"By the Spring of 1945 there were no young men left on Waltons Mountain, though with the Allied forces close to victory in Europe, hope grew that soon they'd be returning home. The cost of defending our freedoms ran high, and in our patriotic fervor we sometimes failed to realise that those freedoms were too often not evenly distributed".
John-Boy and Jason are both in France, Ben is in the Pacific, Jim Bob is in the airforce somewhere. At home, Verdie's husband Harley Foster, is accused of being an escaped prisoner who has killed a man. John discovers that Harley is indeed a runaway prisoner, 9 years ago, but was jailed by a biassed trial. He had killed in self-defense. However, the Sheriff's duty is to arrest him and send him back to jail.
John-Boy, working for "The Stars And Stripes" in Paris, comes across Jason's girl-friend Toni Hazelton and they both try to find out where Jason is in France.
Ike Godsey feels Corabeth is too much of a business woman and not enough of a wife, and tells her so. After reflecting on this, Corabeth "resigns" from the store and concentrates on looking after Ike, but after a time he yearns for things as they were, and they become "partners" in business again.
Drew hardly sees anything of Elizabeth as she's become pre-occupied with her horse Molly, until it bolts, falls and breaks its leg badly and has to be put down. Elizabeth and Drew together begin to raise Molly's colt.
"In the closing months of World War Two the fighting, far from the serenity of Waltons Mountain, was beginning to wind down. On the home front however, my father found himself in the vanguard of the battle for equality and freedom that was so long overdue in America".
John traces Harley Foster's original defence lawyer, now retired, and Harley's heroic war record comes to light. Eventually John manages to get to see President Roosevelt himself, who's last act before his death was to sign Harley's pardon.
"The train bearing the body of Franklin Delanor Roosevelt moved slowly from Warm Springs Georgia toward the nation's capital. Wherever it went the people who loved him gathered to mark its passing, remembering the man who led a nation out of its most crippling depression and toward victory in its greatest war, planting seeds of brotherhood along the way. When it passed through Charlottesville my family was there to pay their last respects".
John Walton: Goodnight, Mr President.
Also appearing -
Corabeth Godsey (Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); Harley
Foster (Hal Williams); Verdie Foster (Lynn Hamilton); Josh Foster ( Jason Moses); Drew
Cutler (Tony Becker); Sheriff Bridges (John Crawford); Toni Hazelton (Lisa Harrison);
Norman (Jordan Suffow); The Deputy (Charles Thomas Murphy); John-Boy (Robert Wightman).
"In those last months of the war, though death and destruction continued, it was possible for the first time to think of a world at peace. There would then be the small personal wars to be reckoned with, such as my sister Mary Ellen's adversary role with life, always heading into it, never conforming to its patterns. She was wife, mother, widow, nurse, and not any or all of these things together brought her peace of mind. Something within her still fought, still searched. And for those of us overseas, even though the war was winding down, it was far from over".
A young man, Sweet Billy, and his sister Ronie, live nearby on the mountain. He works hard keeping their place in repair but hasn't much strength. One day he rides into the Waltons and collapses in front of Mary Ellen. They rush him to hospital but his heart stops. After the burial, Mary Ellen pledges herself to study to become a doctor so that she will not be so helpless again. However, the Dean of Admissions at Boatwright College refuses to admit her because she's a woman, but by continual determination and persistence, Mary Ellen succeeds in overcoming this opposition.
The Baldwin sisters parcel up some of the Recipe to send to Jason overseas as a present but Ike says it's illegal to send it through the mails, so Erin contacts a friend in the army who manages to arrange its transportation. Meanwhile the mother of a young G.I. stationed nearby, writes to Corabeth asking her to bake a birthday cake for her son, which she does, after deciding that being referred to as an "older lady" really means "mature".....
"In many ways everyone was right. The road ahead for Mary Ellen was hard and discouraging, in all ways tough and challenging. Just right for Mary Ellen who knew how to bounce off walls, fall on her face, and survive to fight another day. It was her private war, and in time even our father came to agree she'd win".
Elizabeth: Mary Ellen? I was just thinking how much money I'll save with a
doctor in the family.
Mary Ellen: You better take care of yourself Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: You wouldn't charge your own sister?
Mary Ellen: I've got four years of pre-med and three years of med school, I'll be
an intern four years or so and then there's a residency.
Elizabeth: I'll take care of myself. Goodnight Mary Ellen.
Mary Ellen: Goodnight Elizabeth!
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards);
Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson & Helen
Kleeb); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Tony Becker (Drew Cutler); Bucklind Beery (Dr
Hollinson); Dick Christie (Sgt Carey); Sweet Billy (Richard Lineback); Ronie (Ellen Geer);
Dean Clifford (Dennis Robertson); G.I. (Lawrence Lau); Chip Frye (Charley).
"In 1945 on Waltons Mountain with the coming of summer, buds became leaves and wildflowers painted the hills and fields as no human artist could. It was as if nature was defying the war that consumed the world. On the home front there were shortages, rationing and a deepening war-weariness that only victory could ease. But the greatest problem of all for my family was coping with the anxiety about those of us who were in the service. One brother was stationed nearby, and three were overseas, one of whom, my brother Jason, was fighting on the frontlines somewhere in Germany".
