Latest news with #AlisonArngrim
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'Little House' Icon, 63, is Unrecognizable Without her Trademark Curls While Out in Los Angeles
'Little House' Icon, 63, is Unrecognizable Without her Trademark Curls While Out in Los Angeles originally appeared on Parade. We may miss her notorious curls, but Alison Arngrim is doing just fine in adulthood! The beloved actress, 63, who rose to stardom as mean 'ol Nellie Oleson on Little House on the Prairie, was spotted out and about in Los Angeles by the Daily Mail. Known for her snobby attitude and barrel curls, Nellie made life hard for our girl Laura Ingalls. But in real life, Arngrim is a real gem. Dressed in jeans and a blue blouse, the actress and author of Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated, pumped her own gas and ran errands. Two things we doubt Nellie would ever do! Click here to see the photos of the icon out and about in Los Angeles. In her fascinating book, Arngrim opened up about working on the set of the beloved frontier show. She also discussed how Michael Landon was both a respectful and stern boss to the child actors. 'He respected me,' Arngrim wrote. 'Respect is something very hard to come by for child actors. They are often treated as dumb animals or props, objects to be moved about in service of the plot or the other actors.' 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Arngrim has even parlayed her experience on Little House into a one-woman show, appropriately titled Confessions of a Prairie Bitch. In a recent interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, she explained why people are so eager for her to bring back the character. 'It started because Nellie and Mrs. Oleson (her mom on the show) are high camp,' Arngrim said. 'You cannot get campier than Mrs. Oleson.' For a delicious moment of Little House camp, here's one of the show's best moments:'Little House' Icon, 63, is Unrecognizable Without her Trademark Curls While Out in Los Angeles first appeared on Parade on Jun 29, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 29, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Mail
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE America's favorite frilly-haired villain on frontier drama is rocking blue nails on LA run…can you guess who?
She became a household name in the 1970s for playing one of television's most iconic bratty blondes – a petticoat-clad bully with bouncing curls and a sharp tongue. For nearly a decade, she tormented her onscreen classmates with snide remarks and conniving schemes on a beloved frontier-era drama that won hearts across America. While her co-stars were often seen as paragons of kindness and Christian values, her character was anything but – and fans couldn't get enough of it. Since stepping away from her most famous role in the early '80s, the actress has dabbled in comedy, spoken-word, and advocacy - while always embracing her legacy as TV's original mean girl. These days, she tends to keep a relatively low profile, popping up occasionally at fan conventions or retro TV specials. But earlier this month, she was spotted enjoying a solo afternoon in sunny Los Angeles, running errands in the upscale Westwood neighborhood. Can you guess who it is? It's Alison Arngrim! The 63-year-old, best known for playing Nellie Oleson on Little House on the Prairie, made a rare public appearance as she stopped by an apartment complex where she remained for over an hour. She looked vibrant and cheerful in a white-and-blue patterned top, relaxed jeans, red sneakers – and bright blue fingernails that added a pop of flair. The outing comes amid renewed interest in the classic series, thanks to Netflix's announcement of a Little House reboot slated to bring the Ingalls family's story to a new generation. The former child star appeared in good spirits as she filled up her tank, her signature blonde hair now styled in a natural bob, with a few fans reportedly recognizing her despite the low-key ensemble But don't expect to see any familiar faces in the new version - at least not yet. 'None of us, as far as I know, our gang, are in at this point,' Arngrim confirmed in a January interview with ReMIND, dashing fan hopes for OG cameos. Born in New York City, Arngrim was just 12 when she first appeared on the hit series in 1974. Her portrayal of Nellie – with her golden ringlets and wicked grin – quickly made her a standout. Arngrim has leaned into her iconic role over the years, frequently appearing at fan conventions and nostalgia events to celebrate Little House's enduring legacy While the show aired until 1983, she left after seven seasons but remained closely associated with the character for decades. Over the years, she's spoken candidly about the challenges of being a child star, her battles with illness, and her advocacy work around AIDS and child abuse awareness. Arngrim has leaned into her cult fame with good humor, even releasing a memoir titled Confessions of a Prairie Bitch in 2010. She remains active on the fan convention circuit and regularly appears on retro TV panels, delighting longtime viewers who still recall her delightfully devious days in Walnut Grove.
