Written by John McGreevey; directed by Vincent Sherman.
Guests: Charlotte Stewart (Ruth Collier), Richard Kelton (Anson Collier), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Tami Bula (Marcia Wollery), Erica Hunton (Holly Collier), C.J. Mitchell (Dr. Dan Holloway).
The Carnival (First aired: 21st September 1972)
Although the Walton children had wanted to attend the carnival when it comes to Waltons Mountain, they decide to put the money to better use when Grandma breaks her glasses. They do end up meeting some of the carnival folk though, after the manager of the carnival leaves unexpectedly with the money from the carnival and four members of the troupe are left stranded and are living in a barn near the Walton home. Although Olivia is not happy with the idea of carnival people being in her home, John insists that they are invited for dinner. The family also help them by giving them other food and arranging a lift back to town for them, and the troupe members pay for the Walton's hospitality by giving them a private show. Olivia finds that even though she does not like their lifestyle, she finds that she does indeed have quite a bit in common with Belle, the trapeze artiste from the carnival, when she spots a tapestry in Belle's trunk.
Written by Nigel McKeand; directed by Alf Kjellin.
Guests: Gino Conforti (Pete Harris), Billy Barty (Tommy), Barbara Davis (Belle), John Harper (Marco), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Cindy Eilbacher (Martha Rose Coverdale), Arthur Peterson (Homer), Jay Ripley (Stan Holden).
The Calf (First aired: 28th September 1972)
The Waltons are happy when Chance the cow gives birth to a healthy calf. The one problem is that it is a bull, and not practical to keep, especially when John tells his family that it must be sold to pay for emergency repairs to the truck. The children, especially the younger ones though, have become very attached to it and are heartbroken to think of it leaving their family. John does indeed sell the calf to a neighbor for the much needed $9.00, but when Chance frets for her calf by bellowing loudly, continuously, he reconsiders and tries to buy the calf back, only to find that the price the neighbor is willing to sell it for, has increased. Jim Bob and Elizabeth decide to take the matter into their own hands and the neighbor calls in the sheriff.
Written by Jim Byrnes; directed by Harry Harris.
Guests: Leonard Stone (George Anderson), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges).
The Hunt (First aired: 5th October 1972)
John Boy has very mixed feelings about taking part in his first turkey hunt. He wants to show that he is grown up and can manage a gun just as well as any other man, and wants to show that he is able to provide food for the family, yet he doesn't know how he feels about taking another creatures life. He finally gets to look the turkey in the eye, but simply cannot pull the trigger, causing him to feel that he has embarrassed his father in front of their friends. He leaves the hunt to head back home, but finds that he does indeed need to shoot an animal, and take very quick action, when a bear threatens his father's life.
In the meantime, Mary Ellen is having her own dilemmas about growing up. She has been saving very hard to buy a catcher's mitt, which she is looking forward to sharing with her friend G.W. when they play catch together. G.W. suddenly becomes interested in girls though, and Mary Ellen thinks that perhaps she should buy a dress with the money, instead of the longed for catcher's mitt. When she tries the dress on at home, she realises that it doesn't suit her at all and she ends up going back to Ike's store to return the dress and get the catcher's mitt after all.
Written by John McGreevey; directed by Robert Butler.
Guests: Tom Peters (Charlie Sneed), Theodore Wilson (Hawthorn Dooley), James Nusser (Jake the Junkman), Cindy Eilbacher (Martha Rose Coverdale), David Doremus (G.W. Haines).
NOTE: On the video box, this episode is mentioned as being the first episode of the
series. It definitely did not air first, but perhaps it may have been made first and
intended to be the one which aired first. It does introduce the Walton family very well.
The Typewriter (First aired: 12th October 1972)
John Boy has written a story and Miss Hunter suggests that a magazine might be interested in publishing it. It is returned, however, with a note telling him that they only accept type written manuscripts. John-Boy then secretly borrows a museum piece typewriter from the Baldwin sisters, but has to hide it, knowing that his mother would not approve of anything which came from the Baldwin's.
He is horrified when he learns that his sister has innocently found it with other junk and sold it to a junkman and he is left to tell the Baldwin's that their prized possession was sold as junk. Mary Ellen however, goes to great pains to track down the whereabouts of the typewriter though, and eventually she is able to rebuy it and return it to the sisters.
