'Little House on the Prairie' child star says set was like 'Mad Men'
Alison Arngrim, who played Nellie Oleson on the Michael Landon-led series, is celebrating the show's 50th anniversary in Simi Valley, California.
"Little House on the Prairie" cast members aren't sure if a reboot is in the cards for them.
In celebration of the show's 50th anniversary, Karen Grassle, Alison Arngrim, Melissa Sue Anderson, Matthew Labyorteaux, Leslie Landon and Wendi Lou Lee came together at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival in Monaco.
While speaking at the panel, Grassle, who played Caroline Ingalls, the family matriarch on the show, touched on the possibility of the Ingalls appearing on-screen again in a rebooted version of the show.
"There have been lots of attempts to do a ‘Little House on the Prairie’ again," Grassle told People. "There have been shows, there have been a musical, and I think we had a unique experience, and it can't be repeated."
The cast of "Little House on the Prairie" doesn't think a reboot is in the cards. (D Dipasupil/Getty Images for Extra)
"I don't think you get to repeat this," she added later. "This is it. And fortunately, it was television, so they can just keep running it."
Grassle attributed part of the show's success to her co-star and on-screen husband, Michael Landon, who died in July 1991.
Not only did Landon star on the show as Charles Ingalls, he also acted as an executive producer and writer on the series, with Grassle referring to him as "a genius at casting and writing."
"He understood things about how to translate that material into television for the public that was beyond what most writers understand," she told the outlet. "And he had his thumb on the pulse of the public and understood what people were longing for, and you don't find that every day."
"Little House on the Prairie" followed a family of five as they navigated life on a farm in the 1870s. (NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
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In Grassle's opinion, they "were all so perfectly cast" in their roles, which is why the show worked as well as it did.
"Little House on the Prairie" followed the Ingalls family as they navigated life in Walnut Grove, Minnesota, in the 1870s. The family consisted of two parents and their three daughters, Mary, Laura and Carrie, who all lived together on the family farm.
The cast of characters also featured a whole town full of people which the Ingalls would interact with on a daily basis, including mean girl Nellie Oleson, who bullied the Ingalls girls, particularly Laura, while at school.
Arngrim, who portrayed Nellie, told Fox News Digital in March the cast was "stunned that this show became a hit," and also shared some fond memories of Landon.
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Alison Arngrim says she hasn't met anyone like Michael Landon since "Little House on the Prairie" ended. (NBCU Photo Bank)
"That was the most fun you could have on a set without getting arrested," she said. "[He was all about] the jokes, the foolishness, always wanting to make the kids laugh… and then being very supportive and respectful at the same time. And then being an absolute task master… all at the same time, all day long. I don’t think I’ve met anybody [else] quite like him."
The show was on the air for nine seasons, from 1974 to 1983, and was followed by three TV movies, including "Little House: Look Back to Yesterday," "Little House: Bless All the Dear Children" and "Little House: The Last Farewell."
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