He is leading a patrol of two soldiers and is saddled with a young soldier, Private Willis, still scared from recent experiences. They discover a lone enemy sniper in the church tower of a deserted village just as news is received of Germany's surrender. Faced with the task of getting the German to surrender, the scared soldier, who can speak German, finds the courage to talk to the young German sniper, eventually persuading him that the war is indeed over and that he can surrender in safety.
At home, the Godseys are caught by an officious bureaucrat selling groceries to the Baldwins without the required number of ration coupons. They are summoned to appear at an enquiry where it is decided that they will be prosecuted by the Court. Then when they return to the store they find it has been broken into and most of the provisions stolen. They decide to closedown the store but all their friends rally round to persuade them they are really needed in the community. As Jim Bob comes home on leave, they all gather at the Waltons to celebrate the end of the war.
"Eisenhower had called the invasion of Europe the Great Crusade. He reminded us back in June 1944 that the eyes of the world were upon us, that the hopes and prayers of people everywhere marched with us. Now, the Great Crusade was over and while we rejoiced there was the knowledge that the war in Japan was still to be won".
Elizabeth: Mary Ellen? How do you spell victorious?
Mary Ellen: Elizabeth you ought to be asleep.
Elizabeth: I will be, soon. I'm writing a letter to Ben.
Mary Ellen: Tell him John Curtis is learning how to count. Tell him I ran into an
old girl-friend of his today.
John: Tell him all that in the morning! Goodnight Elizabeth!
Elizabeth: Goodnight Daddy. (pause) I still don't know how to spell
victorious.....
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth Godsey (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire
Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); The Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson
& Helen Kleeb); Private Willis (Mark McClure); Dana Gladstone (Lusco); Ken Wright
(Slate); also Davis Roberts, Eldon Quick and James Nolan.
"The war with Germany had ended, but the fight raged on in the Pacific where our younger brother Ben was still serving in a combat zone. Our family was especially concerned about Ben's wife Cindy. As the rumors of an up coming invasion of Japan grew, so did her fears about Ben, fears which took on a chilling significance".
Cindy's premonition is that Ben is in grave danger, and when a telegram arrives for her, the worst is feared. However it contains the news that he's been taken prisoner by the Japs. A letter Ben wrote three weeks ago arrives the same day in which he speaks of an overwhelming feeling of seeing Cindy waiting at the docks as he comes home. Cindy feels that Ben will be alright and that she has to trust that his premonition will also come true.
John-Boy, in Paris, is entreated by a French girl, Simone Berringer, to write an article about the danger of unexploded mines. As he has so much work on hand, he refuses, but, out in the countryside one day with Jason, he witnessses the death of a child by a mine. He changes his mind and writes the article which, incidentally, causes Jason's men, waiting to be sent back home, to be detailed for mine clearance. John-Boy and Simone have fallen in love but, when he is about to leave for home, Simone realises that she cannot leave France just then.
"Simone and I corresponded after I came home but gradually the time between letters grew longer and longer. The next time I went back to Paris was in 1956. Simone's bookstore was gone and so was she. Someone on the street thought she may have married and moved to London, but I never did find out for sure".
Elizabeth: I'm glad you decided to come home, John-Boy.
John-Boy: So am I.
Elizabeth: Do you think Ben's going to be alright?
John-Boy: Cindy says he is, that's good enough for me.
Elizabeth: Goodnight John-Boy.
John-Boy: Goodnight Elizabeth.
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards);
Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Simone (Anita
Jodelsohn); Jordan Suffin (Norman); Ed Call (Sgt Norton); Woody Eney (Major Sawyer).
"Though peace had finally come to Europe in the summer of 1945, America was still faced with the considerable task of bringing the war in the Pacific to victory. It was a time of uncertainty, both for those on the home front and for the troops still overseas. During that summer my brother Jim Bob was to face a personal crisis at home, while my brother Ben fought for his very survival as a prisoner of war".
Ben is a prisoner of the Japs somewhere in the Pacific where he surreptitiously substitutes for the Japanese flag in the prison camp compound an American one he's made from clothing scraps..... Jason is drafted overseas to Paris where he finds he's detailed to work on a musical show with his girl-friend Toni, until she gets orders to return to the States. Jim Bob comes home on ten days leave. Kathy, a girl he's met has fallen in love with him and follows him to Waltons Mountain. To make him marry her she tells him she's pregnant, but Mary Ellen is suspicious and confides her thoughts to her father, who later suggests to Kathy and Jim Bob that honesty is a vital part of marriage. Her conscience troubled, Kathy tells Jim Bob the truth.
"Kathy left the following morning, and if Jim Bob ever saw her again he never mentioned it. He was quiet for the remainder of his furlough, and even Elizabeth stopped teasing him, for she was growing up, too".
John: Jim Bob?
Jim Bob: Yes sir?
John: It's going to hurt a little less as the days go by you know.
Jim Bob: I remember you saying that to John-Boy one time.
John: And it's still true son.
Jim Bob: Goodnight Daddy.
John: Goodnight Jim Bob. 'Night everybody.
