Hi everyone,

Well I'm still ironing out some email problems but things are slowly returning to normal. Please bear with me if you're having any difficulties at all with the digest. Part of the problem has been that I simply haven't had enough time to sit at the computer lately and try to sort it all out. It's our last week of school for term three this week so maybe next week will start to get better.

There's not much in the way of Waltons news really. I have been watching It's a Miracle and have been enjoying it immensely. Richard Thomas looks absolutely wonderful. I've also noticed on the forum that a new Christy movie is on its way, with Judy Norton in it. Check out the site www.christy.com to find out more about it.

Talk to you all again next week. Olympics are coming and I'm very excited!!!

Goodnight everyone,

Karen.

Hello Karen and All,

I have to say that a week of The Waltons has been great. I even missed watching the US Open tennis matches for all of the movies. That is a rarity because usually when tennis is on television nothing else is watched. Karen, Layton Hewitt is doing very well. He is very good looking too.

I e-mailed TNN and asked about then releasing video tapes of The Life and Times of the Waltons, and they said they weren't releasing any videos of any of the shows they have because it was to time consuming for them. I think that if we all emailed them about this, they might make it available because it would make them some money. We all know that money talks.

Hayley, I saw the commercial for the show Ed on NBC. I think your sister was wrong. The judge was Nancy McKeon who played Jo in the Facts of Life. I can see why she thought it was Judy, their hair is styled the same and is also the same color.

Lastly, I was recently reading Earl Hamner's book, The Avacado Drive Zoo. I have to say it is one of the best books I have ever read. I have never laughed so hard in my life, and I also cried. It was heart-warming. In the book, Earl mentions that he had a movie on television in 1969 called Appalachian Autumn. It hasn't been release on video (I have looked everywhere), and I e-mail the museum hoping that they might know something about it, but I haven't received a reply. Does anybody know about this movie? Did anyone see it in 1969? I was only 2 so I didn't see it and I am interested in what it was about.

Thanks Karen for putting together a great digest!

Good Night Everyone,

Jennifer

KAREN'S COMMENT: I'm glad you've enjoyed the special Waltons Week. Yes Lleyton (I think that's how it's spelt) is doing very well, as is Pat Rafter. Lleyton is still very young.

Hi all,

I'd like to comment on a few of last week's digest posts.

I watched The Life & Times of the Waltons when it ran the last part of August. In it they interviewed John Ritter. He talked about the impact of the show and how great it was, etc. Quite a switch from his comments when he was interviewed about "Three's Company"!!

I think the reason many people (but I speak only for myself) don't care for the episodes "The Tempest" and "The Whirlwind" is because I never "bought" that other actor in the part of Curt. I found it difficult to be convinced that the character of Curt would have acted in such a way, post traumatic syndrome or not. Curt was older than Mary Ellen, and seemed so steady, and sure of his convictions. I find it hard to believe that he would have run away. I'm not dismissing the idea of PTS because it most certainly does affect many veterans. And you may note, in the later reunion episodes, there is NO reference to Mary Ellen being divorced....they refer to Curt being killed in Pearl Harbor. They must not have been convinced either!! LOL!!

Thanks again Karen for all your efforts on our behalf. Thanks to this list, I was able to know in advance which shows I wanted to tape (many I already have). It made for some enjoyable TV this past week.

Take care and have a good week!

Nancy

KAREN'S COMMENT: I've said it before, but Internet truly is a marvellous tool!

Hi Karen...

Thank you for your continued efforts in getting your newsletter out to all the fans. I really look forward to receiving it every week! :-)

This is in response to Hayley who mentioned that her aunt saw Eric Scott in a band during the early 80's. While I don't know the exact answer, I can share a similar experience. I saw Eric Scott and Joe Conley perform a song and dance routine (dressed in red & white pinstripe jackets and straw hats, similar to the one episode that they did their soft shoe in for the war effort) at the grand opening of a department store over in Carmel Valley, CA.

The two were wonderful and full of pep. Afterwards, they stayed and talked to the locals. I "think" the year was 1980 as I was in 5th or 6th grade then, and was a bit shy to speak to them. But I remember thinking that it was "Ben" and Mr. Godsey up there on that stage. LOL

All in all, it was a memorable experience and the only time I have ever seen any of the cast members in person. I hope this helps. :-) Maybe your aunt saw something similar?

Take care,Gina

KAREN'S COMMENT: Perhaps this  was what Hayley's aunt saw too.

