Michael Landon disregarded Hollywood's traditional ways of doing business. He abhorred TV violence, preferring positive, hopeful family-oriented messages, wrote numerous scripts for physically and emotionally handicapped performers, and refused to be beholden to Hollywood or the press. He worked fast and under budget, split the savings with his crew, allowed them more family time, and earned their loyalties in the process. He also possessed a quick wit and enjoyed being sarcastic.

     Landon was born Eugene Maurice "Ugey" Orowitz on October 31, 1936, in Forest Hills, New York. He was the second child of Jewish father Eli Orowitz, an RKO Radio Pictures publicist, and Catholic mother Peggy O'Neill, a Broadway showgirl. When older sisters Evelyn and Eugene were children, the family moved to Collingswood, New Jersey, where he felt ostracized for being Jewish and his home life suffered due to his parents' tumultuous marriage.

     Eugene's prowess throwing the javelin earned him a University of Southern California scholarship in 1954. When Eugene began college his parents also moved to Los Angeles, where his father sought publicity work. Regrettably, Hollywood shunned Eli and he resorted to movie house management. He never recovered from Hollywood's rejection, and his devastation led to divorce. As an actor, Eugene said he could cry easily by remembering how his father was treated.

     After an arm injury cost him his scholarship, Eu­ gene accompanied a friend to a Warner Brothers audition. Both were unsuccessful, but Eugene, hoping to be discovered, took a gas station job near Warner Brothers and soon was invited to the studio's acting program. He chose "Michael Landon" from a phone book and with the new name appeared in B movies, dozens of TV series, and TV dramas such as Playhouse 90 and Studio One. He dabbled in music, recording Gimme a Little Kiss, Will Ya, Huh? in 1957 and touring with Jerry Lee Lewis, but B movies launched him into TV stardom. Landon landed the lead in 1957's I Was a Teenage Werewolf, an instant hit and cult classic. During the shooting of 1958's The Legend of Tom Dooley, he was injured using a knife and he learned his father died, but Tom Dooley was his big break. The film was panned, but his performance was lauded, and producer David Dortort was sufficiently impressed to create the Little Joe Cartwright character for Landon in his NBC western series Bonanza (1959-73).

     As the youngest of three Cartwright brothers, Little Joe was funny, caring, hotheaded, and handsome. Lorne Greene was the father of Ben Cartwright. Pernell Roberts (Adam) and Dan Blocker (Hoss) played his elder brothers. In appearance the brothers seemed totally unrelated, and in the series narrative it was explained that each had a different deceased mother. Off camera, as well, Greene became Landon's father figure, and Blocker was like a real brother. Roberts, however, rarely spoke to Landon. Believing Bonanza beneath his dignity, Roberts quit after six years.

     Although Bonanza gave Landon the opportunity to write and direct, his star status took a personal toll. In I 956, against his mother's wishes, he married Dodie Levy, a widow several years older. Endless weekend commitments following Bonanza's rigorous weeklong shooting schedule led Landon to alcohol and substance abuse, physical and mental collapse, and ultimately divorce. Landon adopted Dodie's son and two other boys, but returned the youngest to the adoption agency. The decision attracted little notice at the time, but when Landon lay dying 30 years later, tabloids exploited the story.

     Landon met divorcee model Lynn Noe, 26, an extra on Bonanza, whom he married in 1962. He adopted her daughter Cheryl and together they had four children. Landon modified his drinking and overcame his drug addiction. A 1973 automobile accident killed three friends and left Cheryl in a three-day coma and hospitalized for months. During his bedside vigil, Lan­ don promised God he would make the world better if she lived, and his subsequent work became filled with themes of hope, courage, forgiveness, friendship, and love.

     After Bonanza, Landon co produced, wrote, directed, and starred on NBC's Little House on the Prairie (1974-82), a series designed to compete with CBS's The Waltons. Co Producer Ed Friendly acquired the rights to and based the program on Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books. The pilot movie was telecast on March 30, 1974. Little House on the Prairie debuted in September 1974 and was instantly successful. NBC gave Landon total control of the series, which bore little resemblance to Ingalls's stories. As farmer Charles "Pa" Ingalls, Landon played a pioneer father in the 1880s Walnut Grove, Minnesota. His family included wife Caroline (Karen Grassle) and daughters Laura (Melissa Gilbert), Mary (Melissa Sue Anderson), Carrie (twins Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush-alternating), and Grace (Wendi and Brenda Turnbeaugh-alternating), who was added in 1977. The Ingalls later adopted other children. The stories were told through the narrative voice of daughter Laura.

     Landon's friend Victor French played neighbor Isaiah Edwards until leaving for ABC's Carter Country. Landon considered the departure a breach in their friendship, but after Carter Country's cancellation, the two reconciled and French returned to Little House. Landon ceased regular appearances in the ninth season, when the series became Little House: A New Beginning ( `982-83). In the narrative, Charles and Caroline moved to Iowa, leaving Walnut Grove to other family members.

     Landon's spousal relations starkly contrasted with his TV views on family. In 1981 his affair with Cindy Clerico, a Little House extra, led to a nasty divorce from Lynn, made worse by the tabloids. Landon and Clerico married in 1983 and had two children. He then created, produced, wrote, directed, starred in, and owned entirely NBC's Highway to Heaven ( 1984-89), in which he played angel Jonathan Smith sent to help people in trouble. Victor French co-starred as Mark Gordon, a down-on-his-luck ex-cop whose life was turned around by Jonathan. They traveled in Mark's old car, becoming tremendous friends while helping others. Highway to Heaven aired weekly until l988-89, when it appeared sporadically. French died of lung cancer in 1989.

     Landon starred in and/or produced several TV movies, including The Loneliest Runner (1976), Little House Years (1979), Little House on the Prairie: Look Back to Yesterday (1983), Love is Forever (1983), Sam's Son (1984), and Where Pigeons Go to Die (1990). He was executive producer of NBC's Father Murphy (1981-82).

     Early in 1991, Landon completed a pilot for Us, playing a recently released convict regaining his life. Before the series was initiated, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on April 3, 1991. On May 9, he made his last public appearance on The Tonight Show in the second-most watched installment during friend Johnny Carson's tenure. He died July 1, 1991, at 54, but remains an enduring figure in television history with a legacy of work reflecting his dedication to making a positive difference.