Hi everyone,

I can't believe that we're nearly into August already. Only 2 weeks of our school term have finished and I feel like it should nearly be time for holidays already!

Seriously though, I have been looking ahead to our commitments during August and early September, and have made the decision to put the digest out once a fortnight for this term. Let me just explain why. You would all know that James is in his final school year. Well during this term is when all the Universities and Colleges have their open days. James is relying on going to some of these so that he can decide on his final preferences for where he wants to go to University and which courses he wishes to apply for. Applications must be in by the end of September. Basically then, what this means is that we are going to be away for several weekends in August, and it is during the weekends that I usually do the Digest.

Add to this that things have suddenly become far more demanding at work (yes, I'm definitely overworked and underpaid!!!) with a lot of things during August that I'm organizing as we lead up to Children's Book Week towards the end of August, and the fact that James has some extra performances and eisteddfords as he prepares for his music and theatre studies performance exams early next term, and spare time is looking very precious indeed.

So with all of that in mind, the digest will go out once each fortnight until the end of term 3, which I believe is about 8 weeks away.

There has been talk over the past couple of weeks about the photos of the Waltons house and the related houses which appear on the following site:

http://www.1164.com/ranch/photos/waltons/index.html

A few people seem to have been confused by the Baldwin house being known as Sheila's house. The website www.1164.com is called 1164 Morning Glory Drive, Westport, Connecticut. Now I'm not entirely sure, but I'm assuming that the site is partly a Bewitched fan site, as they have many references to Bewitched on there, and we found it when another Waltons reader visited a Bewitched Forum. Anyway the webmasters have obviously visited the Warner Bros Ranch because their beautiful photos have come from there. And this is where we Walton fans come in...the Walton home is there, and also the Sheila home. I'm told that the Baldwin home is the same one that can be seen in Bewitched, that was occupied in that series, by Sheila...hence the name. Since I'm not a Bewitched fan I have no idea who Sheila even was. The Baldwin ladies would have got a kick out of living in a home owned by a witch though, if this was the case. LOL So I hope this explanation has cleared it up for everyone. I'm just thrilled to see such clear pictures on the internet of the Walton and Walton related houses. Next best thing to being there!

That's it from me today. Goodnight everyone,

Karen.

Hi,

I have a question for those of you who have been to see the set of the Waltons house. Is there anything in the house? Is there actually a second floor, or just second floor windows? And speaking of TV show houses, I was surprised to see that the Bewitched House actually looked like a house inside. Even as empty and in need of repair as it was in the pictures, you could clearly tell that it was the house in Bewitched. I'd also be interested in what house was used for the Northridge home, and the home used in the episode "The Theft" where John is accused of stealing the silver.

Nancy

KAREN'S COMMENT: Not having seen The Waltons for some time, can anyone tell me whether the inside of the Baldwin home shown on The Waltons was the same as the inside (the foyer) we see in the pics? I was surprised to see it too actually. Does anyone know about the homes Nancy mentions?

There were some things I wanted to share and perhaps I could get help on. On a recent visit to the Bewitched website, I was reading the bio of Erin Murphy, the actress who played Samantha and Darrin's witch daughter Tabitha.

After Bewitched was cancelled in 1972, it seems that young Erin was offered a part on The Waltons but turned it down in favor of a more "normal" childhood away from a Hollywood set. Could Erin Murphy have possibly been offered the role that went to Kami Cotler, "Elizabeth Walton" even though Erin Murphy had blond hair when Earl Hamner wanted red-haired actors and actresses? Somebody help me out on this. Another oddity : Erin Murphy and Kami Cotler were born exactly one year apart on June 17th of 1964 and '65 respectively. Each actress also has ten letters in her name. Truth is stranger than fiction.

Patrick

KAREN'S COMMENT: I've always wondered what other actors were up for the parts of the Walton children. What an interesting possibility. Maybe somebody knows.

Yes I did send a note to Ronnie Claire Edwards about how many girls born at the time the Waltons were on were named Erin Elizabeth or Elizabeth Erin or else things like Erin Melissa. Which shows the popularity of the show.

I also emphasized that the Waltons talked about family values.

At present the Waltons is moving rapidly toward the end of the last season on TNN They are going to show A Walton Wedding (where Johnboy gets married)on July 31. Yesterday(Friday the 23)they showed The Premonition and The Triumph. A Walton fan from Alabama (I don't know if she subscribes to the Digest or not) has made contact with several advance listings and apparently the Waltons are not on for August on TNN,. At my request she contacted The Odyssey Cable Channel on Long Island and she received a very cordial reply from their programming department via email. Hopefully this means that Odyssey or some other channel will pick up the Waltons now that TNN is apparently about to drop it.

Donald

KAREN'S COMMENT: Have we had any confirmation that TNN is about to stop airing The Waltons? If so, I'm sure someone else will pick it up. It is immensely popular over there.

Hi Karen,

Yes, in Canada, it's also international year of the volunteer. I volunteer at a local hospital, a shelter, where I make lunch, as well as a local AIDS organization.

As for the rain, thanks, but even though Ottawa has had rain, the weather over there arrives a lot earlier than the west. Our grass has turned brown!

Thanks also for the whereabouts of Judy Norton Taylor.

I also received an email from Julia from this list. She's moving to Victoria. Her fiancee lives here! We'll catch up on old vintage Walton's shows, I'm sure!

Well, I must go, a busy week ahead!

Goodnight Everybody!

Nicole

KAREN'S COMMENT: Thank goodness for people like you Nicole, volunteering so much of your time. Unfortunately we have had no real rain for some time now, only the odd few drips!

Now this came to me the other day and I wondered if any of you can confirm or deny any of these relationships:

Greetings, Karen.

I just went through your Waltons webpage and I was very impressed. I am only a peripheral fan of the series, having only seen it a couple of times. However, maybe you can help me out.

I am researching an update to my book, "In-Jokes in Film and Television", and I have a couple of questions about the show that you may be able to answer:

Kevin Geer appears in an episode of the series. Kevin has appeared in many movies since then, but this was an early role in his career. Do you know if he is related to Will Geer?

Actress Melody Thomas (before she married Edward Scott and became Melody Thomas Scott) guest-stars in an episode. Do you know if she is related to Richard Thomas?

There have been guest appearances by Michael Joseph McDonough and Eileen McDonough. Do you know if either are related to Mary Beth McDonough?

Both James Garner's brother (Jack Garner) and Noah Beery's son (Bucklind Beery) have had guest roles. Is there some Rockford Files connection to The Waltons?

LMK if you can help with any of these.

Many thanks,

Bill

KAREN'S COMMENT: Please let me know any information so that I can pass it on to Bill please.