Michael Landon - wikipedia Michael Landon Not to be confused with Michael Langdon. For his son, see Michael Landon Jr. Michael Landon Publicity still of Landon, c. 1960s Eugene Maurice Orowitz ( 1936 - 10 - 31 ) October 31, 1936 Queens, New York, U.S. July 1, 1991 ( 1991 - 07 - 01 ) ( aged 54 ) Malibu, California, U.S. Cause of death Pancreatic cancer Resting place Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery Alma mater University of Southern California Occupation Actor, director, producer, writer Years active 1956 -- 1991 Height 5 ft 9 in ( 175 cm ) Spouse ( s ) Dodie Levy - Fraser ( m. 1956 -- 1962 ) Marjorie Lynn Noe ( m. 1963 -- 1982 ) Cindy ( Clerico ) Landon ( m. 1983 ; his death 1991 ) Children 9, including Mark, Leslie, Michael Jr., Christopher, and Jennifer Michael Landon ( born Eugene Maurice Orowitz ; October 31, 1936 -- July 1, 1991 ) was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza ( 1959 -- 73 ), Charles Ingalls in Little House on the Prairie ( 1974 -- 83 ), and Jonathan Smith in Highway to Heaven ( 1984 -- 89 ). Landon appeared on the cover of TV Guide 22 times, second only to Lucille Ball. Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 2.1 Early work 2.2 45 rpm record singles 2.3 Bonanza 2.4 Little House on the Prairie 2.5 Highway to Heaven 2.6 Other projects 3 Personal life 4 Illness and death 5 Legacy 6 Awards and honors 7 References 8 External links Early life Landon was born Eugene Maurice Orowitz on October 31, 1936, in Forest Hills, a neighborhood of Queens, New York. His parents were Peggy ( née O'Neill ; a dancer and comedian ) and Eli Maurice Orowitz. Eugene was the Orowitz family 's second child ; their daughter, Evelyn, was born three years earlier. In 1941, when Landon was four years old, he and his family moved to the Philadelphia suburb of Collingswood, New Jersey. He attended and celebrated his Bar Mitzvah at Temple Beth Shalom. His family recalls that Landon `` went through a lot of hassle studying for the big event, which included bicycling to a nearby town every day to learn how to read Hebrew and do the praying. '' He attended Collingswood High School. During his childhood, Landon was constantly worrying about his mother attempting suicide. Once, the family vacationed at a beach. His mother tried to drown herself, but Michael rescued her. Shortly after the attempt, his mother acted as if nothing had happened. A few minutes later, Michael vomited. He said that it was the worst experience of his life. Stress overload from the suicide attempts of his mother caused Landon to battle the childhood problem of bedwetting, which was documented in the unauthorized biography, Michael Landon : His Triumph and Tragedy. His mother put his wet sheets on display outside his window for all to see. He ran home every day and tried to remove them before his classmates could see. These events later inspired Landon to write and direct the 1976 made - for - television movie The Loneliest Runner. In high school, Landon was an excellent javelin thrower, his 193 ′ 4 '' toss in 1954 being the longest throw by a high schooler in the United States that year. This earned him an athletic scholarship to the University of Southern California, but he subsequently tore his shoulder ligaments, ending his javelin throwing career and his participation on the USC track team. Career Early work Landon decided on his surname by choosing it from a phone book. His first starring appearance was on the television series Telephone Time, in the episode `` The Mystery of Casper Hauser '' ( 1956 ) as the title character. Other parts came : movie roles in I Was a Teenage Werewolf ( 1957 ), Maracaibo ( 1958 ), High School Confidential ( 1958 ), the notorious God 's Little Acre ( 1958 ), and The Legend of Tom Dooley ( 1959 ), as well as many roles on television, such as Crossroads ( three episodes ), The Restless Gun ( pilot episode aired on Schlitz Playhouse of Stars ), Sheriff of Cochise ( in `` Human Bomb '' ), U.S. Marshal ( as Don Sayers in `` The Champ '' ), Crusader, Frontier Doctor, The Rifleman ( in `` End of a Young Gun '', 1958 ), The Adventures of Jim Bowie, Johnny Staccato, Wire Service, General Electric Theater, The Court of Last Resort, State Trooper ( two episodes ), Tales of Wells Fargo, The Texan ( in the 1958 episode `` The Hemp Tree '' ), The Tall Man, Tombstone Territory ( in the episode `` Rose of the Rio Bravo '', with Kathleen Nolan ), Trackdown ( two 1958 episodes ), and Wanted : Dead or Alive, starring Steve McQueen ( in episodes `` The Martin Poster '', 1958, and `` The Legend '', 1959 ). Landon also appeared in the Zane Grey Theater episode `` Living is a Lonely Thing '' with Michael Rennie '' in 1959. Landon can be seen in an uncredited speaking role as a cavalry trooper in a 1956 episode of the ABC / Warner Bros. television series Cheyenne, an episode titled `` Decision. '' Two years later, Landon returned to that same series in `` The White Warrior ''. He was then cast as White Hawk a.k.a. Alan Horn, a young white man who, like Cheyenne Bodie, was raised by Indians after the slaughter of his parents. White Hawk rises to the occasion to help Cheyenne as he heads a wagon train to California amid the threat of the Apaches. 