In response to Hayley question about Eric Scott being in a band in the 1980's. I know that Joe Conley(Ike Godsey) and Eric had a song and dance routine that they used to do together. I know that they performed in different places including the Jerry Lewis Telethon in the 1980"s I purchased a cassette tape from the musuem and it was pretty good.

June

KAREN'S COMMENT: I wonder if the tape is still available. Would have been very interesting to see.

Hi Karen,

It been a long time since I posted a letter, but I have a question that I thought you might be able to answer. Are they getting ready to take The Waltons off the air on TNN. The reason I am asking is they keep showing ads that there going to be a new line up on that station. I hope not. I love that show. Have you heard any thing about a new walton movie? Well got to go. Good night.

Nancy

KAREN'S COMMENT: Well this is one that I can't answer, not being there. What are your thoughts?

So glad that your membership has grown. I got to see most of the Walton episodes the past week and now hope that TNN will make that Life and Times available as a video. I guess we can contact them about it. I taped several of the Tuesday episodes. Apparently there was a lot of voting for favorite episode on the TNN website. I hope this will give Les Moonves the message he needs that there is still a lot of support for the Waltons and produce that special that Earl has submitted the script for.

Donald

KAREN'S COMMENT: I guess we can live in hope. :-)) I see The Quilting won the voting, followed by The Pearls.

Hello Karen and everyone,

I just wanted to comment on a few items raised in last week's digest. I also read the article in the Mailbox by Emma Armstrong concerning the episodes The Whirlwind and The Tempest. I agree that it is thoughtful and raises some interesting points.

I guess the writers had a choice in how to deal with this storyline. The easy option would have been for Curt to welcome Mary Ellen , and for them to live happily ever after. After all, many men who suffered traumatic experiences during the war returned to their families to live normal lives. However, the writers chose the not so easy option. Having done so, the challenge then was to produce a storyline that was believable, moving, and tied up the loose ends. I think they succeeded in varying degrees.

Certainly, the conversations between Mary Ellen, Curt and Betty were well written and acted. Mary Ellen had to put her own feelings aside in order to bring Curt and Betty together. It is a tribute to Judy Norton's acting ability that she made these scenes believable.

These are not amongst my favorite episodes from season 9. I think I am used to seeing The Waltons triumph over their adversities, overcome obstacles and work together as a family to solve problems. However, in these episodes the obstacles were too great to overcome, and Mary Ellen's family could not help. Perhaps this is why I found the episodes unsatisfactory?

Just a thought.

You are right of course Karen, that there are other episodes which illustrate the effects of war. Here are just a few:

The Home Front: When Tommy Satterfield is killed, his father, consumed with grief ,blames John who is head of the Draft board, and threatens to kill one of his sons in revenge.

The Lost Sheep: Ashley Longworth Junior returns on leave but Erin is shocked to see how much his experiences in the war have changed him.

The Waiting: John and Olivia keep a vigil by John Boy's bedside as he lies in a coma.

The Furlough: John Boy is haunted by memories of the plane crash that injured him and killed his friend.

There are other episodes also, and I think the writers endeavored to show how the war affected people even in remote country areas like The Waltons.

I agree with the person who said it was difficult to get used to Richard Thomas's replacement.It would have been a daunting prospect for any actor taking on the part. Also, Robert Wightman appeared only intermittently in the role, so perhaps we didn't see him enough to get used to him.

Kind Regards,

Sue

KAREN'S COMMENT: Thanks for you views on the letter Sue. No they're not among my favorite episodes either, but maybe they were to be used as a kind of closing an episode of Mary Ellen's life and then beginning another. There certainly were some very powerful and thoughtful episodes about the war.

Hi Karen: I am so glad you are back in business. We have an Iopener and so far, not too many problems. Helen is my first name, but I go by Marie. I have been around for 71 years, but only got my iopener in March, and have kept playing at it till I one day ran across the Waltons. I was so very excited.

I was born in Schuyler, Virginia and our house was the one next to the Earl Hamner home. The two houses are pretty close together. When I was 6, my dad passed away, and we moved south to Lovingston, Va. to live with my grand parents. I would give anything if I could share some things with you but I just don't remember anything that would be of too much interest to you.

After my husband retired from the Gov. in 1981, we moved to the valley, Waynesboro, Virginia.We made several trips to Schuyler, Va. I have real good pictures of both of the homes, and I have a good one of Mrs. Hamner setting on her porch. In the post office hangs my Granddaddy Schuyler Walker's picture. Schuyler was named after him. If you are ever in Schuyler, go inside the post office and see him. He has the long beard and handle bar mustache.