Written by Theodore Apstein; directed by Philip Leacock.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Joe Conley (Ike
Godsey), George Tobias (Vernon Rutley), Mariclare Costello (Miss Hunter), John Crawford
(Sheriff Bridges), Harry Hickok (Junkyard Owner), Robert Shayne (Clerk), John Hawker
(Janitor), Elizabeth Harrower (Office Superviser).
The Star (First aired: 19th October 1972)
One summer night, while they are out in the garden at dusk, the Walton family see a falling star and become very excited when they realise that it has landed somewhere nearby. It has, in fact, gone through the roof of the Baldwin sisters recipe room, and landed in the floor next to the recipe machine. Zeb Walton, however, still believes in the old superstition that a falling star means eminent death and he believes that his time has come so he takes to his bed to await his death.
In the meantime, however, the Baldwin ladies become the victims of a hoax by their cousin, Polonius, and his friend, who initially come visiting after hearing about the meteorite, thinking that there is some money to be made from it. They decide that they would be better though, trying to take the recipe machine away from the sisters, and make their money that way. When Grandpa hears about their scam, he immediately goes to help the ladies out and eventually their two visitors leave empty handed.
Written by John McGreevey; directed by Alf Kjellin.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Iggie Wolfington
(Polonius Baldwin), Jack Collins (Col. Henderson), Mariclare Costello (Miss Hunter), Byron
Morrow (Dr Shackleford), Cindy Fisher (Nancy), Peter Haas (Mark), Jill Giraldi (Melanie).
The Sinner (First aired: 26th October 1972)
Twenty year old Reverend Matthew Fordwick, straight out of bible school, arrives to stay and preach, at the Waltons Mountain church. While on Waltons Mountain, he is staying as a guest of the Walton family. His stay causes friction between John and Olivia though, when Olivia feels that he is making fun of Rev Fordwick and undermining what she is telling the children. John, however, tries to tell Rev Fordwick that the mountain folk are just simple folk who don't like to be shouted out and don't understand speeches that aren't spoken in plain language. John also becomes upset with him when he shouts that the children are wicked and sinful. All the time that the Reverend is staying with them, John Boy is trying to come to terms with what "sin" really is and why it is so bad. Yancy Tucker also appears in this episode, and reaffirms Olivia's beliefs that drinking whisky is sinful when he arrives in the barn after sampling the recipe, and knocks over a lantern, setting the barn alight.
Matthew discovers that he is a distant cousin of the Baldwin sisters, and visits with them, along with Grandpa…and of course, they offer a "sip of the recipe", which results in Matthew becoming drunk. The ladies believe that their "recipe" is nothing more than cordial. Needless to say, the Waltons Mountain folk witness his drunken state and Matthew feels so ashamed that he contemplates leaving the ministry, until John Walton steps in and makes him realise that ministers are human too, and are prone to make all kinds of mistakes. John actually joins him in going to the church service and encourages the others there to give him a go and to understand that everyone sins, even those preaching the Lord's words.
Written by John Furie Jnr; directed by Philip Leacock.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), John Ritter (Rev Matthew Fordwick), Collin Wilcox Horne (Rev Ethel Prissom), Robert Donner (Yancy Tucker).
NOTE: We discover that Matthew is the Baldwin's second cousin on their mother's side, and that they refer to the recipe and a "herbal recipe". The Judge was 87 when he died.
LOOK FOR: There is a funny "blooper" to watch for in this episode. Matthew is late and the children tell their father that they have been waiting for him since lunchtime, and Olivia is unhappy about the children going swimming with their father because it is the "Sabbath afternoon", however when Matthew arrives he jumps out of the car and says "Mornin" to them all.
The Boy From CCC (First aired: 2nd November 1972)
Gino, a young boy from the slums of New York, has run away from a CCC camp. He lands at the Walton house when he is found in the woods and injured, by John Boy and Elizabeth. Gino finds it very hard to accept the kindness and generosity offered to him by the family as his background has made him suspicious of everyone. He is caught stealing their money one night and John is about to place him with the Sheriff, however when Elizabeth is facing a crisis of her own, John reassesses Gino when he sees how caring and kind he is towards Elizabeth.
