8/5/25
So, we enter summer. And this being California and all, it gets hot. Like, get the AC tuned up hot. (We did, and it sure helped!) Of course, Alison and Sock Monkey were in New England enjoying the nice summer breezes. Wait, Boston, heat and humidity, that was not an improvement. I guess there’s no escaping it!
Alison spent a couple of weeks in P-Town with Mr. Monkey, and they had a great time! It was Bear Week, and she did 4 shows, and they were packed. She ran into Parker Posey, who made her buy a hat. (Good call, it’s a great hat!) Then she came home, where she’s going to stay for a little while.
Speaking of P-Town, here’s an interview with Alison that aired on WBZ in Boston: WBZ Boston
All right, time for the Alison run-down:
1. Daily Book Readings – The daily readings are currently on hiatus for an indefinite period. But you know, she’s being a little sneaky. Every once in a while, with little or no warning, she goes on FaceBook live and rants about one thing or another. Be on the look-out!
2. Bonnets, Etc. - Bonnets, t-shirts, books, photos, Alison sells them at her online store, 'Not Your Mothers Mercantile'. Everything autographed. Here's the link to the store: Mercantile More new items coming soon. (To see the complete selection, click on the “Shop Now” button.) Be sure to specify how you want things signed. And remember, she can only fill orders when she’s in town. Check the schedule below before you order.
3. Cameo - You can have your favorite cast member record a personal video greeting - Happy Birthday, Congratulations, Get Well Soon, you name it! Check it out: Cameo Wesite Or... cut to the chase: Alison Cameo
4. Radio Show / Podcast - The Alison Arngrim Show is on every Tuesday at 5:00 pm Pacific Time. The best way to catch the show live is to go to the UBN Radio page on FaceBook: UBN FaceBook. Her last interview was with Pam Royland and Stan Ivar. (See notes below) Her next guest will be Susie Singer Carter (Documentary Film Producer). If you have any ideas for who you would like to see interviewed by Alison, pass them along, and we’ll see what we can do! If you miss a show, or want to catch any of the past episodes, go to her FaceBook page for the show: Arngrim Show FaceBook
5. Who's Going To Do The Cooking? - Alison will be appearing on her FaceBook page, cooking something with instructions, whenever she can find the time. And she has not found the time for quite a while now, but she’ll be back! She has made many incredible dishes. You can find all of these on her YouTube Channel: Who's Cooking?
OK, schedule anyone?
First on the calendar, she is off to Greenfield Indiana for an event to benefit Blue Angel Connect, a non-profit organization that works with Public Service Agencies and other local organizations to provide services to the community. On Friday, September 5th, there is a special presentation of Confessions of a Prairie Bitch. Tickets are $30 and are available on the website. The next day, Saturday, September 6th, there is an autograph session followed by a private cast dinner with Alison, Dean Bulter (Almanzo), and since our dear Lucy Lee Flippin is unable to attend, (boo!), we have Karen Grassle, (Caroline Ingalls) (YEAH!). Tickets for the autograph session are $10, and the dinner is $125. Information and tickets for all activities can be found at: Blue Angel This sounds great!
Right after that she rushes off to Pepin Wisconsin for Laura Ingalls Wilder Days, September 13th & 14th. She will be signing autographs and other merchandise, leading the “Nearly Nellie Promenade” (Nellie look-alike contest), hosting “An Evening With Alison Arngrim”, and will be the Grand Marshall for the parade! And never missing an opportunity to break out the old Nellie wheelchair, on Saturday at 3:15, you can get your picture taken with Alison at the “Nellie Wheelchair Photo Op”! Really! One busy girl! Admission is apparently free, although the Evening With Alison tickets are $20 in advance, and $25 day-of. Check out their website for details or to purchase tickets: Wilder Days This looks like a lot of fun. And you know how much Sock Monkey loves a parade! (“I sure do!”, cried Sock Monkey.)
Okay, then she’s off to France for a month. Here is an announcement from FaceBook with a few details: French Show FaceBook
Now, more about those French Shows:
Un retour dans les années 80, c’est toujours un bonheur. Mais un retour dans les années 80 en compagnie de la mythique Nellie Oleson de « La petite maison dans la prairie », c’est une expérience unique, à ne manquer sous aucun prétexte !