45 rpm record singles In 1957, Candlelight Records released a Michael Landon single, `` Gimme a Little Kiss ( Will `` Ya '' Huh ) `` / `` Be Patient With Me '' during the height of his notoriety for his role in the film, I Was a Teenage Werewolf. Some copies show the artist credited as the `` Teenage Werewolf '' rather than as Michael Landon. In 1962, both the A - and B - side of the record were re-released on the Fono - Graf label that included a picture sleeve of Landon 's then - current work on Bonanza as Little Joe Cartwright. In 1964, RCA Victor Records released another Landon single, `` Linda Is Lonesome '' / `` Without You ''. All of Landon 's singles have since been issued on compact disc by Bear Family Records as part of a Bonanza various artists compilation. Bonanza in Bonanza ( 1960 ) In 1959, at the age of 22, Landon began his first starring TV role as Little Joe Cartwright on Bonanza, one of the first TV series to be broadcast in color. Also starring on the show were Lorne Greene, Pernell Roberts, and Dan Blocker. During Bonanza 's sixth season ( 1964 -- 1965 ), the show topped the Nielsen ratings and remained number one for three years. Receiving more fan mail than any other cast member, Landon negotiated with executive producer David Dortort and NBC to write and direct some episodes. In 1962, Landon wrote his first script. In 1968, Landon directed his first episode. In 1993, TV Guide listed Little Joe 's September 1972 two - hour wedding episode ( `` Forever '' ), as one of TV 's most memorable specials. Landon 's script recalled Little Joe 's brother, Hoss, who was initially the story 's groom, before Dan Blocker 's death. During the final season, the ratings declined, and NBC canceled Bonanza in November 1972. The last episode aired on January 16, 1973. Along with Lorne Greene and Victor Sen Yung, Landon appeared in all 14 seasons of the series. Landon was loyal to many of his Bonanza associates including producer Kent McCray, director William F. Claxton, and composer David Rose, who remained with him throughout Bonanza as well as Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. Little House on the Prairie Landon as Charles Ingalls, 1974 The year after Bonanza was canceled, Landon went on to star as Charles Ingalls in the pilot of what became another very successful television series, Little House on the Prairie, again for NBC. The show was taken from a 1935 book written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, whose character in the show was played by nine - year - old actress Melissa Gilbert. In addition to Gilbert, two other unknown actresses also starred on the show : Melissa Sue Anderson, who appeared as Mary Ingalls, the oldest daughter in the Ingalls family, and Karen Grassle as Charles ' wife, Caroline. Landon served as executive producer, writer, and director of Little House. The show, a success in its first season, emphasized family values and relationships. Little House became Landon 's second - longest running series. The show was nominated for several Emmy and Golden Globe awards. After eight seasons, Little House was retooled by NBC in 1982 as Little House : A New Beginning, which focused on the Wilder family and the Walnut Grove community. Though Landon remained the show 's executive producer, director and writer, A New Beginning did not feature Charles and Caroline Ingalls. A New Beginning was actually the final chapter of Little House, as the series ended in 1983. The following year, three made - for - television movies aired. Melissa Gilbert said of her on - and off - screen chemistry with Landon, `` He was very much like a ' second father ' to me. My own father passed away when I was 11, so, without really officially announcing it, Michael really stepped in. '' When not working on the Little House set, Gilbert spent most of the weekends visiting Landon 's real - life family. She once said, `` The house was huge. We ran like banshees through that house, and Mike would hide behind doorways and jump out and scare us. '' Highway to Heaven After producing both `` Little House '' and later the Father Murphy TV series, Landon starred in another successful program. In Highway to Heaven, he played a probationary angel ( who named himself Jonathan Smith ) whose job was to help people in order to earn his wings. His co-star on the show was Victor French ( who had previously co-starred on Landon 's Little House on the Prairie ) as ex-cop Mark Gordon. On Highway, Landon served as