Landon, Michael

Landon, Michael (b. Eugene Maurice Orowitz) (1936–91) television actor; born in New York City. After appearing in small roles in television westerns and drama series including Playhouse 90, he made his film debut in I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957). He endeared himself to audiences as Little Joe in the television western series, Bonanza (1959–73), and as Charles Ingalls in the television series based on Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House on the Prairie (1979–82). He occasionally wrote and directed for the series he starred in, including Stairway to Heaven (1984–88). He had just completed the pilot for Us before his sudden death from cancer.