Written by William Welch; directed by Harry Harris.
Guest: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Michael Rupert (Gino).
The Ceremony (First aired: 9th November 1972)
A Jewish family, Professor Mann, his wife Eva, and their son Paul are refugees who have fled from Nazi Germany. They had left Germany because, being Jewish, they had begun to be persecuted, so they try to live in an isolated mountain cabin on Waltons Mountain, in the hope that they will be able to finally have a normal life once more.
When Jim Bob and Ben accidentally use their sling shot and the stone goes through the window, the family begin to believe that they are being persecuted in their new home as well. To try to avoid any further problems they decide that they must pretend that they are not Jewish and that they should no longer observe their Jewish customs. Paul is devastated though, because he has long been looking forward to celebrating his Bar mitzvah on his 13th birthday. After he confides in the Walton children, John Boy sets about helping him to fulfill his dream and finally it is arranged that Paul's special ceremony will be celebrated in the Walton home, with the Mann's new friends present.
Written by Nigel McKeand; directed by Vincent Sherman.
Guests: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Noah Keen (David Mann), Ellen Geer (Eva Mann), Radames Pera (Paul Mann), Saul Silverman (Rabbi).
LOOK FOR: Ellen Geer, playing the role of Eva Mann, makes her first guest appearance in this episode. Ellen is a well respected actress and is, in real life, Will Geer's daughter.
The Legend (First aired: 16th November 1972)
John Walton is thrilled when he receives his first telegram, from an old army friend called Tip Harrison, who arrives on the Mountain for a visit. He comes full of stories and memories of how things were during the old days. However he is still living in the past, while John has got on with his life. Tip is also very irresponsible and finds it difficult to take responsibility for his actions.
He drinks too much, and is quite careless about his cigarette butts. Jason is tending a fire for his father, which he puts out properly, but because a fire flares in the vicinity of Jason's fire, he takes the blame for it. It was, in fact, Tip's cigarette butt that caused the second fire, but he is too cowardly to say so. He also goes up on the mountain with John and John Boy, who are trying to track down the fox who has been after Olivia's chickens. He accidentally shoots Reckless, the Walton family dog, and just leaves him for dead, telling John and John Boy that they should just head home and Reckless will follow. Fortunately his conscience finally gets the better of him and he ends up telling John the truth, both about Reckless and the fire, and they find Reckless on the mountain before he dies. John, however, finds it very hard to believe that his great friend would let his Jason take the blame for something that Tip did.
Written by John McGreevey; directed by Lee Philips.
Guest: James Antonio (Tip Harrison).
The Literary Man (First aired: 30th November 1972)
John Boy Walton meets A.J. Covington, when his truck breaks down and A.J. stops to help him fix it. He tells John Boy that he is a writer, and John Boy is so fascinated by meeting his first writer that he takes him home to meet his family. When he says that he has done a little saw milling work, he suggests that John might keep him on to help fill an order of timber, and pay him in room and board. During the time that he is with the Walton family, he keeps John Boy entertained by telling him stories of adventures he has had, and writers that he has known. Unfortunately though, on their trip to the mountain to get more logs for the timber contract they are working on, John Boy and A.J. get a bit too involved with editing John Boy's work that they forget to cut enough wood for the rest of the men at home to cut into timber.
Grandma appears to think that A.J. is just telling John Boy stories to make himself appear better in John Boy's eyes, so when he suggests that he look at Jim Bob's severe stomach ache, she is quite skeptical. He suggests though that Jim Bob has appendicitis, and realises that Jim Bob needs to go urgently to the hospital to have his appendix removed. Before he leaves the Walton home, he gives the following advice to John Boy: write about what he knows…his life, his family, his friends.
Written by Colley Kibber; directed by Philip Leacock.
Guest: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), David Huddleston (A.J. Covington), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Victor Izay (Doctor Vance).
NOTE 1: This episode won for Gene Fowler Jnr., Marjorie Fowler & Anthony Wollmer an Emmy for Cinematography for a Single Episode of a Drama Series.
NOTE 2: The character of A.J. Covington once more in an episode during season 4, called The Abdication.