executive producer, writer, and director. Highway to Heaven was the only show throughout his long career in television that he owned outright. By 1985, prior to hiring his son, Michael Landon, Jr., as a member of his camera crew, he also brought real - life cancer patients and disabled people to the set. His decision to work with disabled people led him to hire a couple of adults with disabilities to write episodes for Highway to Heaven. By season four, Highway dropped out of the Nielsen top 30, and in June 1988, NBC announced that the series would return for an abbreviated fifth season, which would be its last. Its final episodes were filmed in the fall of 1988. One aired in September, two in December, one in March 1989, and the remainder aired on Fridays from June to August. Co-star French would not live to see Highway 's series finale make it to air ; he died of advanced lung cancer on June 15, 1989, the disease which was only diagnosed two months before. Landon invited his youngest daughter, Jennifer Landon, to take part in the final episode. Other projects Landon at the 42nd Emmy Awards Governor 's Ball, September 1990 In 1973, Landon was an episode director and writer for the short - lived NBC romantic anthology series Love Story. In 1982, he co-produced an NBC `` true story '' television movie, Love is Forever, starring himself and Laura Gemser ( who was credited as Moira Chen ), about Australian photojournalist John Everingham 's successful attempt to scuba dive under the Mekong to rescue his lover from communist - ruled Laos in 1977. The real Everingham was cast as an extra in the film. Sam 's Son was a 1984 coming - of - age feature film written and directed by Landon and loosely based on his early life. The film stars Timothy Patrick Murphy, Eli Wallach, Anne Jackson, Hallie Todd, and James Karen. Karen previously worked for Landon in the made - for - television film Little House : The Last Farewell. After the cancellation of Highway to Heaven and before his move to CBS, Landon wrote and directed the teleplay Where Pigeons Go to Die. Based on a novel of the same name, the film starred Art Carney and was nominated for two Emmy awards. Up through the run of Highway to Heaven, all of Landon 's television programs were broadcast on NBC, a relationship of which lasted thirty consecutive years with the network. After the cancellation of Highway and due to a fallout with those within NBC 's upper management, he moved to CBS and in 1991 starred in a two - hour pilot called Us. Us was meant to be another series for Landon but, with his diagnosis on April 5 of pancreatic cancer, the show never aired beyond the pilot. Landon also appeared as a celebrity panelist on the premiere week of Match Game on CBS. Personal life Landon was married three times, and father to nine children. Dodie Levy - Fraser ( married 1956 ; divorced 1962 ) Mark Fraser Landon, born 1948 ( adopted ; Dodie 's biological son ), died 2009 Josh Fraser Landon, born 1960 ( adopted as infant ) Marjorie Lynn Noe ( married 1963 ; divorced 1982 ) Cheryl Lynn Landon ( born Cheryl Ann Pontrelli in 1953 ), Lynn 's daughter from her first marriage and was nine when her mother and Landon married. Leslie Ann Landon, born 1962. Michael Landon, Jr., born 1964. Shawna Leigh Landon, born 1971. Christopher Beau Landon, born 1975. Cindy Clerico ( married 1983 ), a makeup artist on Little House on the Prairie Jennifer Rachel Landon, born 1983. Sean Matthew Landon, born 1986. In February 1959, Landon 's father succumbed to a heart attack. In 1973, while a student at the University of Arizona, his eldest daughter Cheryl was involved in a serious car collision just outside Tucson, Arizona. The sole survivor out of four involved in the collision, Cheryl Landon was hospitalized with serious injuries and remained in a coma for days. In March 1981, Landon 's mother, Peggy, died. Landon was by his own admission a chain smoker and a heavy drinker. Illness and death Crypt of Michael Landon at Hillside Memorial Park In February 1991, Landon began to suffer severe abdominal pain while on a skiing vacation in Utah. On April 5, 1991, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which had metastasized to his liver and lymph nodes. The cancer was inoperable and terminal. On May 9, 1991, he appeared on The Tonight Show to speak about the cancer and to condemn the tabloid press for their sensational headlines and inaccurate stories, including the claim that he and his wife were trying to have another child. During his appearance, Landon pledged to fight the disease and asked fans to pray for him. On May 21, 1991, he underwent successful surgery for a near - fatal blood clot in his left leg. In June 1991, he appeared on the cover of Life Magazine after granting the periodical an exclusive private interview about his life, his family, and his struggle to