Fox News
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
'Little House on the Prairie' star says controversial storyline 'would not happen today' due to age gap
Alison Arngrim, who starred as Nellie Oleson in "Little House on the Prairie," believes there's one episode from the series that wouldn't be made today. On a recent episode of the "Little House 50" podcast, Arngrim spoke to host Pamela Bob, as well as "Little House" co-star Dean Butler, about an episode from the show's fourth season titled "Here Come the Brides," which aired in 1977. The episode tells the tale of how Oleson is wooed by Luke Simms, a teen boy in town. The two eloped after a brief romance. However, after their parents found out, they were taken back to the Justice of the Peace to be unmarried. Olesen said she had just turned 15 when they shot the episode. Her character was supposed to be 13. "I was super… teenage [with] puberty insanity happening," Arngrim explained. "She's just barely 13. This cat is, he's playing I guess 16, 17. He's in his late 20s." Bob Marsic, who played Simms, was 22. "It's young girls — children — accosting a grown man who they have not been introduced to," said Arngrim about how the characters reacted to Simms' appearance. "That would not happen today, right?" Bob asked. "That casting a full-grown adult to play or even kiss — and it was an innocent kiss, but it's a kiss — a minor." Filming was awkward from the start, Arngrim recalled, noting that she hadn't met her on-screen love interest before they started filming. "I think we were like kissing on the first day or something," she said. "Maybe the second — day two? It was pretty quick, it was like, 'Hi, introduce yourself, now you're in love.''" Arngrim noted that if a similar scene were filmed today, there wouldn't be a significant age gap between the young actors. An intimacy coordinator, which didn't exist at the time, would also be on set. The former child star described how at one point, Marsic brought his girlfriend to the set while the episode was filmed. "That was another of the weird moments," said Arngrim on the podcast. "His girlfriend shows up, and it was weird because it was like … there was this vague thing of her wanting to be there for the romantic scenes." "I was like, does this woman think that I am a threat?" she chuckled. "Really? This 15-year-old pimply girl? No. No. I am not a threat to your relationship. I am not stealing your man." Back in June 2024, Butler spoke to Fox News Digital about how he had struggled with anxiety after discovering that he would be giving his co-star, 15-year-old Melissa Gilbert, her first kiss – both on-screen and in real life. WATCH: 'LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE' CHILD STAR SAYS SET WAS LIKE 'MAD MEN' Butler was 23 when he was cast in the popular TV show, which aired from 1974 to 1983. "You just couldn't do it today," the actor, who played Almanzo Wilder in "Little House," told Fox News Digital. "There would be way too much blowback. It's remarkable that we didn't get more blowback than we did. . . . But I think it was handled so tastefully that people … forgot about the age difference." "I think the audience had been watching Melissa for years and loved her incredibly," Butler shared. "They wanted to see when she, so honestly and innocently, declared her love for this young man. She fell in love from the first time she laid eyes on him. The audience was prepared to go right along with that." According to Butler, the characters from the original book series were supposed to have a 10-year age difference. He noted that Gilbert had "complete trust" in her TV dad, who carefully supervised the scene. "That was a very powerful relationship Melissa had in her life, the one she had with Michael Landon," said Butler. "When Michael said, 'This is the guy for you,' she was prepared to suspend all of her anxieties and just step into it. And Michael never led anyone wrong in the series. He really had it down. He knew what he was doing. He believed very strongly in his creative instincts. He trusted that it would work." "I'm just really grateful that I was the guy that he felt he could trust with this," Butler added. Still, both Butler and Gilbert had to overcome their fears in attempting to bring the scene to life. "I think a lot of young actresses might've folded under the pressure," said Butler. "Melissa had no experience. She'd never been on a date. Never kissed anyone. Never did anything like that. That was still all ahead of her. So to ask her to step into that when she had no real life experience? It does speak to Melissa's gumption and her courage. She just did it. She put all of her anxieties aside and just stepped in. She knew what she had to do to be the Laura that she was supposed to be." The pair smooched in the episode titled "Sweet Sixteen." Butler said that nearly 100 people surrounded them on set to make sure the shot was perfect. "My job was to make it as easy for her as possible by really being the gentleman I was raised to be," Butler shared. "There's been no casting pairing like what they did with us since then. That casting could simply never happen today. Certainly not on a mainstream television show."