The Dust Bowl Cousins (First aired: 7th December 1972)
Cousins of the Waltons, Ham Denby, wife Cora, and son Job move in with the family on Waltons Mountain, after they have failed to make a go of it on their land in Kansas. There was no rain and the land just "blew away". Ham and his son though are also dishonest and try to get what they can out of everybody, even to the extent of stealing from Ike. Even though the Walton family are struggling financially themselves, they feel that it is their duty to take in the homeless relatives, but emphasise that the arrangement will only be temporary. Ham keeps saying that he is expecting news of a job by the end of the month.
Once he is living at the house though, Ham becomes very settled and does not want to leave. Instead he has his eye on working John Boy's Meadow. When he finds out that the land was originally divided equally among the Walton children, that is Zeb's brothers and sisters, he wonders what happened to Cora's father's share of the land, and feels that he and his family is entitled to it. Further conflict arises when Job is found to be causing trouble for Mary Ellen and becomes involved in a fight with John Boy. Erin too, has noticed that Ham has stolen from Ike, and unfortunately, the letter regarding the promised job never arrives. By this time Cora feels that they have caused enough of a strain between the Walton family and that their welcome has been worn out so the family pack their things and leave.
Written by Paul Savage; directed by Robert Butler.
Guests: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Robert Donner (Yancy Tucker), Warren Vanders (Ham Denby), Jay MacIntosh (Cora Denby), Ken Wolger (Job Denby).
NOTE: This episode was won an award given by the Directors Guild of America for the Best Direction in a Dramatic Series.
The Reunion (First aired: 14th December 1972)
John Boy is trying to earn some money to buy a second hand washing machine for his mother. When the Baldwin sisters offer him a job helping them around their home, he feels that he can't say no, yet he also knows that if and when his mother finds out, she would definitely not approve. The Baldwin ladies are well known for their "recipe", of which both Olivia and Esther disapprove.
Their cousin Homer Lee has come to visit them, and he encourages them to plan a Baldwin family reunion, and naturally, they need to make extra stocks of the recipe for all the expected guests. Homer has a police record though, unbeknownst to the ladies, and is planning to steal their stocks of the recipe and sell it. The Sheriff hears that he is in town and asks John Boy to keep an eye on things, including letting him know if anything happens.
On the day of the big reunion we find that Homer Lee has taken off in the Walton truck with all of the recipe. The Baldwin ladies are further disappointed when nobody arrives for their reunion. John Boy races home to collect the rest of his family, and after pleading with his mother, she finally consents to allow the whole family to go and visit the Baldwin sisters.
Written by Earl Hamner; directed by Jack Shea.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Denver Pyle (Cousin Homer Lee), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Adele Clair (Daisy Burgess), Iler Rasmussen (Frank Winston).
The Minstrel (First aired: 21st December 1972)
Thirteen year old Mary Ellen has begun to feel particularly restless with her life on Waltons Mountain, fearing that she will stay there forever, but she longs to travel, even just to Virginia Beach to see and taste the ocean. She literally bumps into a young folk singer who wanders around trying to collect folk songs from all over the place, and finds that his lifestyle is far more appealing than her own. She spends the day with Jamie, taking him to meet old Maude Gormley, who knows many of the songs of the mountain, even though the rest of her family are busy picking apples for a nearby orchard owner. They fear that they won't make their deadline though, when John Boy falls and breaks his wrist, and Mary Ellen, although feeling guilty about her attitude still doesn't really want to help. Instead she decides that Jamie's life would be better for her and she runs off to be with him.
Jamie calls her a kid though and so she runs off from him as well, but fortunately John Boy finds her and takes her home again. Even though she hasn't helped a great deal with the apple picking, the family all pitch in part of their earnings to pay to send Mary Ellen to visit Washington, which seems to cure her longing for other places for a while.
Written by John Furia Jr.; directed by Philip Leacock.
Guests: Peter Hooten (Jamie), Regis J. Cordic (Mr. Pickett), Merie Earle (Maude Gormley).
The Actress (First aired: 4th January 1973)
Alvira Drummond, a famous actress, arrives on Waltons Mountain and is forced to stay there when her Cadillac breaks down. John Boy meets her when he has been asked by her driver, to help tow the car to a garage for repairs. The driver, however, is tired of her tantrums and not being paid his wages, and takes off, leaving Alvira on the mountain with nowhere to stay. John Boy invites her to come home with him and she is asked to stay while the car is being repaired. Needless to say, the Walton family have never quite met anyone like her before and some of her comments and ways are quite new to them.