live. On July 1, 1991, at age 54, Landon died in Malibu, California. Landon was interred in a private family mausoleum at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery, in Culver City, California. Michael 's headstone reads, `` He seized life with joy. He gave to life generously. He leaves a legacy of love and laughter. '' His son Mark 's remains were also interred there upon his death in May 2009. Legacy Landon 's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame A community building at Malibu 's Bluffs Park was named `` The Michael Landon Center '' following the actor 's death. Landon 's son, Michael Jr., produced a memorial special, Michael Landon : Memories with Laughter and Love, featuring the actor 's family, friends and co-stars : Bonanza co-star David Canary said that one word that described Landon was `` fearless '' in his dealings with network brass. Melissa Gilbert, who played his daughter on Little House said that the actor made her feel `` incredibly safe '' and that he was `` paternal ''. Often cited on the special was Landon 's bizarre sense of humor, which included having toads leap from his mouth and dressing as a superhero to visit a pizza parlor. In 1991, during Landon 's final Tonight Show appearance, Johnny Carson related how the actor took him back to a restaurant the two had dined at previously. Carson had been led to believe he accidentally ran over the owner 's cat in the parking lot during their first visit. When sitting down to eat the second time, Carson discovered that Landon had helped create a fake menu of dinner items featuring cat metaphors. A made - for - TV movie, Michael Landon, the Father I Knew, co-written and directed by his son Michael, Jr., aired on CBS in May 1999. John Schneider starred in the title role as Michael Landon, with Cheryl Ladd as Lynn Noe, and Joel Berti as Michael Landon, Jr. The biopic detailed, from Landon, Jr 's point of view, the personal emotional trauma he endured during his parents ' divorce, and his father 's premature death. The movie spanned a timeline from the 1960s through the early 1990s. A plaque and small playground referred to as the `` Little Treehouse on the Prairie '' was erected in Knights Park, a central park in Landon 's hometown of Collingswood. In 2011, the plaque was removed from the park by the borough and was later given to a local newspaper by an unnamed person. According to the Collingswood, NJ website, the plaque was removed during a fall cleanup with plans to return it to a safer location. The plaque was reinstated next to a bench in a safer location the following summer. Awards and honors Year Award / Organization Category / Honor Work Result Ref. 1969 Bambi Award TV Series International Bonanza ( shared with Lorne Greene, Dan Blocker, Pernell Roberts ) Won 1970 Bronze Wrangler Award Fictional Television Drama Bonanza episode : `` The Wish '' ( shared with director, producer and cast ) Won 1979 Golden Globe Award Best TV Actor -- Drama Little House on the Prairie Nominated 1980 Spur Award Best TV Script Little House on the Prairie episode : `` May We Make Them Proud '' Won 1984 Hollywood Walk of Fame Television Star at 1500 N. Vine Street Inducted 1984 Golden Boot Award Significant Contribution to the Western Genre Honored 1991 Youth in Film Award Michael Landon Award Outstanding Contribution to Youth Through Entertainment Honored 1995 Television Hall of Fame Significant Contribution to the Field of Television Honored 1998 National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum Western Performers Hall of Fame Inducted TV Land Award Most Memorable Mane Little House on the Prairie Nominated 2005 TV Guide 50 Sexiest Stars of All Time Ranked # 33 References Jump up ^ TV Guide, `` Michael Landon 's Final Days '' ( July 20, 1991, p. 3 ) ^ Jump up to : Weil, Martin ( July 2, 1991 ). `` TV Actor Michael Landon Dies ; Star of ' Bonanza, ' ' Little House ' ''. Washington Post. p. B04. ^ Jump up to : Flint, Peter B. ( July 2, 1991 ). `` Michael Landon, 54, Little Joe On ' Bonanza ' for 14 Years, Dies ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 2009 - 02 - 11. Jump up ^ Landon Wilson, Cheryl ( 1992 ). I Promised My Dad : An Intimate Portrait of Michael Landon by His Eldest Daughter. New York : Simon & Schuster. p. 28. Jump up ^ His Early Days Were Fun, Philadelphia Daily News, July 2, 1991. `` In a 1985 interview, Landon claimed he ate lunch alone at Collingswood High School, that he never had a date as a teen - ager because no Christian father in the town would allow his daughter to go out with a Jew. '' Jump up ^ secragt ( December 20, 1976 ). `` The Loneliest Runner ( TV Movie 1976 ) ''. IMDb. Retrieved November 3, 2014. Jump up ^ Track and Field News ( December 1953 ) Jump up ^ `` Bonanza single CD on Bear Family Records ''. Bear-family.de. Retrieved 2012 - 10 