
The Baldwin sisters were loosely based on a mother-daughter duo that was well-known in Hamner's family because “they had a love of alcohol.” Hamner changed the relationship, gave them sweet personalities and made them a bit loftier and more elegant than their down-home, real-life counterparts.
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| Michael Learned | |
|---|---|
| Learned in a publicity photo as Olivia Walton, 1972 | |
| Born | April 9, 1939 Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1961–present |
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.
Did the real Jim Bob Walton ever get married?
They tied the knot in real life in nuptials officiated by Walton dad Ralph Waite, a minister in real life. “He took it very seriously and did a really terrific ceremony,” Walmsley said.
“Good night, John-Boy.”
They pursue their relationship throughout the rest of the series. Drew goes away to college. Drew later returns to Walton's Mountain to work in the mill, and Elizabeth tells her father that she will eventually marry Drew.
Our hours are 10:00 am - 3:30 pm daily. Weekends only March April and November. Closed December thru February. Admission $10.00 per person, over 12.
The Waltons Hamner House is open seven days a week and guided tours begin every half hour from 10am until 4pm.
Learned reportedly decided to quit thinking she had enough money to sustain herself and her children but it proved otherwise in the future as she herself confessed. Michael Learned's exit from The Waltons was announced through tuberculosis of her character, Olivia Walton and her subsequent stay at the sanatorium.
Costars Allen and Thomas developed their deep romance during filming. In fact, it was likely due to their relationship that, months later, The Waltons cast Allen to play John-Boy's romantic interest in "The Love Story," an episode that aired late in the first season.
It's all about Family
The Hamner home, headed by Earl Hamner, Sr. and Doris Giannini Hamner, sheltered eight 'thoroughbred' siblings who were instilled with determination, tempered with gentility and a love of family.
2020 America's Richest Families Net Worth
The Waltons are the richest family in America thanks to their stake in Walmart, the world's largest retailer by sales. About half of Walmart's stock is held by seven heirs of founders Sam Walton (d. 1992) and his brother James "Bud" (d. 1995).
The family is waiting for their father (Ben Lawson) to return home for Christmas. “We made the decision to reduce it to six because we had so many characters in this movie that we had to service,” Haskell said.
Why was John-Boy replaced on The Waltons?
On The Waltons, he dealt with his real injury by walking with a cane. In The Waltons fifth season episode "The First Edition," John-Boy walks with a cane, and what many fans may not realize is that the actor Richard Thomas was acting through a real injury while filming.
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.
Michael Learned didn't like TV acting
The show indicates that she's being treated for tuberculosis in Arizona, but Learned didn't return to Walton's Mountain until the reunion films.
Grandma Walton was part of a close-knit Virginia family in the drama from writer Earl Hamner Jr. A stroke in 1977 forced Ms. Corby to curtail her work on the series. She was seen only occasionally and made her last appearance in 1979, although she was part of the 1997 special ''A Waltons Easter.
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.
Andrew Duggan (John Walton) 1988 at age 64 of throat cancer in Westwood, CA. Edgar Bergen (Grandpa) 1978 age 75 of a heart attack in Las Vegas, NV. Ellen Corby (Grandma) 1999 age 87 natural causes in Woodland Hills, CA. Dorothy Stickney (Miss Emily) 1998 age 101 at her home in NYC.
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. The romance was threatened when Curt was discovered not to have died after all, but the two decided their marriage had ended and divorced.
She attended boarding school in England where she realized she wanted to become an actor, according to IMDb. She met and married her first husband, actor Peter Donat, at the age of 17. She appeared in Shakespeare Festivals in Canada and the U.S., while raising her family.
James Robert "Jim-Bob" Walton (born June 13, 1924) is the youngest Walton boy, and the 6th child of Olivia Walton and John Walton. His twin, Joseph Walton, died at birth.
Where was Waltons Mountain filmed?
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.
During the end voice over , John boy states that Erin's marriage is as strong today as it was when they got married , but in A Walton Thanksgiving reunion , she is divorced and states that it was because she found out Paul was cheating on her .
Initially, the mother of seven moves to Washington D.C. to be with her eldest son John-Boy, who's injured while reporting on the war in Europe. But later in the series, it's revealed that Olivia is being treated for tuberculosis at a sanatorium in Arizona.
Rose Burton is a recurring character in The Waltons. She first appears in Season 8 as a cousin of Olivia. She has two grandchildren, Jeffrey and Serena, and all three of them move into the household to help when Olivia becomes ill.
John Boy and Daisy get together one evening after her performing at the theatre, and John Boy asks Daisy then to marry him. Although hesitant at first, she accepts.
The actors playing Ben and Cindy Walton both happily married but still became inseparable. One of the earliest appearances of Cindy Brunson Walton comes in one of the most emotional episodes of The Waltons, an episode called "Founders' Day."
People have been asking for more than four decades if "the family is real" and "is there a 'real' Walton's Mountain?" The answer is yes. Though the names might be different Earl Hamner based the show on his memories of growing up in rural Virginia with his family during the depression.
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Richard Thomas (actor)
| Richard Thomas | |
|---|---|
| Years active | 1958–present |
| Spouse(s) | Alma Gonzales ( m. 1975; div. 1993) Georgiana Bischoff ( m. 1994) |
| Children | 5 |
Andrew Duggan (John Walton) 1988 at age 64 of throat cancer in Westwood, CA. Edgar Bergen (Grandpa) 1978 age 75 of a heart attack in Las Vegas, NV. Ellen Corby (Grandma) 1999 age 87 natural causes in Woodland Hills, CA. Dorothy Stickney (Miss Emily) 1998 age 101 at her home in NYC.
During World War II while writing for "Stars and Stripes"magazine he becomes lost at sea. After suffering a bout of amnesia John-Boy returns to Europe and continues to write for the "Stars and Stripes" After the war he goes back to New York and submits a war novel to his publisher which gets rejected.
Did the Baldwin sisters really exist?
The Baldwin sisters were loosely based on a mother-daughter duo that was well-known in Hamner's family because “they had a love of alcohol.” Hamner changed the relationship, gave them sweet personalities and made them a bit loftier and more elegant than their down-home, real-life counterparts.
They tied the knot in real life in nuptials officiated by Walton dad Ralph Waite, a minister in real life. “He took it very seriously and did a really terrific ceremony,” Walmsley said.
The actors playing Ben and Cindy Walton both happily married but still became inseparable. One of the earliest appearances of Cindy Brunson Walton comes in one of the most emotional episodes of The Waltons, an episode called "Founders' Day."
Michael Learned didn't like TV acting
The show indicates that she's being treated for tuberculosis in Arizona, but Learned didn't return to Walton's Mountain until the reunion films.
Costars Allen and Thomas developed their deep romance during filming. In fact, it was likely due to their relationship that, months later, The Waltons cast Allen to play John-Boy's romantic interest in "The Love Story," an episode that aired late in the first season.
Her character's abrupt disappearance was explained by Olivia developing tuberculosis and entering a sanatorium in Arizona. She made occasional guest appearances until the show's cancelation and later appeared in four of the six Waltons reunion movies made during the 1980s and 1990s.