Buzz Feed
02-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
Miss Beadle: Charlotte Stewart On 'Little House' Legacy
Little House On the Prairie is one of the most beloved shows of all time, and continues to reach new levels of popularity. Netflix recently announced a Little House reboot, and in 2024, the series reached over 13 billion minutes of streaming on Peacock alone! I had so much fun chatting with Alison Arngrim and Dean Butler that I reached out to Charlotte Stewart, who portrayed the lovable Miss Beadle. We hopped on Zoom to chat all about one of television's greatest teachers and continue celebrating over 50 years of iconic episodes. Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity. BuzzFeed: Can you tell me about your audition for Little House? Charlotte Stewart: In those days, I did a lot of television. I did shows like Gunsmoke and Medical Center, and it was just another interview. I didn't know it was a series. But when I walked in the door, I saw Michael Landon sitting there, and that was a shock. I had worked on Bonanza, but I didn't work with Mike, and I didn't know he was doing a series. I didn't know anything. I thought it was just another interview for another Western. So it was a shock, but it was an easy interview. I showed up in my jeans and my tie-dye t-shirt. There had to be about 9 or 10 men in the room — no women. It was before they had a woman casting director. So it's this big room, everybody in folding chairs, and they asked, "Are you ready to read?" I asked the producer, "Can I sit behind your desk?" He looked at Mike and all the guys, and said, "Sure, okay." So he gets up, and I go sit down at his desk. They're all looking around, and asking each other, "Well, what do you think?" and I went, "Silence!" That's amazing! You definitely embodied a schoolteacher very quickly with that. Charlotte Stewart: I'm pretty sure it got me the part! Miss Beadle had quite the wig. Was it uncomfortable wearing it? Charlotte Stewart: It was uncomfortable, but you get used to it pretty quickly. I had just cut my hair, so there was no choice. I had long hair before, so they couldn't have fashioned it. But we were characters, and I think they would have given me a wig whether I had long hair or not. They would have done it because they wanted all the frilly stuff around. It was both a wig and an attachment for the bun in the back. It was a lot, and it was hot in Simi Valley. But Alison Arngrim [Nellie], who was a little girl at the time, had to wear a wig, and Ma [portrayed by Karen Grassle] had to wear some attachments because she had short hair too. We're actors — we adapt! Speaking of Simi Valley, I was always captivated by Walnut Grove. After multiple seasons of Little House, did it start to feel like a real town rather than a set to you? Charlotte Stewart: Yes. You know, the makeup trailers and wardrobe trailers were far away. They were over a hill, out of sight, so you couldn't see them, no matter what direction the camera was in. I would go to the makeup trailer, get made up, get my wig on, go to wardrobe, and get into my costume. Then I would walk up a hill, and over a hill, and as soon as I got to the top, there was Walnut Grove. I had to walk down a dirt road over the bridge and the creek. Then I went past the Oleson store and the Mill to get to the church. That's only when we did exteriors — when we did interiors, we were at Paramount Studios inside a soundstage. Anything in the school was on a set, but anything outside was in Simi Valley. Around 30 years after the show, we all did an interview for NBC with Lester Holt. We were all out in Simi Valley, and walking around. They wanted to do a shot with me and Alison [Arngrim]. We're walking, and Lester has his microphone. We're just looking at Simi Valley and what it looks like now. I asked, "Where's the creek?" Alison looked at me, and she said, "What do you mean?" I said, "Well, every day when I came from the dressing room, I'd walk over the hill, over the bridge, and over a creek, into Walnut Grove." And she said, "Charlotte, that wasn't real!" I said, "What?? It wasn't real?" Michael built it; he had the creek made for the set. I want to touch upon a few of Miss Beadle's most iconic episodes. In "Blizzard," where the kids get caught