Melissa Ellen Gilbert (born May 8, 1964) is an American actress. Gilbert began her career as a child actress in the late 1960s, appearing in numerous commercials and guest-starring roles on television. From 1974 to 1983, she starred as

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, teacher, and journalist. She is best known as the author of the children's book series ''Little House on the Prairie'', published between 1932 and 1 ...

, the second-oldest daughter of Charles Ingalls (played by

Michael Landon Michael Landon Sr. (born Eugene Maurice Orowitz; October 31, 1936 – July 1, 1991) was an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for his roles as Little Joe Cartwright in ''Bonanza'' (1959–1973), Charles Ingalls in ''Little House on th ...

) on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

series ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

''. During the run of ''Little House'', Gilbert appeared in several television films, including '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1980), and '' The Miracle Worker'' (1979). As an adult, she continued her career mainly in television films. From 2009 to 2010, Gilbert appeared as Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the touring production of '' Little House on the Prairie, the Musical''. In 2012, she was a contestant on season fourteen of the reality dance competition show ''

Dancing with the Stars ''Strictly Come Dancing (widely known as Dancing with the Stars)'' is an international television franchise based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing,'' itself a successor to the show ''Come Dancing'' (1950–1998) ...

'' on ABC. Gilbert served as president of the

Screen Actors Guild The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...

(SAG) from 2001 to 2005. She briefly ran for the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a bicameral legislature, including a lower body, the U.S. House of Representatives, and an upper body, the U.S. Senate. They both ...

in 2016, but withdrew her candidacy before the election. She is the author of several memoirs, a children's book, and a cookbook.

Early life and family

Gilbert was born in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, California, on May 8, 1964, to a newly engaged couple, Kathy Wood and David Darlington, and placed for adoption immediately after birth. She was adopted the next day by actor and comedian

Paul Gilbert Paul Brandon Gilbert (born November 6, 1966) is an American hard rock and heavy metal music, heavy metal guitarist. He is the co-founder of the band Mr. Big (American band), Mr. Big, and was also a member of Racer X (band), Racer X, with whom he ...

and his wife, dancer and actress Barbara Crane, the daughter of ''

The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It f ...

'' creator Harry Crane. Gilbert was raised in her adoptive mother's

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

religion. The Gilberts later adopted a son, Jonathan, who co-starred on ''Little House on the Prairie''. Gilbert's parents divorced when she was 6 years old. Her mother then married attorney Harold Abeles, and together they had biological daughter Sara Rebecca Abeles (the actress known professionally as Sara Gilbert) in 1975. In 1976, Paul Gilbert died. Although 11-year-old Melissa was told that he had suffered a stroke, she found out years later that he had been a VA patient who dealt with chronic pain, and that he had taken his own life. The marriage of Barbara and Harold Abeles later ended in divorce.

Career

''Little House on the Prairie''

Gilbert's earliest television appearances were in dozens of commercials, including one for Alpo dog food with

Lorne Greene Lorne Hyman Greene (born Lyon Himan Green; February 12, 1915 – September 11, 1987) was a Canadian actor, singer, and radio personality. His notable television roles include Ben Cartwright on the Western ''Bonanza'' and Commander Adama in ...

(Michael Landon's television father on ''

Bonanza ''Bonanza'' is an American Western television series that ran on NBC from September 12, 1959, to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 431 episodes, ''Bonanza'' is NBC's longest-running Western, the second-longest-running Western series on ...

''). She also attended school with Landon's daughter,

Leslie Landon Leslie Landon Matthews ( Landon) is an American psychologist and former actress. She had a supporting role on the ''Little House on the Prairie (TV series), Little House on the Prairie'' television series, in which her father, Michael Landon, pl ...

. It was Leslie who informed her that she had won the role of

, the second oldest daughter, on ''

'', beating out over 500 child actresses for the part. The pilot was shot in 1973 and was a ratings success. Almost a year later, Gilbert began filming the series. Gilbert became extremely close to the Landon family after her adoptive father died. However, a rift developed between Michael Landon and Gilbert after the revelation of Landon's affair with ''Little House'' young makeup artist, Cindy Clerico. Gilbert had limited contact with Landon after ''Little House'' ended during the 1983–84 season. Seven years later, she was contacted by Landon's family and upon news of his condition, paid him a heartfelt visit following his May 9, 1991, appearance on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Johnny Carson, it aired from October 1, 1962 to May 22, 1992, replacing ''T ...