When Alvira discovers that her chauffeur has absconded, she tells the family that he has taken all of her money and jewelry, leaving her with nothing. When she phones her agent for help though, and asks him to send her the money for a train fare, he hangs up on her and Fanny Tatum spreads the news around. Miss Emily Baldwin pops in with a gift of the recipe and after Alvira becomes drunk, Olivia declares that she should leave. Whilst the adults are talking harshly about her, she overhears and decides that she needs to make changes to her life. With the Walton family behind her she is encouraged to raise money for her train fare home by giving the people of Waltons Mountain a one woman show. It is during this show that she reads a piece out of John Boy's journal.
Written by William Best; directed by Vincent Sherman.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Pippa Scott (Alvira Drummond), Ray Sutton (Rex McKay), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Dorothy Neuman (Fanny Tatum).
LOOK FOR: The character of Fanny Tatum appears very briefly in this episode. The character returns as a semi regular from Season 5 but is played by a different actress.
LOOK FOR: Grandma telling Alvira when she lights up her cigarette after tea that:
"If the good Lord had've intended people to smoke he'd have put a chimney on the tops of their head."
NOTE: This episode was nominated for an Emmy for the Make Up. The make up artist involved was Robert A. Sidell.
The Fire (First aired: 11th January 1973)
One of the people of Waltons Mountain, Lutie Bascomb, has fallen on hard times. His wife has left him and he no longer trusts his daughter. When Miss Hunter begins to teach the class about Darwin's theory of evolution, he does not believe that it is good for his daughter to learn this and so he arrives at the school, threatening Miss Hunter. After going on a drinking binge he decides to set fire to the school, but he collapses and is killed in the fire which burns down the school. The Sherriff finds his daughter at home and eventually Lois May is reunited with her mother.
Written by Earl Hamner; directed by Harry Harris.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Mariclare Costello (Miss Hunter), Theodore Wilson (Hawthorne Dooley), Laurie Prange (Lois May Bascomb), Richard Bradford (Lutie Bascomb), Scott McCartor (Beaumont), Mark Montgomery (Addison), Lisa Eilbacher (Jeanett), Nancy Jervis (Mother).
The Love Story (First aired: 18th January 1973)
John-Boy discovers that young Jenny Pendleton has run away from her home in Richmond and is staying at her father's place on Waltons Mountain, the old Pendleton place. She tells John and John Boy that her father has remarried and that she feels that there is no room in her father's life for her at present, so she decided to move back to the Mountain for a while. The Walton family take Jenny into their home and notify the Sherrif. It seems as if the Walton's are the answer to Jenny's dream of being a member of a large family. Jenny's father and stepmother arrive looking for her and decide to stay a while in their home. Jenny and John Boy fall in love, however both Jenny's and John Boy's world is shattered when an accident claims the life of Jenny's father and she and her stepmother return to their home in Richmond.
Written by Earl Hamner; directed by Lee Philips.
Guests: John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Byron Morrow (Doc Shackleford), Sian Barbara Allen (Jenny Pendleton), Diane Shalet (Eula Pendleton), Gordon Rigsby (Dave Pendleton).
LOOK FOR: John Boy playing a dulcimer and singing a folk song to Jenny. As a going away present, Jenny buys John Boy a dulcimer of his own.
NOTE 1: This episode was nominated for two Emmy awards: one for Lee Philips as best director and the other for Earl Hamner Jnr. as best writer.
NOTE 2: Sian Barbara Allen was to return in season 2 to reprise her role as Jenny Pendleton during the two hour episode of The Thanksgiving Story.
The Courtship (First aired: 25th January 1973)
It is spring of 1933 when Olivia's uncle, Cody Nelson, comes to stay on the mountain. He had lost his job when the bank that he had worked in closed, and he had decided to visit for a while. He is a very timid man and during his stay John Boy and Grandpa decide to play matchmaker. He meets Cordelia Hunnicut who has been married four times, and much to the disapproval of Grandma and Olivia, love blossoms. He eventually asks for her hand in marriage and Reverend Fordwick performs the marriage ceremony for them before the happy couple return to Ohio.