2 heures d'humour, de musique, de nostalgie et de convivialité, où Alison Arngrim promène son regard amusé d’américaine sur nos années 80 françaises... tout en laissant place par moments au regard malicieux de son alter ego Nellie Oleson. Venez faire la fête avec Alison et Patrick (22 ans d’amitié, dont 18 ans en duo sur scène) ! Du Gym Tonic au Capitaine Flam, en passant par Alf, Dallas, Charles Ingalls, La Compagnie Créole, ou encore L’école des fans...
Un spectacle en français, plein de rires, d’énergie et de surprises, suivi, comme toujours, d’une très longue séance amicale de dédicaces et photos. Petites communes uniquement !
Nouvelle tournée des petites communes !
?Vendredi 17 octobre 2025, 20h30
GUARBECQUE (Pas-de-Calais) COMPLET !
?Samedi 18 octobre 2025, 20h30
GUARBECQUE (Pas-de-Calais) COMPLET !
?Dimanche 19 octobre 2025, 14h
GUARBECQUE (Pas-de-Calais) COMPLET !
?Vendredi 24 octobre 2025, 20h30
GUILHERAND-GRANGES (Ardèche)
Renseignements : 07 44 52 85 02
??Samedi 25 octobre 2025, 20h30
CHENEREILLES (Loire)
Renseignements : 06 80 35 52 81
??????Vous êtes une petite commune (association, municipalité...) et vous souhaitez inviter Alison et Patrick ? Contactez le 06 21 81 10 66 ou envoyez un e-mail à edson@free.fr
OK, so, after she gets back from France she is returning to San Francisco for another performance of Confessions of a Prairie Bitch at Oasis. Now word is, the wonderful Oasis may be closing at the end of this year! Noooo! So, this might be your LAST chance to see Alison there! The show will begin at 7:00 pm on Friday, November 14th. Check out the Oasis website: Oasis Tickets are $35 for general admission, and $50 for VIP which includes post show meet & greet and photo op with Alison. You can get them here: Oasis Tickets We’ve always had fun in San Francisco, and this one should be a blast!
That should be enough schedule to hold you for a while.
Rumour Control
1. Ever been to Simi Valley near Christmas?
2. And how would one decorate a Christmas tree a la Prairie?
3. And where does that Podcast come from? East coast, west?
Miscellaneous
Love Letters – (No, not the Ketty Lester song!). It appears that Pam Roylance (Sarah Carter) and Stan Ivar (John Carter) are in rehearsals for a play, “Love Letters”, produced and directed by Susan McCray and stage managed by our old friend Todd McCraw. This will be running August 21 – 31 at The Whitefire Theatre in Sherman Oaks. Check out the Theater’s website: Whitefire Theatre (I’m going to this one!) Tickets are $45, and most of the shows are at 8:00 pm, with a couple of matinees thrown in for good measure. Everything is on the website. (They’ll even mail the tickets to you, if you like.) I’ve been to the Whitefire. It’s a very nice little theatre, but small. If you want to be sure to get seats, you probably should order early. This is going to be great! I haven’t seen Stan in a very long time. And you can be sure that all local cast members will be showing up at one or more of these performances. Hope to see you there!
The Alison Arngrim Show – Did I mention that the cast and director of Love Letters were the most recent guests on Alison’s radio show? (Sure, I did!) Well, here you go: Arngrim Show Love Letters Enjoy!
The Patrick LabyorSheaux with Patrick Labyorteaux – Last month we had Pat’s podcast interview with Melissa. This month, he’s got Alison: Patrick Podcast (Buckle up, this thing is like 2 hours long!) Great show, Patrick!
Simi Valley Reunion – Remember that great cast reunion in Simi Valley last March? Well, we have some footage of the first time Alison, Melissa, and Karen got to see the recreated sets that had been built for the event: Simi Valley Sets
Where Are They Now? – Just a few days ago The National Examiner did one of those ‘Where Are They Now?’ articles on the cast of LHOTP. I haven’t seen one of these for a very long time, and I thought you might enjoy it. They have some pretty good pictures, anyway. Here you go: Where Are They??
