When the Walton's say GoodNight

[wmfan/waltonsportwriter]

Have you ever wondered when the Walton's say Good Night how does it sound so good and clear . Are their doors open and they would have to shout through walls. Even in a house that small the acoustics wouldn't e that cear and good like they were all in the same room and different floors. I wonder if they were all really huddled by the table in the darkness when they recorded it. We like to think of them snug in their beds, bt it sure doesn't sound like it. Just a thought about Good Night. And Happy Memorial Day as we remember all the soldiers and veterans who served our country and others around the world. Best wishes WmFan

[Deleted]

It wouldn't have sounded as clear if they had been on different floors, but for television, they probably said their good nights in front of a microphone. 
 
My sisters and I use to stay up later than my mother would have liked, so when she'd heard enough banter, she'd shout out "Good NIGHT, Ladies!!"   (but that was pretty clear!)

[wmfan/waltonsportwriter]

Shortly after writing this and watching the Intruders John said something to the effect of we need to build thicker walls so we can't hear everything. How that would have destroyed the Goodnight. Paperthin walls at the Walton's anyone WmFan

[rupert12]

Well I had always assumed they were all tucked snugly in bed when saying goodnight.

[Deleted]

I hadn´t thought of it this way. I often thought that, by the time John Boy, Jason, Mom and Dad were in bed Elizabeth and Jim Bob should have been well and truly asleep. We all know kids don´t always go straight to sleep, but to let adults know it well!!!!!
Okay it´s TV and makes for good TV at that. As for clarity, again TV but if the walls were thin then a definite maybe.

[wmfan/waltonsportwriter]

Maybe there were no walls in the staged house. I'm sure they were sitting at a table or by a microphone. And rupert we all want the warm and cozy feeling that they were snug in bed. That's exactly what the producers want. Talk soon WmFan

[clyde]

But in many episodes, we see the kids going to bed, and the adults staying up. so maybe the adults were speaking from the living room or kitchen, and not the bedroom. However the lights usually go out at the very end, so that scenario doesn't really fit. At any rate, we all remember the Goodnights 40 years later, so it was an effective, if not accurate, device.

[JeriJet]

The smiley faces have disappeared and I need them desperately!!!
You're all talking like the scenes in each show were filmed in a logical order!!!
The "good-night's" may well have been recorded first -- and anywhere on the sound stage.... they probably weren't even in their jammies!!!
That's the MAGIC of non-live viewing....

Here's another thought -- We are viewing an exterior shot of the house when these good-night's are happening... but I don't think the producers mean us to believe we're sitting in the trees outside, listening to what's going on in the house!!!

[ just havin' some fun with this....]

[Deleted]

Heh.. There's enough room in the treehouse for some like-minded believers. Just don't do a Hobbie and fall at lights out.

mercantile

[River]

In real life, I am sure the walls were paper thin. How much insulation was there in the time the house was built? On the tv, I am sure they were sitting at a table near each other.

[JeriJet]

May 28, 2013 20:42:54 GMT -5 River said:

In real life, I am sure the walls were paper thin. How much insulation was there in the time the house was built? On the tv, I am sure they were sitting at a table near each other.

Probably bursting a bubble, but....
I bet a production assistant was charged with "collecting" the good-nights.... whenever possible during any actor's break in script, a PA (along with a sound man) could record those clips at any time, in any place.... only needed one actor for any given spot....
By the end of a couple of seasons, they had almost all the clips they needed already archived!!

[e knight]

I'd say that the show was exercising poetic license, having the characters speak softly while in reality they must have been shouting to be heard. That would hurt the mood! Most likely, they knew each other so well that a minimum of words were needed to express their deep feelings.

[ericscott]

Great Subject. As a lot of you correctly pointed out, the Goodnights were usually recorded on the soundstage in the living room during one of our kitchen scene marathons. We were gather around (the ones in that particular episode) with the sound boom in the middle -like a campfire in the sky and we would record it with no rehearsal. It was not usually recorded twice, just as in life.

As far as the visual, it was most often the same one used but occasionally they would film a different version
for a particular episode, like when one of the lights came back on for a moment.

Without a doubt, one of the highlights and unique qualities of this great show.

I hope that helps,

Eric

[Deleted]

Thank you, Eric! Good to see you here.

[JeriJet]

hmmm.... disappointing -- feels a bit backwards in terms of technique.... but it was the 70's afterall.... and their way of doing it does bring the young actors closer in... makes it warmer somehow, perhaps more real?