Written by Jeb Rosebrook; directed by Harry Harris.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), John Ritter (Reverend Fordwick), Eduard Franz (Cody Nelson), Danna Hansen (Cordelia Hunnicut).
The Gypsies (First aired: 1st February 1973)
A band of gypsies are travelling through Waltons Mountain when they become stranded because stormy weather has damaged the roof of their caravan and a wheel has fallen off. They break into the empty Baldwin house to try to shelter from the storm. The Baldwins have asked John Boy and Jason Walton to watch over their house while they are away, and when they discover the gypsies at the house, they go to call the sheriff. Matt Beckwith, a newer resident of Waltons Mountain, does not trust gypsies though, and tries to make trouble for them. After being told they are trespassing and given that their baby is sick, John Boy invites them to camp out on Walton land.
The Waltons try to be friendly with the gypsies but they are proud and their attitude is "We ask for nothing, we take nothing", and this includes Grandma's offer of help to nurse the baby. When the baby does become worse though, and almost stops breathing, Grandma is able to help him recover, and gradually the gypsy family comes to trust the Waltons, and a friendship does form between them.
Written by Paul Savage; directed by Harry Harris.
Guests: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Gregory Sierra (Volta), Celia Lovsky (Zena), Barry Miller (Craska), Karen Kondan (Franzia), Victor Argo (Zvelei), William Bramley (Matt Beckwith).
The Deed (First aired: 8th February 1973)
The Walton family needs to find $200 to register their legal right to their land after they have learnt that their land has never been registered and another lumber company is looking at it for part of their development. John Boy decides to go to the city to try to help the family come up with the money. At home the rest of the family is also trying to gather money together. It is John Boy's encounter with some thieves in the city though, which helps to secure the Waltons property.
Written by James Menzies; directed by Vincent Sherman.
Guests: Jenny Sullivan (Cissy), Randall Carver (Monty), George Tobias (Vernon Rutley), Robert Donner (Yancy Tucker), Shirley O'Hara (Mrs. Vandenberg), Garry Walberg (Mr. Guffy), Lew Brown (Mr. Tinker), Robert Karnes (Mr. Moffatt), Russ Grieve (Police Sargeant), Seamon Glass (Bartender), Bob Stephens (Robber #1), Bob Bralver (Robber #2), Stan Brown (Ringside Announcer).
The Scholar (First aired: 22nd February 1973)
Verdie Grant, a neighbor of the Walton family, is illiterate, a fact that she has tried to keep a secret. Her daughter is about to graduate from college though, and she plans to go to visit for the graduation, and wants nothing more than to be able to sign her name on the register, and be able to read the menu when she goes out to dinner. She sees how patient John Boy is when he is teaching Elizabeth to read and write and feels that he will be the perfect teacher for her.
Her chance comes when Olivia and Esther go visiting relatives for a wedding and Erin becomes sick and needs her tonsils removed. Verdie is asked to look after Erin while the women of the family are away. John Boy begins teaching her how to read and write as part of a game of playing school with Elizabeth. Verdie eventually does tell John Boy the truth, and the two continue with their lessons, with John Boy under strict instructions not to tell anybody. Word does get back to Verdie though, when Elizabeth tells her school teacher, Miss Hunter, that she couldn't do her homework because John Boy was using her book to teach Mrs Grant to read.
Written by John McGreevey; directed by Lee Philips.
Guests: Lynn Hamilton (Verdie Grant), Mariclare Costello (Miss Hunter), Royce Wallace (Alice), Kerry Mac Lane (Henry).
NOTE: This episode the winner of the Emmy for Writer of a Drama Series for a Single Program.
The Bicycle (First aired: 1st March 1973)
Olivia has been asked to sing a solo with the church choir, and this requires that she practice each afternoon. She is feeling very restless and tied down so accepts the invitation. When she sees a bicycle that Ike has been fixing up, she can't resist the urge to try it out, and on her way to her rehearsals, she dreams that one day she will become a famous opera singer.