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards);
Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); Toni (Liza Harrison); Kathy (Jennifer Jason
Leigh); Jordan Suffin (Norman); Frank Catalano (Augie); Richard Molner (Billy); Dane
Witherspoon (Clint); Ken Michelman (Corp Bergstrom); Jerry Hoffman (Lt Saunders).
"In all our lives there are moments we are meant to remember for ever, in every small detail and shading. To my family on Waltons Mountain such a moment came in the late summer of 1945. The war in Europe was over, the worst of the Japanese war still lay ahead. On that hot Sunday in August an unexpected visitor came to Waltons Mountain, brought by the notion that something was wrong with my brother Jason who was waiting to be shipped home from France".
It was his girl-friend Toni who was worried about him, but Jason does come home and is given 30 days leave. He feels he doesn't want to marry Toni while the war in the Pacific is still going on. He and Toni have a tiff about this but come together when the Japanese surrender after the atomic bombs are dropped.
Somewhere in the Pacific, Ben and a fellow prisoner are led on a mysterious and frightening trek into the jungle by an apparently crazy Japanese guard, but in fact are being taken toward the American forces. When an American army truck passes, the guard suddenly surrenders, and later, Ben is able to phone home to Cindy. That night as the family sits down to eat, John gives thanks for the safety of his sons
. "The words of blessing were also a memorial, for lost, missing in action somewhere in that war was the world we had grown up in - my father's world, and Jason's. Gentle and generous, naive, and optimistic. Some other sort of world would begin on Wednesday morning. Until then.....".
Elizabeth: Daddy?
John: Elizabeth?
Elizabeth: It's the middle of August and it feels like a Christmas carol,
"Peace on earth, goodwill to men -
John-Boy: - from Heaven's all-gracious King -
Elizabeth: -the earth in solemn stillness lay, to hear the angels sing".
John: Goodnight everybody.
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards);
Rose (Peggy Rae); Toni (Liza Harrison); Cindy (Leslie Winston); John-Boy (Robert
Wightman); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Jordan Suffin (Norman);
Tony Becker (Drew Cutler).
"It was a time when our family world seemed to be in constant motion. The movement of people to and from the mountain contrasted sharply with the serenity we had known there for so many years. Perhaps because we were so close to it we didn't recognise the certain signs that an old era was ending and a new day we couldn't even envision, was in its dawning".
Ben is coming home but Cindy wants to drive over and meet him so Erin lets her have the petrol coupons she'd been saving. When Ben and Cindy return home, they reveal Ben's plans for becoming an engineer and building bridges. John, who'd been counting on Ben running the mill with him as his partner, is very disappointed, but will not stand in his way. However Olivia, working with the Red Cross in Washington, has a relapse and needs to move to Arizona for a long rest. As John will be taking her and staying with her for a while, he decides he will have to sell the mill. Ben, not wanting to have the mill sold to an outsider, decides that he doesn't after all need to go away to build bridges and will stay and run the mill.
Cindy's father, Colonel Henry Brunson, pays a visit.
"It was not the end of a dream for Ben, the world was out there if he ever decided to go and find it, but he had discovered another world just as important, and it consisted of Cindy and Virginia and hard work done with love and pride. It was a vast and fulfilling world, right there on the mountain, and nobody understood that better than our father".
Erin: Goodnight Elizabeth. Goodnight Jason.
Jason: 'Night Erin. Goodnight Jim Bob.
Jim Bob: Goodnight Mary Ellen. Goodnight Erin.
Erin: Goodnight John Curtis.
Mary Ellen: He's asleep!
Erin: I'll tell him in the morning then.
John: Goodnight everybody.
Also appearing -
John Walton (Ralph Waite); Ike & Corabeth Godsey (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire
Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy (Leslie Winston); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson
& Helen Kleeb); J D Pickett (Louis Arquette); Colonel Brunson (Dan Fraser).
"As World War Two was gradually consigned to the pages of history life on Waltons Mountain began returning to normal. Store shelves bulged with food and other goods that had been scarce during the fighting. And families were reunited as the young men headed home. But peace didn't necessarily mean an end to turbulence, life would always somehow manage to keep us off balance".
Coming home on leave Jim Bob thumbs a lift from a passing car. Going down the twisting mountain road, the driver, Jonesy, finds the brakes have failed. The car leaves the road at a sharp bend and ends upsidedown. Having just passed them, Mary Ellen and Jason turn round and come to the rescue. Back at the Waltons house, Mary Ellen says Jonesy must stay to rest for a while. Jim Bob undertakes to repair the car and Ben gives Jonesy a temporary job helping in the mill. Jonesy and Mary Ellen fall in love and agree to get married. Then a lady arrives with news of Curt, who was believed to have been killed four years ago at Pearl Harbor. With his car now repaired, Jonesy leaves to continue his travels while Mary Ellen goes to find out if it really is Curt.
Jason has bought the Dew Drop Inn which had lain derelict for some time but, faced with the indiference of the family, tries to renovate it all on his own. With only one day left before his planned re-opening, the family comes to his aid and even the disapproving Corabeth has to admit to its charming atmosphere on the opening night.
"Mary Ellen thought that saying goodbye to Jonesy was the hardest thing she had ever done. But what lay ahead of her was to be even more difficult. The war was officially over but she had a private battle still to face".
