The Loneliest Runner

Although the film is fictional and not literally autobiographical, it is based on some of Michael Landon's own experiences. He wet the bed as a teenager and lived with an extremely unstable, mentally ill mother and an indifferent father, who had a very volatile marriage. Consequently, he and his sister, had a very difficult and traumatic childhood which affected him his whole life.

When a young John Curtis is locked in a Los Angeles department store he puts on a helmet of the local NFL team The Rams. The story, time wise was in the the early 1950's. The Rams helmet featured thick yellow horns with no face guard at that juncture. In the film, the current Rams helmet was used with thinner streamline horns placed on the sides with the face shield.

Featured in Michael Landon: Memories with Laughter and Love (1991)