Shannen Doherty is reflecting on her iconic late co-star Michael Landon, who helped pass on her passion for acting at a very young age.
She had guest-starred on two different shows Michael Landon created – Voyagers and Father Murphy, which lead to her playing his TV daughter.
Doherty, 53, was just 11 years old when she landed the role of Jenny Wilder on the final season of Little House on the Prairie in the 1982-1983 TV season.
She opened up about her rapport with Landon on Monday’s episode of her Let’s Be Clear With Shannen Doherty podcast, where she recently opened up on not returning for the Charmed series finale.
‘That show – Little House – shaped me in so many ways and it still is the best experience of my entire career,’ she insisted.
Shannen Doherty is reflecting on her iconic late co-star Michael Landon, who helped pass on her passion for acting at a very young age.
![She had guest-starred on two different shows Michael Landon created - Voyagers and Father Murphy, which lead to her playing his TV daughter](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/28/02/85405267-13465805-image-a-28_1716858146565.jpg)
She had guest-starred on two different shows Michael Landon created – Voyagers and Father Murphy, which lead to her playing his TV daughter
![Doherty, 53, was just 11 years old when she landed the role of Jenny Wilder on the final season of Little House on the Prairie in the 1982-1983 TV season](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/28/02/85405263-13465805-image-a-29_1716858174566.jpg)
Doherty, 53, was just 11 years old when she landed the role of Jenny Wilder on the final season of Little House on the Prairie in the 1982-1983 TV season
She said of Landon, who played Charles Ingalls in the beloved series, that ran from 1974 to 1983, ‘I adored him. He was a mentor. He taught me so much.’
While her role only lasted one season, she revealed the things he taught her stayed throughout her career.
‘It’s kind of amazing because, when I think about the long span of my career, but also how rough some jobs were — and unenjoyable to be a part of, a little bit toxic — it was really the experience on Little House that spurred that passion on for being an actor,’ she said.
‘And it was having a mentor like Michael Landon — and I don’t care what anybody else’s experience was like, I know the truth about that man, and he was just unbelievable,’ she said.
She added that Landon was, ‘so, so, so talented, so kind, so considerate, and it really helped shape me. And he was incredibly caring for my entire family.’
Landon was just 54 years of age when he passed away in 1991 from pancreatic cancer, just as Doherty’s career was taking off with Beverly Hills 90210.
Little House of the Prairie ran nine seasons and was loosely based on the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, describing her childhood in the Midwest in the late 1800s.
She also praised Landon in a March episode of her podcast, where she said that his work as a writer and director on the show influenced her as well.
![She said of Landon, who played Charles Ingalls in the beloved series, that ran from 1974 to 1983, 'I adored him. He was a mentor. He taught me so much'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/28/02/85405265-13465805-image-m-32_1716858299672.jpg)
She said of Landon, who played Charles Ingalls in the beloved series, that ran from 1974 to 1983, ‘I adored him. He was a mentor. He taught me so much’
!['It's kind of amazing because, when I think about the long span of my career, but also how rough some jobs were — and unenjoyable to be a part of, a little bit toxic — it was really the experience on Little House that spurred that passion on for being an actor,' she said](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/28/02/85405259-13465805-image-a-30_1716858281765.jpg)
‘It’s kind of amazing because, when I think about the long span of my career, but also how rough some jobs were — and unenjoyable to be a part of, a little bit toxic — it was really the experience on Little House that spurred that passion on for being an actor,’ she said
![She added that Landon was, 'so, so, so talented, so kind, so considerate, and it really helped shape me. And he was incredibly caring for my entire family'](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/28/02/85405275-13465805-image-a-33_1716858336527.jpg)
She added that Landon was, ‘so, so, so talented, so kind, so considerate, and it really helped shape me. And he was incredibly caring for my entire family’
When asked her favorite memories from the set, she said, ‘Just the things I learned from him. He directed some of the episodes and wrote some of the episodes.’
‘I just remember how he was as a director,’ adding he made her, ‘realize what kind of director I wanted to be.’
She also said he taught her to, ‘be true to myself’ and ’embrace my voice, to stand up for myself.’
Doherty would go on to direct episodes of Charmed, an episode of Suite 7 and two music videos for the group Radical Something.
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