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Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2010 22:37:15 GMT -5
I got to thinking that until the last season John Boy does not have much of a role after season six and in fact the show probably could have been done without actually showing a John Boy.
How would you have felt if you never really saw John Boy, but his presence was more implied?
You never would have had to adjust to a new John Boy.
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Post by sambda on Dec 20, 2010 12:33:28 GMT -5
I wouldn't have minded if they had left him out. As you say, apart from the odd episode or two, he is mainly put in the background. Even the few times he sits around the table, you'll notice his share of the dialogue is far less than the old days.
I suppose his biggest "role" was in the NY scenes living rough in "The Revel" which were themselves a retread of a much earlier episode with John-Boy Mk 1.
To give Wightman his due, he fitted in about as well as any actor taking that role on could have done. There is nothing wrong with his performance.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2010 13:05:08 GMT -5
"To give Wightman his due, he fitted in about as well as any actor taking that role on could have done. There is nothing wrong with his performance.
I agree with this and would not have wanted to be in his shoes.
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Post by Marilyn on Dec 20, 2010 15:42:28 GMT -5
Nobody could have even come close to masquerading as John Boy. We got the best that could be offered.
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Post by ncwaltonsfan on Dec 20, 2010 16:49:40 GMT -5
Richard Thomas had a certain passion and energy that he brought to the part of John Boy. Robert Wightman was bland by comparison. But as a character, John Boy was older and had been through the war so those might have changed his personality. That should be taken into account.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2010 17:19:18 GMT -5
"But as a character, John Boy was older and had been through the war so those might have changed his personality. That should be taken into account. "
I had never thought of that. I expected JB to be the same JB.
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Post by davidm on Dec 22, 2010 15:40:54 GMT -5
In his book Goodnight John Boy, Earl Hamner said Robert Wightman was chosen because he looked like someone who would be the son of Ralph and Michael. I think it would have been better had they not replaced Richard Thomas. This is not a put down on Robert, he was given a tough job to do. As we all know Richard did come back for the last 3 reunion movies. And, sadly, when we talk about reunions (even the latest one just done this past October) Robert is never considered. So this leads me to a question:
Should Robert Wightman have appeared in the October 2010 reunion along with Richard Thamas?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2010 15:44:25 GMT -5
Should Robert Wightman have appeared in the October 2010 reunion along with Richard Thamas?
No. And the second Amy should not have appeared (which she didn't).
This is because the Waltons is more than a show such as say Gun Smoke. The Waltons is a substitute for family. The Waltons had become and icon of America. Don't mess with Texas and don't mess with the Waltons.
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Post by john8486 on Dec 22, 2010 18:59:33 GMT -5
DavidM,
I watched the Reunion rerun on INSP this past weekend, and was thinking the very same thing.
Yes, he should have been included, or at least acknowledged. They could have said something about having two people portray the character of John Boy. I have said this before on another thread about this topic, but I just cannot find it now. Richard Thomas and Robert Wightman portrayed the character at different times of the life of John Boy. We all know Richard, and accept him as the main character, but Robert's portrayal was fine for the story lines he was involved in. I still say that some of the best episodes of Seasons 8 and 9 were with Robert as John Boy; just my opionion, but I'm sticking to it. I liked that they brought the character back, because going through the entire period of World War II without the character might have seemed strange. Both actors brought the "Story" of the Waltons to life, and I appreciate both actor's performances.
John
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Post by dfnmeows44 on Dec 22, 2010 21:25:14 GMT -5
They had different personalities but remember that Richard was away from the Waltons for a while and whne he came back first in the Return and then in The Revalation the cirumstances were different, At the end of The Revelation he left to go to Europe and then he ended up missing in action.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2010 21:42:20 GMT -5
"Yes, he should have been included, or at least acknowledged."
My take on this is if he was at the reunion, then there would have to be a mention to the reason the RT chose not to do the rest of the show which might become awkward.. Like I mentioned before, the JB character did not have that in-depth of a role.
What other show(s) did a actor do such a good job that he set the bar so high it was hard for the majority of the fans to accept his departure? Not only that but who else could comeback and the fans ate it up like they did when RT came back for the reunions?
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2010 8:52:53 GMT -5
At the moment one of the shows that I can come up with is The Dukes of Hazard.
Sorry, I was rhetorically speaking.
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Post by ncwaltonsfan on Dec 23, 2010 18:35:11 GMT -5
"Bewitched" had two Darrins. The first,played by Dick York,left after five seasons because of an addiction to pain killers for an old back injury and after collapsing on the set. Dick Sargent, the second Darrin, starred as Samantha's (Elizabeth Montgomery) mortal husband the remaining three seasons. There were also two Gladys Kravitzes,the first,Alice Pearce,died of cancer after the second season and was replaced by Sandra Gould,and two Louise Tates,the first left and was replaced by another actress. I guess the people behind the scenes on "The Waltons" thought they could pull it off with a second John Boy.
In the case of "The Dukes Of Hazard", I think John Schneider and Tom Wopat had a salary or contract dispute with the studio or the producers and walked off the set before eventually returning.
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Post by Marilyn on Dec 24, 2010 0:42:49 GMT -5
Lassie had few different collies play the part, but they all were pretty similar. I noticed the last one was different and did you know that even though the Lassie character was a girl, boys played her part! Oh wait, I wonder how many people remember Lassie?
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Post by dfnmeows44 on Dec 24, 2010 7:43:34 GMT -5
I remember the series very well. June Lockhart got her start on this series and then when it ended she was a frequent player on Password . She then returned to TV on Lost in Space. On a 1959 Leave it to Beaver episode Beaver mentions his consternation when he said he found out that there were 4 Lassies.
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