Jim Bob: Jason?
Jason: Sorry, Jim Bob. I tripped over the waste basket.
Jim Bob: You just getting home?
Jason: It was hard closing up. Corabeth didn't want me to leave, she kept asking me
to play her favorite piano roll.
Jim Bob: Yeh, so?
Jason: Moohlight Sonata.
Jim Bob: Goodnight Jason.
Jason: Goodnight Jim Bob.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy
(Leslie Winston); Jonesy (Richard Gilliland); Betty Howell (Pamela McMyler).
"A chill settled on Waltons Mountain that first autumn after the conclusion of the Second World War. Mary Ellen had been caught up in a whirlwind love affair that seemed certain to add a new member to the family. But a storm was brewing to the south, a storm that ended her romance and called her to a distant part of the country in search of a man she believed to be dead".
When she arrives in Florida she does find Curt, but he is a very changed man and doesn't love her any more. After staying a few days Mary Ellen comes to realise that there is no way they can grow together again, so she returns to Waltons Mountain.
While Mary Ellen was away, Jonesy had decided not to continue on his travels and had been working for J.D.Pickett who has fired Erin unjustly. Jonesy stands up to J.D. and gets Erin her job back, but this time on much more favorable terms.
"Mary Ellen leaned heavily on Jonesy for support during those first few months after her trip to Florida. But her greatest source of strength was John Curtis, the little boy she and Curt had brought into the world in the waning hours of a simpler era".
Mary Ellen: Goodnight John Curtis.
John Curtis: Goodnight mother.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); the Baldwin
sisters (Mary Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Jonesy (Richard Gilliland); J.D.Pickett (Lewis
Arquette); Curt (Scott Hylands); Betty Howell (Pamela McMyler).
Note: Previously Curt was played by Tom Bower.
"When we were growing up we always knew we would be safe and warm and dry, here where we were raised by loving parents and grandparents. We knew who we were and where we came from. So it was hard to believe that someone close to us could suddenly discover that her past was obscure and shrouded in mystery".
A very rainy night and Cindy's father Colonel Brunson is driving over to see them. Then the State Police phone and tell Ben there's been an accident and the Colonel is dead. At the funeral in Washington, Cindy sees a lady who seems familiar to her, someone she may have seen a long time ago. Amongst her father's things Cindy finds a document which reveals that she was adopted. She resolves to try and find out about her real parents and she and Ben go to Washington. Eventually they trace the lady who tells Cindy how she had to give up her little daughter. Later, the lady, Cindy's mother Bernadine, finds her way to Waltons Mountain where she and Cindy embrace.
Drew's parents are away for a couple of weeks and Rose insists he stay at the Waltons until they return. Elizabeth is pleased as she thinks she'll be able to be with him more, but instead Drew finds himself helping out with the family chores and neglecting her.
"Cindy's longing to find out all she could about her past was finally fulfilled, and a loving, lasting relationship with her mother was just beginning".
Elizabeth: Erin? What do you do when you can't get to sleep?
Erin: I stay awake.
Elizabeth: No I'm serious. What do you do, count sheep?
Erin: No, that doesn't work for me.
Elizabeth: Me either.
Erin: Imagine that you're floating on a cloud, you're all alone, you're drifting,
drifting..
Elizabeth: - and drifting, drifting. There's a full moon, but I'm not alone.
Erin: Pleasant dreams Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Goodnight Erin.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rea); Cindy
(Leslie Winston); Bernadine (Penelope Windust); Drew Cutler (Tony Becker); Anita Dangler
(Mrs Foley); Bill Erwin (Dr Grover); Edward bell (Mr Nichols).
"The end of World War Two brought a period of readjustment for the men who had served in the armed forces. Restless soldiers returned home to towns that looked smaller than they had remembered. And families found their sons to be different from the boys who had marched off to war. Some of them were eager to assume the responsibilities of life, while others floundered, determined to make up for the years they had lost".
Jim Bob and Jody Foster reckelessly celebrate their release from army discipline, and the Baldwin sisters receive an unwelcome visit. A Government inspector tells them that making the "recipe" is illegal and their machine has to be dismantled and removed. Just at that time, though, they accidentally discover a secret room which contains an older "recipe machine", so their spirits recover.
A series of reckless driving escapades in their hot-rod culminates with Jody being flung out of the car and getting a broken arm and concussion. This causes Jim Bob to think deeply and he buys an old building near the Godsey's store in order to turn it into a garage for auto repairs with Jody as his partner.
"Jim Bob and Jody opened their garage, their partnership provided them with the way to make the final transition back into civilian life. Both familes breathed a sigh of relief to see them settle down and become responsible young men. And Miss Emily and Miss Mamie, when asked about the loss of their Papa's recipe machine would smile and say - Don't worry, we saved enough for everybody".
Elizabeth: Jim Bob, if I came to your garage would you teach me how to change
the oil in a car?
Jim Bob: Why do you want to know how to do that Elizabeth?
Elizabeth: Well I was just thinking it might be fun to be a mechanic.
Jim Bob: Ok I'll teach you. but you'll have to wear old clothes so you won't get
dirty.
Elizabeth: Oh I don't want to touch the oil, I just want to watch you do it.
