Melissa Ellen Gilbert (May 8, 1963) is an American actress, director, producer, politician, and former president of the Screen Actors Guild best known for Little House on the Prairie, Guest Artist, and the 1981 television film remake of the 1961 film Splendor in the Grass.
She was married to Bo Brinkman and Bruce Boxleitner and is currently married to Timothy Busfield. She has five children, including three stepchildren.
Melissa's siblings are actors Jonathan and Sara Gilbert.
Film Roles
- The Reluctant Astronaut as Niece
- Nutcracker Fantasy as Clara
- Sylvester as Charlie
- Safe Harbour as Ophelia MacKenzie
Television Roles
- The Dean Martin Comedy Hour as Girl on Santa's Lap (1 episode)
- Gunsmoke as Spratt's Child (1 episode)
- Emergency! as Jenny (1 episode)
- Tenafly as Suzie's sister (1 episode)
- Little House on the Prairie as Laura Ingalls
- The Love Boat as Rosemary "Rocky" Simpson (1 episode)
- The Hidden Room (1 episode)
- Without Her Consent - as Emily Briggs. Television Film.
- Forbidden Nights - as Judith Shapiro. Co-stars alongside of Robin Shou in his first appearance on American TV in an television film.
- Batman: The Animated Series as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl (recurring)
- Sweet Justice as Kate Delacroy
- Babylon 5 as Anna Sheridan (2 episodes)
- The Outer Limits (1995) as Teresa Janovitch (1 episode)
- Touched by an Angel as Michelle Tanner (1 episode)
- Providence as Lorna Berlin (1 episode)
- Presidio Med as Grace Bennett (1 episode)
- Fat Actress As Herself (1 episode)
- 7th Heaven as Marie Wagner (1 episode)
- Nip/Tuck as Shari Noble (1 episode)
- Dancing with the Stars As Herself (2012)
- The Night Shift as Lindsay (1 episode)
- Secrets & Lies as Lisa Daly (recurring)
Producer
I knew there would be Tropes to read and pages to make, and I was glad, for this is a fair website and I rejoiced that I would see it:
- Friendship on the Set: A very interesting one between Melissa, her Casting Director Marcia Ross through employment by Half Pint Enterprise, and Robin Shou during the filming of Forbidden Nights. If anyone wants to thank someone for helping Robin become the Chosen one, then thank Melissa for introducing Marcia to Robin. Melissa and Marcia's friendship in later years on Little House on the Prairie helped lead to a relatively unknown friendship with Robin in making his silver screen debut in 1995. No, you are not reading this wrong! Half Pint's friendship in her later years with a Runaway Shaolin Monk helped save Earth Realm by sending said monk to stop Shang Tsung only after Shang Tsung killed his little brother. Weird... that's one thing they both have in common. Both Half Pint and Liu Kang lost their little brothers by fate. Meaning one thing... That fate of billions will depend upon a monk meeting a former resident of Walnut Grove! Ha ha ha... sorry.
- Production Posse: Look at the list of TV films Melissa has been in. Most of them were funded by Half Pint Enterprise and had directors, producers, and writers that came from Little House On The Prairie.
- Star-Derailing Role: Sylvester almost killed Melissa's film career due to having a questionable marketing in who exactly the film was for. It also doesn't help that the film came out three years after Melissa's final three appearances as Laura in the last Little House on the Prairie TV films
- Typecasting: She normally gets parts as a kindhearted woman. However, in a recent audiobook, she hopes someday to play a bitch in her later years.
