Michael Landon’s Incredible Story: The Odd Jobs He Worked Before TV Fame — ‘I’d Have Been a Great Junk Man’
From selling blankets and old lamps to writing for TV, the 'Bonanza' star's true story inspires
Michael Landon was a television icon and beloved for his classic roles in shows like Bonanza and Little House on the Prairie, and movies like I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957). But before he was winning the hearts of America through his characters on-screen, Landon was doing everything he could to make ends meet.
Learn more about the odd jobs that Landon held before becoming a professional actor and how he began earning more money as an actor, writer and producer.
Michael Landon had some strange jobs
In your teens and early adult life, you might hold any job you can just to pay the bills and for Michael Landon, it was no different. But while some teenagers were working the register at a grocery store, Landon had a few other interesting jobs.
“It sure beats my last job, selling blankets door to door,” Landon said of his role as Little Joe Cartwright on Bonanza.
Not only was he selling blankets door to door, but Landon was handling hot cans in a soup cannery, working in a ribbon factory, and washing cars.
“I’d pick used Christmas cards out of trash cans, erase the names or paste labels over them, and sell them for two cents, a nickel, or a chocolate bar,” Landon said. “Who could turn down a little kid? I’d get old lamps at the dump, fix them, and sell tin foil and newspapers to junk dealers. I’d have been a great junk man.”
But it was when Landon was unloading freight cars that someone he worked with, a part-time actor, asked him to do an acting test with him at Warner Bros. That screen test led to his role on Bonanza and a much bigger salary than two cents.
Landon began writing for ‘Bonanza’
Not only did Landon book the role of Little Joe Cartwright on the western drama, but he also began writing for the show. Landon was a credited writer on 21 episodes and a director for 14 episodes.
“I wrote the first show I did because we were at a point where we were going to close down because we didn’t have a script,” Landon said. “It was a challenge. So, I went home for the weekend and wrote it over Saturday and Sunday.”
When Landon began writing for Bonanza, it opened the door for him to write for his other shows as well, like Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven.
“I sometimes go 18 hours at a time, get a little sleep, and finish the scripts the next day,” Landon said. “I think about the people a long time before I sit down. I don’t think much about the plot. I sometimes don’t even know how it’s going to end.”
As a star on Bonanza, Landon made about $12,000 per episode—a lot more than what he got for selling blankets door to door—and he did pretty well for himself as a beloved actor.
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