'' where he discussed his

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

. She visited Landon at his Malibu home where he was, by then, bedridden, and they spent the afternoon together. Landon died one week later. When Gilbert gave birth to her son with second husband Bruce Boxleitner on October 6, 1995, they named him Michael, in honor of Landon. During the show's run, Gilbert appeared in several television films, including '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' and '' The Miracle Worker''.

Career after ''Little House''

Melissa Gilbert at the 1991 Emmy Awards cropped

Gilbert has continued to work regularly, mainly in television. She starred as Jean Donovan in the biopic '' Choices of the Heart'' (1983), and as Anna Sheridan in three episodes of ''

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tel ...

'' with then-husband Boxleitner in 1996. She also provided the voice of

Barbara Gordon Barbara Joan Gordon is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the superhero Batman. The character was created by television producer William Dozier, editor Julius Schwartz, writer Ga ...

Batgirl Batgirl is the name of several fictional superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. The character Bette Kane, Betty Kane was introduced into publica ...

on the 1990s '' Batman: The Animated Series'', though she would be replaced by

Mary Kay Bergman Mary Kay Bergman (June 5, 1961 – November 11, 1999), also briefly credited as Shannen Cassidy, was an American voice actress and voice-over teacher. She was the official voice of the Disney character Snow White from 1989 to 1999 and the lead fem ...

for the movie '' Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero'' and by

Tara Strong Tara Lyn Strong (; born February 12, 1973) is a Canadian and American actress. She is known for her voice work in animation, websites, and video games. Strong's voice roles include animated series such as '' The Powerpuff Girls'', '' The Fair ...

for the series' follow-up ''

The New Batman Adventures ''The New Batman Adventures'' (often shortened as ''TNBA'') is an American animated superhero television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, which aired on Kids' WB from September 13, 1997 to January 16, 1999. Produced by Warner Br ...

''. For her contribution to the television industry, Gilbert received a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...

at 6429 Hollywood Blvd in 1985. Her then-fiancé,

Rob Lowe Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and entertainment host. Following numerous television roles in the early 1980s, he came to prominence as a teen idol and member of the Brat Pack with starring roles in ...

, was present with her when her star was unveiled during the ceremony. In 1998, she was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and Native American art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Amer ...

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

. In 2006, Gilbert appeared as Shari Noble, a patient looking to reconstruct her nipples after committing

zoophilia Zoophilia is a paraphilia in which a person experiences a sexual fixation on non-human animals. Bestiality instead refers to cross-species sexual activity between humans and non-human animals. Due to the lack of research on the subject, it is ...

with her dog in a season four episode of '' Nip/Tuck''. In 2008 and through 2009, Gilbert played Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the musical adaptation of ''

''. This world premiere production at the

Guthrie Theater The Guthrie Theater, founded in 1963, is a center for theater performance, production, education, and professional training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The concept of the theater was born in 1959 in a series of discussions among Sir Tyrone Gut ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

was directed by Francesca Zambello and also starred Kara Lindsay as Laura. The show ran through October 19 and was on a US National tour for 2009–10. The tour ended in June 2010 at Starlight Theatre in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. In March and April 2018, Gilbert starred in an

Off-Off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway theatre, Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commerc ...

, limited-run production of Geraldine Aron's 2001 one-woman play 2001 '' My Brilliant Divorce''.

''Dancing with the Stars''

In March 2012, Gilbert joined the cast of celebrity contestants on season 14 of ''

''. She was paired with Maksim Chmerkovskiy. During week four's show, while dancing the

Paso Doble Pasodoble (Spanish language, Spanish: ''double step'') is a fast-paced Spanish military march used by infantry troops. Its speed allowed troops to give 120 steps per minute (double the average of a regular unit, hence its name). This often wa ...