Jim Bob: Goodnight Elizabeth.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); The Baldwin sisters (Mary
Jackson & Helen Kleeb); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Rose (Peggy Rae); Jody Foster
(Charles R Penland); Verdie Foster (Lynn Hamilton); Josh Foster (Jason Moses); Jody
(Charles R.Penland); Deputy Sheriff Walt Hendrix (John Carter).
"During his long absence from the mountain, Rose rarely spoke of her beau and dancing partner Stanley Perkins, but I suspect she thought of him often, especially when the radio played an old dance tune".
One day he turns up unexpectedly after a long period without any word from him. He says he's retired from a successful selling career and was given a gold watch by his firm. He takes a job helping in the Godsey's store. Rose, however, discovers that he's been having treatment for a breakdown in a mental hospital after having been fired from his job. There had been no gold watch. His sister Elvira in Richmond traces him to the Waltons and, just as he decides, after some mishaps, to return with her to the hospital, his friends in Waltons Mountain come round and convince him he's not a failure, and a local newspaper offers him a job. Rose presents him with a real gold watch.
Jason, concerned at the lack of customers to the Dew Drop Inn hires a Western singer in competition to the roadhouse on the by-pass, but sacks him when he finds him making advances to his girl-friend Toni. That evening Toni and Jason do a duet for their customers.
"Mr Perkins' self-assurance eventually came back and he was never to return to the hospital. From that day onward when Stanley had moments of doubt he would always look at Rose's gold watch and remember that he was indeed a success".
Jason: Goodnight Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Goodnight Jason. (pause) Hey Jason, do you have to pay Toni for
singing at the Dewdrop?
Jason: I think when Toni sings it's a labor of love.
Elizabeth: Ah, does that mean you pay her in kisses?
Jason: Good night, Elizabeth.....
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); the Baldwin sisters (Mary
Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Toni Hazelton (Liza Harrison); Stanley Perkins (William
Schallert); Rose (Peggy Rea); Elvira (Carolyn Coates); Johnny Calico (Curtis Credel);
Terry Burns (Dr Martin).
"The pattern of our lives was broken by the war and the old ways of the past became less a part of us when we returned home. So long as our mother and grandmother were there to shepherd us, the church was central to our lives. But without them on the scene some of the family found it easy to backslide, and as interest in the church slipped away it didn't seem possible that events would join to bring them back again".
The new minister, Tom Marshall, finds the church derelict, so by ringing the bell in the middle of the night he rouses the community to restore it.
The family is about to have dinner one day when Jason casually mentions that Toni is Jewish. This stuns the family and greatly embarrasses Toni who runs out. She meets the new minister who provides her with balanced counsel. The family, all Baptists, finally realise the true worth of each other's faiths as Toni agrees to marry Jason.
"It was a joyous night for Jason and Toni, the problems which they faced together were made smoother by the family, and by old friends who grew more interested in the things that brought them together, than those that might separate them. Truly, it was a beginning".
Jim Bob: That's the last bell ringing I'm going to, have you all got that?
Mary Ellen: Sure, Jim Bob, go to sleep.
Jim Bob: I keep thinking the British are coming, it kinda gives me a headache.
Mary Ellen: Take an aspirin.
Jim Bob: I've just remembered, no more bells.
(bell rings) Elizabeth: What's that?
Jim Bob: My alarm clock?
Mary Ellen and Elizabeth (together): Goodmorning Jim Bob!
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy
(Leslie Winston); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Toni Hazelton
(Liza Harrison); Rev Tom Marshall (Kip Niven).
"Like most adages it is tried and true that fate makes our relatives, choice makes our friends, and it calls to mind a time when a relative of Corabeth Godsey swept through Waltons Mountain like an autumn hurricane leaving both destruction and alike in her wake. All of this took place during a difficult period for Elizabeth who was entering womanhood but was feeling at times like a lost and lonesome child".
Her brothers and sisters all had their own lives keeping them occupied, and it seemed to her that they were neglecting her. One day, feeling especially lonely, she ran away intending to take the bus to Arizona to be with her mother and father. When Jason caught up with her it came out that, while all the rest of them had been growing up, Mama, Papa, Grandma and Grandpa all were there together, but with her it was different. Jason tells her that Mama was really too ill to have her, but as soon as she was well enough he would drive her over there to see them.
Corabeth has gone to Doe Hill to look after her dying aunt, when her sister Orma Lee comes to the Godseys store. The sisters, of different temperament, had never seen eye to eye, but when Corabeth returns, they make up, sharing the aunt's pearls which Corabeth has always coveted, she in turn sharing the china.
"It was a time of discovery for both families, that it is possible to choose relatives as friends. Corabeth and Orma Lee, and Elizabeth and her brothers and sisters found out that the family fabric gave from time to time, but the mending always made it stronger".
Elizabeth: Jim Bob?
Jim Bob: Yeah Elizabeth?
Elizabeth: Did you get a new picture taken for Mama's album?
Jim Bob: I keep forgetting, I'll do it tomorrow.
Elizabeth: That's OK. I'll just send athe one I found in Mama's bureau today, she
hid it there.
Jim Bob: Oh yeah, which one is that?
Elizabeth: The one on the bear rug, in your birthday suit.
