Blizzard (3 Jan. 1977)

Kind Miss Beadle dismisses her students early on Christmas Eve as soft snow flurries begin to fly, unaware that the children will soon be caught walking home in a deadly, howling blizzard.

Director:

William F. Claxton

Writers:

Blanche Hanalis (developed for television by), Laura Ingalls Wilder (based upon the series of books "Little House" by),

Stars:

Michael Landon, Karen Grassle, Melissa Gilbert

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Landon	...	Charles Ingalls
Karen Grassle	...	Caroline Ingalls
Melissa Gilbert	...	Laura Ingalls
Melissa Sue Anderson	...	Mary Ingalls
Lindsay Greenbush	...	Carrie Ingalls (as Lindsay Sidney Greenbush)
Sidney Greenbush	...	Carrie Ingalls (as Lindsay Sidney Greenbush)
Richard Bull	...	Nels Oleson
Kevin Hagen	...	Dr. Hiram Baker
Scottie MacGregor	...	Harriet Oleson (as Katherine MacGregor)
Charlotte Stewart	...	Eva Beadle
Karl Swenson	...	Lars Hanson
Victor French	...	Isaiah Edwards
John Carter	...	Ted McGinnis
Luana Anders	...	Lottie McGinnis
Bonnie Bartlett	...	Grace Snider Edwards

Storyline

Kind Miss Beadle dismisses her students early on Christmas Eve as soft snow flurries begin to fly, unaware that the children will soon be caught walking home in a deadly, howling blizzard.

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Genres:

Drama | Family | Romance | Western

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Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 January 1977 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Big Sky Ranch - 4927 Bennett Road, Simi Valley, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ed Friendly Productions, National Broadcasting Company (NBC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Caroline Ingalls: Miss Beadle, where are the children?
Eva Beadle: I sent them home early.
Willie Oleson: All but Nellie and me. We had to stay and wash the blackboards!
Caroline Ingalls: When did they leave?
Eva Beadle: Quite a while ago. They finished their work and they were so excited about Christmas and... they were only flurries when I left. I'm sure they had time to get home...

User Reviews

Bitter Sweet

We've all heard how quickly blizzards can pop up in the west back in the 1879's. Laura Ingalls Wilder even wrote about it in her novels. But watching this one still makes you cringe and glad that modern technology helps in situations like these.

Miss Beadle thought she was being nice when she let the children go home from school early. Snow was falling, but it didn't seem anything dangerous. But like so many other things in nature, things can change in a second. And they did.

Most of the children were still on their way home when the full-blown blizzard struck. Parents fretted. Mothers waited for fathers to bring back their children safely. People teamed up together, because it's not safe to be out there alone.

I don't know how many times I've watched this episode, but for the first time I noticed just what Jim Bowers did when he found his son. He ignored Mr. McGinnis and pushed him aside, desperate to get his son back. I'm sure many a parent would have done the same thing, but I'm sure in the aftermath, Mr. Bowers thought about this and may have even blamed himself for the death of this man.

The episode is suspenseful enough, and keeps you interested wondering what the outcome was going to be. And of course, you gotta love Mr. Edwards!

You can even ALMOST like Mrs. Olsen in this one as well. In the time of tragedy, she's actually nice...