Little House on the Prairie actress Lucy Lee Flippin, 82, is getting candid about playing Walnut Grove teacher, Eliza Jane Wilder.
During a September 2025 interview with Buzzfeed, Flippin, who joined the show’s cast during its 6th season, which premiered in 1979, specifically discussed her dynamic with her Little House on the Prairie castmate Michael Landon. As fans are aware, Landon not only starred as Charles Ingalls, also known as Pa, but also was an executive producer and occasionally a director for the series.
Flippin said after her initial meeting with the show’s casting director, Susan Sukman, she was instructed to make her hair and makeup look more “severe” and “plain” before meeting Landon. She said she followed Sukman’s instructions before reading an audition scene in front of Landon. According to Flippin, she found Landon’s “good” looks “rather distracting.”
After she performed the scene, Landon told her “to be more strict.”
“I did it again, and then I left. I didn’t hear anything for at least two weeks, so I thought, ‘Well, that’s the end of that.’ Apparently, they were trying to finish casting for [Eliza’s brother] Almanzo, so they had to get that nailed down before they offered me anything. So it turned out well!” said Flippin.
Lucy Lee Flippin Said She Found Michael Landon’s Sense of Humor Distracting
While speaking to Buzzfeed, Flippin said she had difficulty filming scenes with Landon because of his habit of playing pranks.
“Michael had such a wonderful sense of humor — I did not like being in any scene with him, because I could not concentrate,” explained Flippin during the Buzzfeed interview. “He had a knack for playing practical jokes, and I always thought maybe a turtle would jump out of his shirt or something! I did have a few scenes with him; there weren’t many, but they were usually very serious. [Laughs] I just remember thinking, ‘I cannot look at this man!'”
She also shared how Landon was as a director.
“Michael never really gave me much direction. He kind of left me alone and he called me sugar, which is adorable. That’s what my father used to call me!” said Flippin.
Melissa Gilbert Spoke About Her Close Bond With the Late Michael Landon
Landon remained on the cast of Little House on the Prairie until its 9th and final season, which began airing in 1982. Nine years after the show’s end, Landon died at the age of 54 following a battle with pancreatic cancer, as reported by People magazine.
In a February 2025 interview on The Edify Show, Gilbert said she was close to Landon’s children, specifically Michael Landon Jr.
“We went to school together. We vacationed together. Our parents went out on New Year’s Eve together. We got in trouble together. We got in mischief together. We were like cousins or siblings. Very, very close,” said Gilbert during the interview.
She also recalled Landon joining in on the fun during her childhood. According to Gilbert, he would playfully “throw food” like “spoonfuls of peas and potatoes” at her and his kids. She also said he would have her find frogs for him to scare his Little House on the Prairie castmates with.
“He’d lean over and say, ‘Half-pint get me [a frog].’ So I would go down to the pond and get a couple frogs and he would put them in his mouth. And usually he did it when there were women on the set kind of just standing there, ogling. Because he’s walking around with no shirt on and Pa pants and his boots and his suspenders. And they’re all swooning in the corner. And he’d go ‘Hi!’ And a frog would jump out [of his mouth],” recalled Gilbert with a smile.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Sep 12, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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