Behind the Scenes Highlight – This is the section where we highlight the many people who help to keep this thing together. It’s been over a year since we did one of these, but it’s time to start up again. Because you know, it takes more than the cast to keep this thing running.
This month I would like to shine the spotlight on Howie Green.
Howie has been involved with Alison’s career for many, many years. He is a well-established graphic artist in Boston and is the very first person to use the term “Prairie Bitch”. We have one of his drawings hanging in our kitchen entitled, “Alison Arngrim The Prairie Bitch ’87 Tour”. If you go to Alison’s fan website, you’ll see: “Howie Green Presents The Official Alison Arngrim Confessions of a Prairie Bitch Nellie Oleson Website”. So, as you can see, Howie was in on the ground floor. (Actually, I think he helped build the ground floor!)
Alison and Howie met, fittingly enough, at the world-famous Laugh Factory on Sunset Boulevard. This was waaaay back in the 1980s. Alison was doing standup at the Laugh Factory and Howie had come to town to do artwork for the new Laugh Factory magazine. Howie was old friends back in Boston with a young woman named Sharon, who worked as a waitress at the Laugh Factory, who would soon become one of Alison’s best friends. It was all absolutely fated and meant to be. When Alison performed in the independent short, “Video Valentino”, both Sharon and Howie got pulled along for the ride as extras.
In the 90s, when everyone was getting their own website, Howie said, “You absolutely need a website!” and “The Official Alison Arngrim Confessions of a Prairie Bitch Nellie Oleson Website” was born. So yes, Howie Green IS the man who gave us the infamous words that would be the title of Alison’s hit one woman show and NY Times Best Selling autobiography. (Interestingly, his early artwork of the fake poster for “The Prairie Bitch 1987 Tour” was done long before there was a one woman show, or even a tour! The man is downright psychic!)
He has created fantastic paintings based on the Nellie glare. From the Andy Warhol-esque Four Faces of Nellie, to the terrifying “Psychedelic Nellie” that now graces T shirts. He and Alison together created the beautiful, blond “Prairie Princess Pony” for the “Trail of the Painted Ponies” collection. He most recently did all the artwork for Alison’s new line of make up, “Bonnethead Beauty”, a line of eye shadows and lip gloss “for women with history”!
A brilliant artist who has worked with Peter Max, Howie is also the author of “Jazz Fish Zen: Adventures in Mamboland”, is a regular contributor to the famous Boston public art event the “Cow Parade”, has created murals all over the country and in his spare time (this guy has about as much “spare time” as Alison!) he teaches art & drawing classes for children, the elderly – well, anyone who wants to learn!
Howie and Alison are continuing to scheme and plot new artistic extravaganzas as I write this. What will they come up with next? (To see more of Howie’s incredible career, visit www.howiegreen.com )
So Howie, for all that you do, have done, and are continuing to do, have a great big Prairie thank you from Bonnetheads everywhere!
Maintaining our lives in the age of COVID-19 – Here is the CDC’s most recent comment on the state of the epidemic: “As of July 29, 2025, we estimate that COVID-19 infections are growing or likely growing in 40 states, declining or likely declining in 0 states, and not changing in 9 states.” That’s growing or not changing in all states and not declining at all.
The dominant variant nationwide is NB.1.8.1, with 43% of cases. It appears to be similar in transmission rates, symptoms, and responsiveness to vaccines and treatments. Which means that the prevention precautions will also be the same. I’m starting to wear my masks again, by the way.
And if you do get infected and have symptoms, call your doctor right away and see if Paxlovid would be right for you. Has worked wonders for me every time.
So, mask up, get your boosters, get your flu shots, and avoid people who appear to be ill. (Like the guy in the restroom at work who was trying to cough up a lung!)
And now for our Fauci moment: "I don't know how to explain to you that you should care for other people." But we must.
