Trivia for
"The Waltons" (1972)

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• Ellen Corby was forced to leave the series after suffering a stroke. She later returned to the show.
  
  
• When Will Geer died after filming had ended for the 1977-1978 season his character, Grandpa Walton, was written off the show by having him die as well.
  
  
• 'Richard Thomas' came back to the show for a few guest appearances before his role as John-Boy was taken over by 'Robert Wightman' .
  
  

• When John Ritter left after the 1975-1976 season, his absence was explained by having his character, Reverend Fordwick, join the army.
  
  
• The name of the newspaper that John-Boy published was the Blue Ridge Chronicle.
  
  
• The college John-Boy goes to is known as BoatWright Unversity. It was a real college but is now known today as the University of Richmond.
  
  
• Cora Beth Godsey always referred to her husband Ike as "Mr. Godsey". In episode 9.2 The Outrage: Part 2 When Ike and Corabeth Godsey are in bed she does call him Ike rather than the customary Mr. Godsey
  
  
• John had an older brother named Ben who was killed during World War I. Of course, he later named his third son for his deceased brother.
  
  
• The "Walton House" was actually located in the northern section of the Jungle area of Warner Brothers studios in Burbank. Walton's Mountain, which could be seen from the house's front porch, was actually a slope of the Hollywood Hills directly south of the Warner Bros. Studios. Interiors of the house were filmed on Stage 26. The roadway leading to the Walton house through the remaining portion of the jungle still existed in 2003 and is visible during the studio tour, although Ike Godsey's store has long since disappeared. The house had been dismantled a few years before to make way for a parking lot and was moved to the Warner Bros. Ranch lot at Hollywood Way and Verdugo Avenue, where it still functions as a workable exterior set. If you check the Season 1 DVD's of "Gilmore Girls" you will note that the old "Dragonfly Inn" that Lorelai and Sookie purchase and then renovate is the exterior of the Walton house. This is also stated in the trivia section for "Gilmore Girls" here on IMDB
  
  
• The name of the honky tonk that Jason played at to earn some extra money was the Dew Drop Inn.
  
  
• Mary Ellen's husband, Dr. Curtis Williard, was written out of the show by having him killed during the attack on Pearl Harbor. However, a couple of seasons later it was discovered that Curt was still alive and living in another city, but was rendered impotent due to the injuries he suffered during the attack.
  
  
• When the show premiered on CBS at the beginning of the 1972-73 season, most media pundits felt it didn't have a chance, airing as it did opposite two proven ratings powerhouses. "The Flip Wilson Show" (1970) on NBC, had been the number one show in America for the previous two seasons, and ABC's "The Mod Squad" (1968) was a long-standing favorite, as well. "The Waltons" out-performed both shows in the ratings by a wide margin. "Mod Squad" was cancelled by the end of the season, and Flip Wilson, rather than have the same thing happen to his show, announced that the 1973-74 season would be his last. All this happened just a year after CBS felt that rural shows were "out," and set out to prove it, in a highly controversial move, by canceling several long-running series, such as "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1962) and "Green Acres" (1965) which were still doing well in the ratings.
  
  
• The character 'John Walton Sr.' was ranked #3 in TV Guide's list of the "50 Greatest TV Dads of All Time" (20 June 2004 issue).
  
  
• The names of the Walton's pets are as follows: Blue the mule, Chance the cow, Reckless the dog, Rover the peacock, Lance the deer and Myrtle the Goat.
  
  
• In the series' first episode ("The Foundling"), the family gathers around their new radio to listen to the Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy Show. This was a nod to Bergen, the original Grandpa in the series' pilot movie, "The Homecoming: A Christmas Story".
  
  
• In the final scene of the series' final episode ("The Revel"), the remaining Waltons family members and the Godseys gather at the Baldwin sisters' mansion for a party. As the sisters thank their guests for coming, the viewer can see that several unnamed guests have joined the crowd. These are none other than series creator Earl Hamner and other long running crew members, giving the scene a wrap party look.
  
  
• The basis for the Walton family, was series creator 'Earl Hamner' s real life family members. Hamner grew up with 7 other siblings each of whom served as the basis for each young Walton character. He also based the characters of 'The Walton's grandparents on composites of both of his Grandfathers and Grandmothers.
  
  

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