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Bonanza '' liner notes, Bear Family CD Collection Jump up ^ Love Is Forever on IMDb Jump up ^ Fallen Angel : Landon 's Tiff With NBC : Television : The veteran actor, producer and director has taken his new series to CBS after a run - in with NBC 's business affairs department., November 15, 1990, By DIANE HAITHMAN, latimes Jump up ^ `` Report on death of Mark Landon ''. Latimesblogs.latimes.com. May 11, 2009. Retrieved 2012 - 10 - 07. Jump up ^ `` Goodbye, Little Joe ''. People.com. Retrieved November 3, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Michael Landon, American Actor, Bonanza -- When Westerns Ruled ''. Trivia.ellenthorp.com. Retrieved November 3, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Bonanza Cast Biographies : Michael Landon ''. Ponderosascenery.homestead.com. Retrieved 2012 - 08 - 02. Jump up ^ Allan R. Ellenberger ( May 1, 2001 ). Celebrities in Los Angeles Cemeteries : A Directory. McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 108. ISBN 0786409835. Retrieved April 2, 2016. Jump up ^ Kevin Riordan ( January 4, 2012 ). `` Kevin Riordan : Landon plaque sidelined ; accounts vary ''. Philly.com. Retrieved 2012 - 08 - 02. Jump up ^ `` Michael Landon plaque and commemorative playground pickets reinstalled at Knight Park Collingswood, New Jersey ''. Collingswood.com. Retrieved 2013 - 02 - 03. Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Spur Award History : 1980 at the Wayback Machine ( archived March 22, 2007 ) Jump up ^ `` 13th Annual Youth in Film Awards ''. YoungArtistAwards.org. Archived from the original on March 4, 2011. Retrieved March 3, 2013. Jump up ^ `` Television Hall of Fame Honorees : Complete List ''. Jump up ^ TV Guide Book of Lists. Running Press. 2007. p. 202. ISBN 0 - 7624 - 3007 - 9. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Michael Landon. Biography portal New York portal New Jersey portal California portal Film portal Television portal Music portal Judaism portal Michael Landon on IMDb Michael Landon at Find a Grave Michael Landon Remembrance Project site archived at the Wayback Machine Television Hall of Fame Class of 1995 Michael Landon Richard Levinson and William Link Jim McKay Bill Moyers Dick Van Dyke Betty White International Emmy Founders Award Jim Henson ( 1980 ) Shaun Sutton / Roone Arledge ( 1981 ) Michael Landon ( 1982 ) Herbert Brodkin ( 1983 ) David L. Wolper ( 1984 ) David Attenborough ( 1985 ) Donald L. 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Abrams ( 2013 ) Matthew Weiner ( 2014 ) Julian Fellowes ( 2015 ) Shonda Rhimes ( 2016 ) VIAF : 8188118 LCCN : n85213028 ISNI : 0000 0001 1592 3017 GND : 119000504 BNF : cb13940072t ( data ) BIBSYS : 8004917 BNE : XX1053356 SNAC : w6cs37vd Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Michael_Landon&oldid=825846836 '' Categories : 1936 births 1991 deaths 20th - century American male actors 20th - century American businesspeople 20th - century American singers American male film actors American male singers American male javelin throwers American people of Irish descent American singers American male television actors American television directors American television personalities American television producers American television writers Burials at Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from pancreatic cancer International Emmy Founders Award winners Male actors from California Male actors from New Jersey Male actors from New York City Male television writers Male Western ( genre ) film actors Jewish American male actors Jewish American writers People from Collingswood, New Jersey People from Forest Hills, Queens People from the Greater Los Angeles Area University of Southern California alumni Western ( genre ) television actors Hidden categories : Webarchive template wayback links Use mdy dates from May 2017 Articles with hCards All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from November 2009 Articles with unsourced statements from May 2016 Find a Grave template with ID same as Wikidata Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Wikipedia articles with ISNI identifiers Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Wikipedia articles with BNF identifiers Wikipedia articles with BIBSYS identifiers Wikipedia articles with SNAC - ID identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia تۆرکجه Català Dansk Deutsch Eesti Ελληνικά Español Euskara فارسی Français Galego 한국어 Bahasa Indonesia Italiano עברית Magyar Malagasy Nederlands 日本 語 Norsk Polski Português Română Русский Simple English Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Suomi Svenska Türkçe Tiếng Việt Edit links This page was last edited on 15 February 2018, at 19 : 35. 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Question: who played charles on little house on the prairie
Answer: Michael Landon