in the storm, was it challenging to portray a more emotional side? Charlotte Stewart: No, it wasn't, it wasn't difficult at all. By that time, I had gotten to know the kids a lot, so it wasn't hard to imagine that something horrible had happened to the children and that it was my fault. Also, the scene with Willie was so sweet. That's the best scene I had with him, because I always just sent him to the corner! It was very moving for me. The next episode I want to mention is "Troublemaker," where Mrs. Oleson convinces the board to fire Miss Beadle. Katherine MacGregor is hilarious. Was it difficult keeping a straight face filming with her? Charlotte Stewart: Katherine was always so funny. I took her very seriously, which I had to as an actor. But Katherine was such a good actress, and she was nothing like Mrs. Oleson. She was a devout Buddhist, and I didn't know that until she and I went away together to a health spa for a weekend. We were sharing a cabin, and when we got there, she opened her suitcase and took out her altar, which she set up on the bureau. Katherine was quite a complex character, which made Harriet even better. "Here Come the Brides" is the iconic Miss Beadle episode. What sticks out to you the most about this episode? Charlotte Stewart: Michael [Landon] came to me with two photographs and asked, "Which of these men do you think Miss Beadle would marry?" He didn't know that Josh [Joshua Bryant portrayed Adam Simms] and I had gone to school together when I was 17, and Josh was, I think, 18. We went to the Pasadena Playhouse, the State Theater of California, and we were students there. We had known each other many, many years, so I picked Josh. We had such a good time working together. As it turned out, we got to work together for a few episodes, because the characters wind up having a child, and then move out of town. Do you have any favorite memories of working with Joshua Bryant [Adam Simms]? Charlotte Stewart: In the scene where we get married, the minister says, "You may kiss the bride." This was going to be the end of the episode, where they fade out on us kissing. I talked to Josh before we did the scene, and I said, "When he says, 'You may now kiss the bride,' don't stop kissing, even when Michael says, cut." So we started kissing and kissing. Michael goes, "Cut! Okay!" We're kissing and kissing, and Mike is going, "Nope, nope. Cut!" I thought that would be a funny outtake for them. So that was our joke. Miss Beadle was in forty-five episodes. Is there a particular scene you are most proud of? Charlotte Stewart: Yes, the one that comes to mind is when Miss Beadle is in her room [in "Troublemaker"], and Charles comes to tell her she's been fired. It was painful because I, in my mind, was imagining being fired from Little House. Victor French was directing, and he said, "Don't let Charles see you cry." So I had to do the scene steadfast and serious, not emotionally, but still let the audience see how hurt Miss Beadle was. I think that's why that scene worked so well, because I did what the director said. Michael Landon did it all — acting, writing, directing. What was it like working with him? Charlotte Stewart: It was the best job I ever had, and I adored Mike. I loved watching him work with the children — I just admired him so much. He was so much fun to be around. He was funny, always joking, and making it fun for everybody. It was so fair. We got to go home for dinner. On most television shows, you work until 10 o'clock, 10 or 11 at night, and you come in at 6 in the morning. Michael was a family man. He had family to get home to. The children had families to get home to. The union rules also said you couldn't work the children for very long. Almost all of my scenes were with the children, so my working experience with Little House was pretty great. Pivoting to the present, there have been quite a few Little House reunion events, including an event in June. How has it been to reconnect with your castmates? Charlotte Stewart: I just love it. I so look forward to it. I love seeing Alison [Arngrim]. We actually became friends on set because she was older than most of the kids. Of course, I was 20 years older than her, but she was mature. Since it's been 50 years, we've become very close friends. We