Melissa Gilbert Opens Up About Her Little House Co-Star and Brother

It might seem strange that siblings that grew up together, playing, eating, and laughing together should grow apart when they grow older. It happened to Melissa Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie. Melissa reveals that she has not spoken to her brother, who was also her co-star on the show, for years. In this post, Melissa speaks from her heart about the reasons behind such a long silence between the two. Incidentally, Laura Ingalls and Willie Oleson of Little House on the Prairie were real-life siblings. Anyway, on with Melissa’s story.

Not Being Blood Relatives Could Well Be a Prime Reason

Melissa and Jonathan Gilbert are siblings but not blood relatives. Paul Gilbert, an actor, and Barbara Crane, his partner, adopted the children. But that is no reason for distancing. Time spent working on the show should have brought them closer.

Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection/Getty Images

Maybe sibling rivalry had a role to play, or maybe the two adopted children could not find common ground or shared interests as they grew up. Maybe how they were treated by their parents could have played a role.

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