Jim Bob: I thought I tore that one up.
Elizabeth: Goodnight Jim Bob!
Also appearing -
Ike Godsey (Joe Conley); Corabeth Godsey & Orma Lee (both played by Ronnie Claire
Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Taylor
Lacher (Vern Billy Stalcup).
"With the war over, my family settled down to a more normal routine of life, but occasionally this was to be interrupted by echoes of the war. Such was the case when we encountered a young man who was still struggling with war wounds, not to his body, but to his spirit and mind. Though he crossed our lives for only a short time, that memory would remain fresh with us always".
Erin's old friend Laurie, now married to Kenny Ellis, an ex- serviceman, is living in Mary Ellen's house. Kenny though, has a short temper and gets riled up over the slightest thing, and after brushing with Jason and John-Boy he takes it out on his wife. When this happens a second time, Laurie stays at the Waltons. She's severely bruised but still tries to cover up for Kenny. When he runs riot with a shotgun the Sheriff has to be called. Jason and John-Boy manage to approach him and eventually calm him.
Jim Bob rashly buys some army surplus junk with money borrowed from the Godseys, hoping to sell it at a profit. When this doesn't happen, he has to sell his hot-rod to raise the money to repay them. Then an offer comes from a film company to buy the stuff for props for a film.
"Kenny and Laurie moved to Richmond where he could be close to the V A hospital. Laurie's letters indicated that treatment helped Kenny forget the violence of the war and he became a gentle loving husband and father to her and to Kenneth Ellis Junior".
Rose: Goodnight John-Boy, goodnight Mary Ellen.
Mary Ellen: Goodnight Rose, goodnight Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: John-Boy? I want to visit you in New York.
John-Boy: I don't think you'd like it.
Elizabeth: How come?
John-Boy: No whipperwills, the city lights black out most of the stars at night.
Elizabeth: But it's got something more special than that.
John-Boy: What?
Elizabeth: You! Goodnight John-Boy.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); John-Boy
(Robert Wightman); Laurie (Carol Jones); Kenny Ellis (Ben Andrews); Deputy Sheriff Walt
Hendrix (John Carter); Buck Vernon (Archie Lang); Michael McDonough (Deputy Ernie Allen).
"The post-war world was an era of inovation; we stood upon the threshold of a new age which was ruled by sudden change. Technical advancements in medicine, science and electronics had a profound effect on the way we lived and thought. None of us dreamed how deeply we would be affected by those advancements even though we were close by when it all began".
Zuleika Dunbar is always wanting to be with Stanley Perkins, much to the annoyance of Rose who tries to lose weight in order to impress Stanley. When the girls make her a new dress in her size, she finds that Stanley was always more sincere about her than the frivolous Zuleika.
Boatwright College has been given some TV equipment, yet the Board of Trustees is not enthusiastic, but the Dean, Raymond Beck, asks John-Boy to write something and make a tv presentation to the Board over the College's tv station. As Jim Bob has managed to build a tv set and has run a long cable from an antenna on the hill to the house, the family is just in time to see John-Boy's broadcast.
John-Boy (on tv) - "My nephew John Curtis wanted to show me his new picture book, and as we turned the pages together I suddenly had a glimpse into the future, where the pictures were alive and moving and where boys and girls growing up in out-of-the-way places like the hills of Virginia could share in things they might not otherwise see, things like Opera and Ballet and Concerts and Theatre. Television will take them across the world into other lives so that for John Curtis and his generation there will be no strangers, just people who accept and understand each other. Given that potential we owe it to the future to search out the good so that television becomes a celebration of life".
"The Board of Trustees did decide to develop a Television Department at Boatwright. Not only did it enable me to complete my book but it was a turning point in my career as a writer. Television became the most awesome tool in mass communication ever to be developed, and all our lives on and off Waltons Mountain were never to be the same".
Elizabeth: John-Boy, were you nervous on television?
John-Boy: Not once I got started.
Elizabeth: Maybe you'll have your own television show one day?
John-Boy: Um, I'd like that, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: What would you call it?
John-Boy: I don't know, since I write best about this family, I guess I'd call it
The Waltons. Goodnight Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Goodnight John-Boy.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rae); Cindy
(Leslie Winston); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Stanley Perkins (William Shallert); Zuleika
Dunbar (Pearl Shear); Dean Raymond Beck (Ivor Francis).
Note: Ivor Francis played Prof. Hoadley in The Breakdown (Season 4).
"There are events in our lives which would best be forgotten, moments out of the past which have a peculiar way of thrusting themselves into the present. Ike Godsey had always been a man of integrity, someone we could all count on, but even Ike had skeletons hidden away in a closet and it was inevitable that Corabeth would come upon them sooner or later".
Cleaning one day in a neglected corner of the store, she finds an old letter to Ike from another woman. Immediately she assumes the worst, leaves him and goes to stay at the Waltons. Although Ike, on Rose's advice, tries to court her again, she will have none of it. She files for divorce on grounds of adultery, but when she is finally packing, Ike shows her another letter from this woman which reveals that, although she was fond of Ike, and thanked him for his kindness to her, she perceived how much in love with one another were Ike and Corabeth and couldn't come between them even if she wanted to.