I watch the show faithfully on TNN every nite except Fri. It's not on. I plan to be in Schuyler Oct. 21 and 22. Hope to meet quite a few people. I am the only Walker left. I will put a name tag on, so please speak to me. It would be so very nice to meet fans of the Waltons. This has opened a whole new for me. So Long See you soon.A really Walton Fan.

Helen

KAREN'S COMMENT: It's good to hear of your connections to Schuyler even if you can't remember a lot. Possibly Earl Hamner remembers things about your Grandfather. It's to be expected that you can't remember a lot from the age of 6, and of course, you would have had no way of knowing just how well known Earl was to have become. I'm sure you'll meet loads of fans during your trip.

Hello again, Karen and everyone!

Things got mixed up here, too, because I had to unplug my whole system and move it out of the room. We got into a painting frenzy over our 3 day U. S. Labor Day weekend. Today I'm trying to get my computer mail organized. Some got lost, according to a friend who phoned me long distance this morning to find out why I'd not responded. Fortunately, I didn't lose my Digest 33!

I just read that Judy Norton (Mary Ellen Walton) is to be in the three new 2 hour movies being made by PAX about the old "Christy" TV show. We are supposed to get them in November.

In a recent Digest you asked about time differences. Right now it's nearly noon, Saturday, in the eastern U. S. With the 14 hour time difference between Eastern Daylight Time and your time, maybe you have written the Digest for this week. (I know it's early Sunday there.) It seems to take longer some weeks than others to come over to us, judging by the "Headers" I get at the end of each one. Just curious: how many time zones do you have in Australia, and do you have the one hour summer and winter time changes as we do? The "lower 48" states of the U. S. have 4 times zones, and Alaska and Hawaii have their own. We go back to winter (standard) time the last Sunday of October until the first Sunday of April. It seems dumb that standard time is for only 5 months of the year now (it used to be longer) and I wish they'd make it one way or the other all year long. A few states don't change, which confuses the issue even more when we try to figure out the time for making a long distance phone call.

During WWII, when I was a child living near Washington, D. C., we had war time. It was two hours different (midnight became 2:00). My father was stationed there in the Army, with the Combined Chiefs of Staff. We walked to school in the cold and dark on winter mornings, which was scary the times they decided to blow the sirens for practice air raid drills during the 20 min. it took us to get there. Then we had to run to the bomb shelter under the school. Mother kept us home when it snowed.

Re your comment about how the war years were for others: My British sister-in-law told me she had measles in a bomb shelter, a horrible experience she'll never forget. Likely it was worse for her mother!

Recently I phoned my friend who has always lived in northern England. We mentioned how long (56 yrs.) it had been since we began writing as children. She was telling me how lucky they felt during WWII living in the north of England. She said in their little village they'd go outside to watch the sky when Newcastle was being bombed. The parents had a fit and a terrible time getting their children to come inside. To them it was like seeing fireworks and they had no idea how dangerous it could have been if one had gone astray over their area. When she got older she was amazed how lucky they'd been that nothing happened to them, or their rural area, during the war.

I didn't think the Waltons episodes during the war were as realistic as they could have been, but in rural western Virginia maybe they were more like the way it was presented. It was very scary for us, and for my relatives who lived in New England. Some were on the coast of Maine where enemy submarines and ships were sighted more often than was admitted.

Best regards to all, "C J".

KAREN'S COMMENT: Well CJ, I'm about to send this off very shortly, and it's currently 12.45 pm on Monday afternoon. That's Eastern Summer Time. We've already started Daylight Saving time because of the Olympics. It's currently still dark at 7.30 in the morning! We have 3 time zones across Australia. South Australia is 30 minutes behind us, and Western Australia is 2 hours behind. Summer time depends on each state. We have it and so does NSW, but I'm not sure about Queensland. Most of the others do I think.

Hi everyone! I have another "Walton's Sighting" for you. I am a big fan of the TV series "Christy," and three television movies are in the works right now. I was looking at the website, www.christy.tv and looked under "photos." There is a picture of Judy Norton (Mary Ellen) there. She will be playing the part (a small one, unfortunately) of Rebecca Holt, the mother of several of Christy's students. On the original series, Mary Jackson (Miss Emily) has a role as Aunt Polly, which is a real heartwarmer, as well as a tearjerker. How are the two actresses who portrayed Miss Emily and Miss Mamie doing now? Are they still living?

Valerie

KAREN'S COMMENT: I am really looking forward to seeing the movies. I hope it comes here. Yes, both ladies are still alive, and doing fairly well I believe.