Episode 73 – A Candid Chat With ‘Prairie Man’ Dean Butler About ‘Little House’ & His New Memoir - Part 1

On this episode of Hollywood Obsessed, host Tony Miros speaks with actor Dean Butler who is best known for playing Almanzo Wilder on the classic TV series “Little House On The Prairie”!

During the first part of their candid two-part conversation Dean tells podcast host Tony Miros how he and the cast of ‘Little House’ feel about hitting the 50th anniversary of the series this year, how the show is still watched and new audiences are still discovering it, how wise Michael Landon was using the ‘Little House’ books as the source material for this beloved series but expanding those stories to entertain audiences week after week, the reason why he decided to write his memoir “PRAIRIE MAN: My Little House Life & Beyond” now, his anxiety about how some people might feel with some of the things he decided to include in his book, how his love for performing in front of an audience came to his life, how he felt when he got his first major role in the made for TV movie “Forever” with Stephanie Zimbalist, how fearless he was when he came to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting, how people in the industry thought his real life naivete and innocence was all an act when he walked into a room, how he got the audition for Almanzo Wilder on “Little House”, and his thoughts on working a room when you have an audition in Hollywood.

DEAN BUTLER

Dean Butler is an actor, producer, and director best known for his portrayal of Almanzo Wilder on the NBC family drama Little House on the Prairie, which was based on the classic Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. He appeared in the final four seasons of the show, the spin-off show Little House: A New Beginning, and the three post-series TV movies. After Little House ended, he played Jeff "Moondoggie" Griffin in the TV series The New Gidget and Buffy’s dad, Hank Summers, on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Butler was a guest star on various television series, including Murder, She Wrote; Who's the Boss?; The Love Boat; and JAG.He co-starred with the late Gary Coleman in The Kid with the 200 I.Q.. He appeared in the movies Desert Hearts and The Final Goal.

He was a producer for NBC Golf’s Emmy-nominated series Feherty for over ten seasons. He has directed, produced, written, and narrated bonus features for Little House on the Prairie DVD collections. He narrated a six-part documentary, The Little House Phenomenon. And he produced two documentaries, Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder and Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura, which drew their inspiration from the Little House books of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Additionally, in 2012, Butler co-executive produced Pa's Fiddle: The Music of America for PBS. Dean lives in California with his family.

Dean’s new memoir PRAIRIE MAN: My Little House Life & Beyond was recently published (Pub date: June 25, 2024; HC, $28.00). In it, Dean shares the behind- the-scenes of Little House on the Prairie on a heartfelt journey of “good luck, good television, and the very good if gloriously imperfect—people who made it so.” With a foreword from Melissa Gilbert (Laura) and Alison Arngrim (Nellie), this uplifting memoir follows Butler’s journey from childhood to the Prairie and beyond.

Dean Butler Official Website

https://deanbutler.com/

Little House on the Prairie Website

https://littlehouseontheprairie.com/

Prairie Man: My Little House Life & Beyond Book

https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/9780806543314/prairie-man/

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