Drew wants Elizabeth to spend the night with him on the anniversary of when they first fell in love, but she is hesitant and at the last minute declines. They both have a miserable night, apart, but in the morning realise that they have something special between them which they might have lost had they gone too far.
"Corabeth forgave Ike for his indiscretion and new life was breathed into their marriage. For months Waltons Mountain buzzed with rumors about the Godseys near divorce. Only Mary Ellen and Rose knew the truth, and they kept the secret to themselves".
Ike: Corabeth, have you ever noticed how the roof creaks at night?
Corabeth: I don't believe I have.
Ike: I didn't start hearing it until after you left.
Corabeth: Water faucet, the Walton house drips incessantly, I can hardly sleep.
Ike: It doesn't matter any more does it.
Corabeth: Goodnight Ike.
Ike: Goodnight Corabeth.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Rose (Peggy Rea); Cindy
(Leslie Winston); Drew Cutler (Tony Becker); Nina Sue (Victoria Carroll); Alvy Moore
(Frank Sims); Dana Craig (Deputy Bull).
"There was a growing independence in our family as we grew older. With the years we became more individual, often holding firm and differing opinions, approaching life from diverse directions. But let joy or sorrow come to one, it always came to us all, to be faced, to be shared, to be experienced together. When the Waltons needed to be a family we came together as one".
Stanley Perkins once more asks Rose to marry him. She accepts but when everyone is preparing for the wedding she calls it off. She's been having chest pains and Mary Ellen persuades her to see a doctor who finds she's on the way to a heart attack if she doesn't take things easier. Feeling that she might become ill and even die, she conceals this from Stanley and everyone else until the minister guesses and says it isn't fair on Stanley to let him believe she no longer loves him. Stanley also comes near the truth, asks once again for her to marry him and thus, finally persuaded, they are married in the little church.
"The road behind them had been rocky and uneven, but we all felt the road ahead for Rose and Stanley would be in the best of repair, paved as it would be with joy at each other, sharing with friends their unfailing good humor and laughter. And for our family, when joy came to one it came to us all".
Jim Bob: Is anybody awake?
Erin: What is it Jim Bob?
Jim Bob: I can't sleep, I guess I'm too excited about the wedding.
Erin: I think it's something else.
Jim Bob: Like what?
Erin: Like all the money you made selling Stanley the tires?
Jim Bob: I think that's pretty exciting.
Erin: Goodnight Jim Bob.
Jim Bob: Goodnight. Is anybody else awake?
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards): Rose (Peggy Rae); Stanley
Perkins (William Schallert); Cindy (Leslie Winston); the Baldwin sisters (Mary Jackson
& Helen Kleeb); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Ken Niven (Rev Tom Marshall); Ken Sansom
(Dr Cole); Corinne Michaels (Mrs Bassett).
"As the memories of war began to fade, our lives took on the more natural rhythms of daily life. Spring came to the mountain and the dogwood and the redbud blossomed beneath the evergreen pines. Erin's heart had been sorely tried by the war and for a long time she carried a secret wound. When love did come to claim Erin again she welcomed it with her usual spirit. It was the rest of the family that was left breathless".
Ike has bought a Geiger counter and he and Jim Bob go searching in the woods for uranium. When the counter indicates they've found something they take a sample and have it analysed. It turns out not to be uranium but an illegal dump of radioactive waste and the local newspaper reports their public spirited action, thus turning Corabeth's annoyance into admiration.
A young man running a new lumber business wants to sell Ben some better quality wood, saying that the wood Ben was using was not sufficently seasoned, and this angers Ben. Later the lumberjack bumps into Erin at the Godseys' store and they fall for each other, Erin later inviting him, Paul Matthews, over for lunch. But John-Boy remembers seeing him somewhere before and finds his picture as a soldier in an old copy of Stars And Stripes. He warns Erin to be careful but she and Paul go to see his father, who turns out to be Mr Northridge the owner of the largest lumber company in the area. Paul's full name is Paul Matthews Northridge but he and his father didn't get on and he's started up in business for himself. Over dinner Paul and his father start to row but Erin chips in, telling Mr Northridge some home truths, and then she leaves in a hurry. Later Paul and his father come over to the Waltons, Mr Northridge apologises, saying that what Erin had said made him think. Paul asks Erin if they may start again.
"Romance for Erin always seemed to take her along a rocky road, but the rough beginning with Paul Northridge hopefully indicated a smooth ending. Only time would tell if their relationship would endure".
Elizabeth: Erin, do the Northridges really live in a mansion?
Erin: Yes, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Do they have cars, and horses, and a swimmimg pool?
Erin: All of those, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: Will you still talk to us when you're in high society?
Erin: I won't talk to you tomorrow unless you let me get some sleep tonight.
Elizabeth: You see, already you're stuck up.
Erin: Goodnight Elizabeth.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); Cindy (Leslie Winston);
John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Paul Matthews (Morgan Stevens); Mr Northridge (Richard
Eastham); Lew Horn (Mr Franklin).
Note: Morgan Stevens previously appeared as "Sam" in The Waiting (Season 8).
"The post war years brought great social change and progress to our community, but for the hill folk living above us on the mountain it was as though time had passed them by. They held on rigidly to their old ways and customs, even if it meant breaking the law".
