John Walton, dead at 85

[Marcus Aurelius]

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainmen...iarch-ralph-waite-dies-at-85/?intcmp=features

Ralph Waite, who played the kind patriarch of a tight-knit rural Southern family on the TV series "The Waltons," has died, his manager said Thursday. He was 85.
Waite, who lived in the Palm Springs area, died midday Thursday, said his manager, Alan Mills.

Mills did not know the cause of death. He said he was taken aback because Waite had been in good health and still working. He appeared last year in episodes of the series "NCIS," "Bones" and "Days of Our Lives."

"He was a wonderful guy," Mills said. "He was always kind, always generous, and a joy to work with."

"The Waltons," which aired on CBS from 1972 to 1981, starred Waite as Ralph John Walton, and Richard Thomas played his oldest son, John-Boy, an aspiring novelist. The gentle family drama was set in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia.

The show was narrated by its creator, Earl Hamner Jr., who based it on his family memories.

 

[Caroljo]

Wow...seems all of a sudden all these old stars are dying!

 

[trapdoor]

Sad to see him go.

I always wondered why the series was called "The Walton's" instead of "The Spencer's" and why the two male characters were "Jon" and "Jon-boy" rather than "Big
Clay" and "Clay-boy" as they were in the book.

 

[GordonGecko]

Sad to see him go.

I always wondered why the series was called "The Walton's" instead of "The Spencer's" and why the two male characters were "Jon" and "Jon-boy" rather than "Big
Clay" and "Clay-boy" as they were in the book.

"The Spencers" was already a movie with Henry Fonda....so Hamner had to change it slightly for "The Waltons".


BTW, another small role that Ralph Waite did was in "Cool Hand Luke" as the naive prisoner, who spends a "night in the box for back-talking a Boss".

 

[Alinvegas]

http://www.foxnews.com/entertainmen...iarch-ralph-waite-dies-at-85/?intcmp=features

Ralph Waite, who played the kind patriarch of a tight-knit rural Southern family on the TV series "The Waltons," has died, his manager said Thursday. He was 85.
Waite, who lived in the Palm Springs area, died midday Thursday, said his manager, Alan Mills.

Mills did not know the cause of death. He said he was taken aback because Waite had been in good health and still working. He appeared last year in episodes of the series "NCIS," "Bones" and "Days of Our Lives."

"He was a wonderful guy," Mills said. "He was always kind, always generous, and a joy to work with."

"The Waltons," which aired on CBS from 1972 to 1981, starred Waite as Ralph John Walton, and Richard Thomas played his oldest son, John-Boy, an aspiring novelist. The gentle family drama was set in the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia.

The show was narrated by its creator, Earl Hamner Jr., who based it on his family memories.

Jethro's dad on NCIS. Wonder if they will do a show about it.

 

[trapdoor]

"The Spencers" was already a movie with Henry Fonda....so Hamner had to change it slightly for "The Waltons".


BTW, another small role that Ralph Waite did was in "Cool Hand Luke" as the naive prisoner, who spends a "night in the box for back-talking a Boss".

I'd always just assumed that they had the rights to the tales, and the name would come with those rights (but it was just an assumption). I remember Waite in that other role.