Direct Messages from Cast Members:
Wendi Lou Lee (Baby Grace) – “Just a quick note, thanking you all for your unending kindness over the last twenty years of LHOP fan events. I have loved every minute of being a part of this fabulous cast. My life is taking a sharp turn to the East, specifically Hershey, PA, where my husband and I will be embarking on a new adventure serving underprivileged youth at Milton Hershey School. While you may not see as much of me at fan events or on Facebook, I'd love to stay connected with you. Reach out on my website wendiloulee.com and may "grace" always be with you!! “ - ? Wendi
Prairie Tidbits
Charlotte Stewart (Miss Beadle) – Charlotte and hubby Michael Santos are off on another set of Gem Shows. They are the only Museum Level Meteorite vendors West of Tucson AZ. Here is their next show:
- Carmel Valley Gem & Mineral Society- September 20 & 21 - Monterey County Fairgrounds- 2004 Fairgrounds Road, Monterey, CA 93940 ( Carmel Valley )
Hopefully, we’ll get some updates as their schedule advances. Way to go, you guys!
Kathryn Scott (Belle Harrison) – Kathryn played Belle Harrison in one episode of LHOTP: ‘Blind Man’s Bluff’ in 1979. She also had roles on Dark Shadows, Star Trek Next Generation, Magnum PI, and Dynasty, to mention but a few of her long list of credits. Kathryn just turned 82 and is still going strong. So strong, in fact, that she just got married! Check out this article from The New York Times on July 25, 2025: New York Times Article Way to go, and Congratulations, Kathryn!!
Matt Labyorteax (Albert Ingalls) – Matt has had some rough times lately. He lost a lot in the recent fires, but he and his family came through safely. And now, he is back out in the world. Matt will be appearing at Nostalgia Con on August 22 – 24th in Houston, Texas. Check out their website: Nostalgia Con Matt has a huge career in voice over, and this is a massive gathering of voice over artists from all parts of the entertainment industry. Should be a good time.
Dean Butler (Almanzo Wilder) – Dean is a very busy guy nowadays, what with planning the events, recording the podcast, and doing his book signings, and all. Here’s a sample of his schedule:
August 7-8 – Little Village in the Big Woods, Pioneer Days, Heritage Village Museum, in Cincinnati, Ohio – Website: Heritage Village This will be Dean’s first visit to Cincinnati since the early 1980s!
September 5 – 6 - Greenfield Indiana – See above with Alison
September 26 – 27 – Dean, Charlotte and Wendi will be hosting a screening of the documentary and the Annual Wilder Dinner: Wilder Dinner
October 4 – 5 - Dean and Bonnie Bartlett will be appearing at the Dallas Fan Festival - Dallas Fan Festival
And as if he was not busy enough, Dean is hard at work on the first draft of “Living The Prairie Way”, his second book for Citadel Press, due to hit the book shelves in September 2026.
And that’s just a sample . . . One busy guy, Dean!
The Saga of Sock Monkey (Chapter One Hundred Forty-Four)
Sock Monkey could not believe his ears. Plane to catch, indeed! Just where could they be off to this time? No matter, that was fresh coffee brewing, and that was all that he could think of right now! He would get to the bottom of this right after he got to the bottom of the stairs, and that first cup of coffee! A few minutes later he was leaning back in his chair, cradling that steaming mug of coffee, and letting the caffeine awaken his brain one cell at a time. Life was good! So now, about that plane . . “Ms. Alison”, he began, “so where are we off to now?” “Well, as you may have noticed, the whole country seems to be in Little House reunion fever. We have an invitation to go to northern California where we used to film the show on location and have a reunion there.” She paused, and Sock Monkey waited. He knew there had to be a catch here somewhere. “But I’m not so sure. It’s a tiny, tiny town, and I think they still deliver the mail by stagecoach. And they want us to stay at a chicken ranch.” Now, we’re talking. Living with chickens for a week. He was not sure how he felt about that. It seems like there was something wrong with this picture. Sock Monkey sipped his coffee and pondered.
(To be continued . . . )
There you have it. The seventh Nellie Newsletter for 2025. Stay safe, mask up, wash up, get your booster shots, and be good to each other. And hug someone you love today!
As usual (Comme d’habitude), be good bonnet heads, and I’ll talk to you next month.
- Bob |