When the grandfather of Sissie dies, the old man's nephew Job Moonie determines that since the young girl has been promised to him for a wife, so it will be. When Mary Ellen objects, saying that Sissie is too young to know her own mind yet, Job tells her not to interfere. However Mary Ellen persuades Sissie to go with her and stay in a nearby town until proper arrangements can be made. In retaliation Job seizes an opportunity and kidnaps Elizabeth, taking her off to his mother's remote cabin. The family, alarmed at Elizabeth's disappearance, calls in Sheriff Bridges who eventually tracks Job who has taken Elizabeth into the woods. She persuades Job that it's in his best interests to give himself up, since she admits she's been treated well.
Octavia, cousin to the Baldwin sisters, comes for a visit. Known as "Miss Fix-it" she's a kleptomaniac and has an irresistable urge to pilfer and meddle with things. She has a go at the chandelier, and it falls; she "repairs" the recipe machine - and it blows up. When Ike Godsey finds her pilfering things from the store, to spare the feelings of the Baldwins, he gets her to leave immediately and visit some other relation....
"The charges against Job were reduced. He served a short term in prison where he learned to read and write. Sissie finished school, and while she did eventually marry, it was not to Job".
Erin: I hope we never have to live through anything like that again, I was
afraid we wouldn't get you back, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth: I wasn't so sure myself.
Jim Bob: I wasn't worried. I knew they'd find you.
Elizabeth: How come you're so smart.
Jim Bob: As soon as they took your shoes I knew the dogs'd smell your feet a mile
off.
Elizabeth: That's very funny Jim Bob.
Jim Bob: I'm just glad you're OK.
Elizabeth: Goodnight Jim Bob.
Jim Bob: Goodnight Elizabeth.
Also appearing -
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); the Baldwin sisters (Mary
Jackson & Helen Kleeb); Sheriff Bridges (John Crawford); Cindy (Leslie Winston);
John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Sissy Crooks (Debbie Lyntton); Al Hopson (Rance Crooks); Job
Moonie (Gary Grubbs); Fran Ryan (Eula Mae Moonie); Octavia (Mary Wickes).
"On Waltons Mountain we marked time by the passage of the seasons. In autumn we built fires in bee trees to gather honey. Our lives ebbed during the winter when the earth slept. Spring crocus brought the first blossoms forshadowing the abundance of summer with its sweetcorn and lightning bugs. Generations of living on the mountain yoked us to the rhythm of the land, a touchstone to the strength each of us carries within ourselves. I was to discover this when I left my home full of expectations, only to find that my destiny was not where I thought it would be".
On arriving in New York, John-Boy is told by the publisher's secretary that his manuscript had been rejected - there were too many war novels at that time. His money runs out and he's kicked out by the landlady. Returning in desperation to the publisher, the secretry advises him to go home and start a new book, and gives him the money to do so.
The Baldwin sisters decide to have a reunion for their old school friends and send out lots of invitations. But these are all returned, some are too far away, others have died or moved away. On the night, with no guests showing up, the Baldwins are about ready to despair, but Mary Ellen, Erin and Elizabeth have rushed around inviting all their relatives and friends to go, and they all arrive at the Baldwins house to make the evening a success.
Miss Mamie: My sister and I had planned this party as a celebration, - of the
precious time that we have here on this earth.
Miss Emily: A tribute to all the beautiful things that make up our lives.
Miss Mamie: We have not been so much participants in life as observers, and we feel
most fortunate to have lived in this special place, and time.
Miss Emily: Most especially do we treasure our friends, and memories.
Miss Mamie: It seems to us there are many memorable events - the turning of the
seasons, the vibrancy of Spring -
Miss Emily: - and life renews itself with daffodils and crocusses blooming along a
walkway; dogwood, redbud -
Miss Mamie: - and the indulence of Summer, and the coming of Autumn -
Miss Emily: - and the incredible beauty of a shower of golden leaves.
Miss Mamie: Having someone to love -
Miss Emily: - and someone who loves you in return.
Miss Mamie: And kisses are important -
Miss Emily: - most especially are kisses to be remembered.
Miss Mamie: We're here for such a brief time, but if we can make some sense out of
life, and look at it with wonder and amazement, and leave some record of it behind for
those who follow us, then we have made a contribution -
Miss Emily: - and it has all been worthwhile.
John-Boy (who has just arrived): Amen!
"I had returned to the mountain once again to find the inspiration I needed to write. Soon I was back in New York City laboring over another book, and because of the renewed courage they brought me I would never forget Miss Mamie amd Miss Emily and their zest for life. I hope that you'll remember this house as I do. The mystical blue ridges that stretch beyond it into infinity; the sound of voices drifting out upon the night air; a family waiting, and a light in the window. Good night!".
Note: This was the last regular episode.
Also appearing-
Ike & Corabeth (Joe Conley & Ronnie Claire Edwards); the Baldwin sisters (Mary
Jackson & Helen Kleeb); John-Boy (Robert Wightman); Cindy (Leslie Winston);
publisher's secretary, Bell Becker (Bettye Ackerman); Robert Rockwell (Clayton Anderson);
James Ingersoll (Mike O'Brien).