do a lot of traveling together, and with Dean and most of the actors who were babies in the series, we're all best friends. The only time I get to see them is when we travel. Andrew Firriolo Is there anything about portraying Miss Beadle you would like to highlight? Charlotte Stewart: I based how I played Miss Beadle on my sister. I'm the youngest in my family, and my sister was nine years older. She had seven children. Miss Beadle handled the children in her classroom the same way my sister handled a room full of children — a baby in her arms, a 3-year-old, a 5-year-old, a 12-year-old, a 15-year-old in one room. I became my sister, who was very strict but very loving. She could be nursing a baby and also be telling one of the teenagers to pull it together, but she did it in a way that wasn't demeaning or anything. So I actually played my sister — that's who I based Miss Beadle on. How has life been recently? How are the Beadle bags? [Charlotte sews beautiful handmade bags featuring images from Little House ]. Charlotte Stewart: I'm eighty-four and I'm still here! I'm still doing my mile-and-a-half walk every day. I stay active. I sew every day. Right now, I've got 15 bags ready to go on the road with me, and that's what I do to relax, rather than sitting and watching television or reading a book. I do every stitch on my Beadle bags. Andrew Firriolo Finally, if you could sum up your experience on Little House in just a few sentences, what would you say? Charlotte Stewart: It was one of the most comfortable sets I've ever been on. The children were professional — they knew their lines, and they showed up on time. It was secure, and working with Michael Landon was just incredible. I had never met him before. I had worked on Bonanza a couple of times, but we never worked together. So the first time I met him was on Little House. Michael Landon was an actor who directed, and he was just so good. He was funny, he made life really fun, and we got to go home in time for dinner. Michael knew exactly what he was doing. Thank you, Charlotte! Read more about Charlotte's incredible career in her autobiography, available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Keep up with Charlotte on her Facebook page!
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Little House on the Prairie' Star Reveals if She'll Return for the Netflix Remake
Fans of the original Little House on the Prairie will no doubt remember Alison Arngrim. Arngrim, 63, played resident mean girl Nellie Oleson on the series from 1974 to 1982. Though her character was often regarded as bratty and manipulative, she certainly left her mark on the beloved show. 'I've had people just go off about how much they hated me and how they wanted to punch me in the face,' Arngrim told Closer Weekly in an interview published earlier this week. Arngrim's Nellie and Melissa Gilbert's Laura Ingalls hated each other on screen, but they're still very much a part of each other's lives to this day. 'We're always talking and texting. She's in New York, but she's come on the podcast. She's just a riot. She's married to Timothy Busfield and those two are perfect together. It hasn't changed when we talk. I mean, we still have weird inside jokes, crack up and make fun of people. It's like it has not changed at all,' Arngrim gushed. As for returning to the prairie, the longtime actress has some thoughts. 'It is not a reboot. It will not be exactly like our show in the '70s. And it shouldn't be. That would be terrible! I think it is going to be very much like the books,' Arngrim explained of the upcoming Netflix adaptation. 'Very historical. If this was a Star Wars thing, I'd call it a prequel. It's going to go all the way back to when Laura was very young. I think that could be really good.' 🎬SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox🎬 On making a cameo, she said, 'Of course! I've always said, 'I'm old enough to be Mrs. Oleson now, so call me.' The show has to obviously become its own thing, get its own footing with its own people. They have to find people who are good and will have the same kind of incredible chemistry together that we had.' 'Little House on the Prairie' Star Reveals if She'll Return for the Netflix Remake first appeared on Parade on May 24, 2025
