Michael Landon Child Actor Rules: Little House on the Prairie Set Safety Legacy
While the pressures and ethical concerns surrounding child stars in Hollywood have been a source of heavy debate, former cast members of the iconic TV show “Little House on the Prairie” have revealed that star and producer Michael Landon ran an incredibly child-friendly set. Landon, who directed and produced the show alongside playing Pa Ingalls, was uncompromisingly strict about timekeeping and child labor laws. During an appearance on The Joe Vulpis Podcast, co-star Linwood Boomer (who played Adam Kendall and later created Malcolm in the Middle) shared that Landon refused to engage in the typical Hollywood “workarounds” of the era—such as pressuring teachers to lie about schooling hours or forcing kids into emancipation to work longer shifts. ...