At the same time, Ann Harris arrives on the mountain to marry Curtis Norton, to whom she has been writing for some time. Unbeknownst to Ann though, is that it has been John Boy who has been writing the letters. Well not exactly writing the letters, but helping Curtis to find different, and more romantic ways to say what he is feeling in his heart. Ann finds Curtis, his house and his life on Waltons Mountain a bit of a disappointment though and not at all as she had imagined. She had imagined a movie-like marriage on Waltons Mountain. She is ready to leave Curtis, when she discovers that it was not Curtis writing the letters at all. She is angry that both John Boy and Curtis have deceived her but, with Olivia's help, she finally realises that life is not like the movies, and that even movie stars don't speak their own lines. She takes off on Olivia's bike to try and catch Curtis to tell him that she really wants to stay with him.
Written by Nigel McKeand; directed by Alf Kjelin.
Guest: Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), Ned Beatty (Curtis Norton), Ivy Jones (Ann Harris), Lou Frizzell (Everett Cooper), Ruth Warshawsky (Martha Sheffield), Patsy Garrett (Lady), Kathleen O'Malley (Sarah Tyler).
NOTE: The characters of Curtis and Ann Norton appear again in Season 2 in the episode The Fulfillment.
The Townie (First aired: 8th March 1973)
Sarah is a neighbor, and a good friend of John-Boy's, who lives with her very religious mother. She sees marriage to John-Boy as a way of getting away from her repressive mother. When John-Boy doesn't take her marriage plans seriously, she begins a relationship with a "townie", Theodore Albert Claypool Jnr, the son of a wealthy businessman. The two of them decide to elope and they take off one night with the son stealing cash from his father, as well as his father's car. Both Sarah's mother and Theodore's father blame John-Boy for them running off together, and so he sets out to find them before they can tie the knot.
Written by Richard Fuller; directed by Jack Shue.
Guests: Mariclaire Costello (Miss Hunter), Sissy Spacek (Sarah Simmons), Nicholas Hammond (Theodore Claypool Jr.), Allyn Ann McLerie (Widow Simmons), John Myhers (Theodore Claypool), Bill McLean (Mr Purdy), Kelly Yagerman (Amanda), Mike McGaughy (Homer), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges).
LOOK FOR: The character of Theodore Junior. You might recognise the name of the actor who plays him. He is Nicholas Hammond. A bit earlier he played the part of Friedrich in the film version of The Sound of Music.
LOOK FOR: Sissy Spacek in this early role. She went on to make many films and win an Academy Award for her role in The Coal Miner's Daughter.
The Easter Story (First aired: 19th April 1973) (Two hour episode)
One Sunday in February was the beginning of a very long and frightening leadup towards Easter. Olivia became ill after church and it was determined that she had polio. She, and her family refused to believe that she would never walk again and although the whole family were scared by the knowledge that Livvy might never fully recover, they provided her with much needed support.
From her bed Olivia helps Mary Ellen prepare for her first dance, making her a dress and helping her to teach G.W. to dance. Jason is also preparing for an amateur contest which he hopes to win and has written a song for it which he practises. He has based it on the rhythm Grandma gets when she's ironing.
John Boy was instrumental in finding out as much as he could about new polio treatments, and these were tried on Olivia, but it seems as if all their efforts are in vain and that his mother will have to begin getting used to the well meaning gift the Baldwin sisters delivered to her...a wheelchair. She does get up to walk by Easter, however, when she gets out of bed to go to tend to Elizabeth, whom she believes has called out to her.
Written by John McGreevey; directed by Philip Leacock.
Guests: Mary Jackson (Miss Emily), Helen Kleeb (Miss Mamie), Joe Conley (Ike Godsey), John Ritter (Rev Matthew Fordwick), John Crawford (Sheriff Bridges), Don Collier (Dr. Miller), Victor Izay (Dr. Vance), David Doremus (G.W. Haines), Joseph Bernard (Snyder), Ann Carol Pearson (Admissions Clerk), Joe Frank Carollo (Tom).
NOTE: This two part episode has aired in Australia as a movie called A Walton Crisis.
LOOK FOR: The song sung by Jason in this episode for the talent show, called Ironing Board Blues. It was written and performed by Jon Walmsley.
LOOK FOR: The Ladies Guild at Olivia's church delivering a beautiful friendship
quilt to her during this episode. They have each signed their name in the square they have
sewn.
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