, she fell and hit her head on Maksim's leg and suffered a mild concussion and was taken to a hospital. She went home to recuperate, but returned to continue in the competition. In week eight of competition, she was eliminated, finishing in fifth place.

Screen Actors Guild presidency (2001–2005)

Gilbert was elected president of the

in 2001 after a contentious candidacy, in which she ultimately beat her opponent, '' Rhoda'' actress Valerie Harper. In 2003, she was re-elected, defeating Kent McCord with 50% of the vote to his 42%. In July 2005, she announced that she would not seek a third term.

2016 congressional campaign

On August 10, 2015, Gilbert announced her campaign for Michigan's 8th congressional district in the

2016 elections Africa Benin Republic *2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016 Cape Verde * 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016 Chad * 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 April 2016 Djibouti * 2016 Djiboutian presidential ...

to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

. Gilbert, who was the presumptive Democratic nominee in the district, dropped out of the race in May 2016, citing health issues. In 2022, Gilbert launched a lifestyle app aimed at women called Modern Prairie.

Personal life

Relationships

Gilbert was married to actor Bo Brinkman from 1988-1994,Timothy Busfield on His Marriage to 'Little House on the Prairie' 's Melissa Gilbert: 'She Was the One'
/ref> and to actor Bruce Boxleitner from 1995-2011. In January 2013, Gilbert's representative confirmed her engagement to actor Timothy Busfield. They married on April 24, 2013, lived in

Howell, Michigan Howell is the largest city in and county seat of Livingston County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2025 census, the city had a population of 9,914. The city is mostly surrounded by Howell Township, Michigan, Howell Township, but the two are ad ...

, from 2013 to 2018, and moved to New York City late in 2018. Also in 2018, the couple purchased a cottage in the

Catskill Mountains The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province and subrange of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined a ...

in upstate New York; they said they were renovating it and intended to make it their permanent home.

Tax issues

Following her announcement as a candidate for U.S. Representative from Michigan, a spokesperson for her opponent's campaign referred to Gilbert as a "tax cheat". Gilbert owed $360,000 in back federal taxes and $112,000 in California state taxes. Gilbert responded by stating that this is not true, that the tax debt was an outgrowth of a stalled acting career, the economy, and divorce. She also stated that she had negotiated a repayment plan with the

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

Health issues

In her late thirties, Gilbert battled

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

to prescription medication and alcohol. While playing the role of Caroline "Ma" Ingalls in the touring musical ''Little House on the Prairie'', a visit to the doctor revealed that Gilbert had been working with a broken back for months. On July 22, 2010, Gilbert underwent surgery to replace a disc as well as fuse a vertebra in her lower spine. The surgery was described as a complete success. In January 2015, Gilbert decided to have her breast implants removed for health reasons. Gilbert has

misophonia Misophonia (or selective sound sensitivity syndrome) is a disorder of decreased Distress tolerance, tolerance to specific sounds or their associated Stimulus (psychology), stimuli, or cues. These cues, known as "triggers", are experienced as Dis ...

Filmography

Film

Television

Awards and nominations

Books

* (Memoir) *''Daisy and Josephine'' (2014) (Children's Book) *''My Prairie Cookbook: Memories and Frontier Food from My Little House to Yours'' (2014). (Cookbook) *''Back to the Prairie: A Home Remade, A Life Rediscovered''. (2022)Back to the Pairie
/ref> (Memoir)

References

External links

* *
Melissa Gilbert
at

Internet Broadway Database The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. It was conceived and created by Karen Hauser in 1996 and is operated by the Research Department of The Broadway League, a trade asso ...

* * *
Biography
- Official

SAG-AFTRA The Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists

website
Biography
- Official ''

'' website {{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Melissa 1964 births Living people 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses Actresses from Los Angeles American adoptees American child actresses American film actresses American trade union leaders American memoirists American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American television directors American voice actresses American women television directors Jewish American actresses Participants in American reality television series People with misophonia Presidents of the Screen Actors Guild Michigan Democrats Women in Michigan politics Activists from California American women memoirists 21st-century American Jews Vice presidents of the AFL-CIO