Melissa Gilbert rose to fame almost 40 years in the past whereas starring in Little Home on the Prairie, persevering with to make headlines since.
Gilbert starred as Laura Ingalls Wilder as a teen within the collection, which centered round a household constructing a life within the midwest within the late 1800s. The present aired its last episode in 1983.
Gilbert went on to tie the knot with Timothy Busfield in 2013. A couple of decade later, Us Weekly confirmed that Busfield surrendered to police in New Mexico after two twin baby actors alleged that the director touched them inappropriately.
Busfield is dealing with two counts of felony sexual contact of a minor and one depend of kid abuse. Busfield has denied the allegations. Gilbert, for her half, is standing by her husband.
“Throughout this era, her focus is on supporting and caring for his or her very massive household, as they navigate this second,” Gilbert’s rep advised Us in January 2026. “Melissa stands with and helps her husband and can handle the general public at an applicable time.”
Scroll all the way down to study Gilbert’s life now:
Melissa Gilbert Left Los Angeles in 2013
Melissa Gilbert left Los Angeles in 2013, shifting to Michigan for 5 years. She went on to inform People who she felt she needed to go away Hollywood “to be able to age.”
“Once you dwell in Los Angeles, it’s like dwelling on the mall once you work on the mall,” she stated in a September 2024 interview with Folks. “It places plenty of stress on staying skinny and staying younger and actually it makes it arduous to really feel snug in a single’s personal pores and skin, as a result of [of] the getting older course of.”
She continued, “I needed to get out of there [L.A.], as a result of it felt like I used to be not being authentically myself. Within the 5 years that I used to be in Michigan, all of that stopped. … I ended all the pieces and simply targeted on being as bodily and emotionally wholesome as I might. And I feel that reveals, ‘Sure, I’m getting older, however it’s not a curse — it’s a blessing.’”
In 2018, Gilbert and Busfield moved to New York Metropolis, finally buying a house upstate. The pair check with the home as “the cabbage,” a mixture of “cabin” and “cottage,” per The New York Instances.
Melissa Gilbert Has Continued to Act After ‘Little Home on the Prairie’
Melissa Gilbert made a visitor look on Hallmark’s When Calls the Coronary heart in 2025, whereas additionally persevering with to behave on stage. She starred in off-Broadway performs like Nonetheless, which opened in 2025.
She has additionally launched a handful of books, together with 2009’s debut memoir Prairie Story.
Melissa Gilbert Ran for Congress and Co-Based a Way of life Model
After leaving Hollywood, Melissa Gilbert ran for Congress in Michigan’s eighth district in 2016. She needed to withdraw from the race attributable to a spinal harm.
She went on to cofound the life-style model Fashionable Prairie with Nicole Haase, a former govt at Williams Sonoma, in 2022. Gilbert defined to Folks that the model is for the “fashionable seasoned girl” who has gone by “big transitions.”
“We’re all going by unimaginable issues, whether or not they’re physiological, hormonal modifications occurring, we’re shedding our spouses and companions or have kids leaving the nest,” she stated in 2024. “I feel the energy that we possess having simply survived this lengthy is exceptional.”
Melissa Gilbert Focuses on Motherhood — And Being a Grandmother
Melissa Gilbert has two sons, Dakota Brinkman and Michael Boxleitner, from her marriages to director Bo Brinkman and actor Bruce Boxleitner. Gilbert has shared that she is intentional about selecting roles that convey her nearer to her kids and grandchildren.
“Something that takes me to a location that will get me close to one among my youngsters’ properties is nice for me,” she advised Folks in 2025. “I don’t really feel any added accountability in selecting roles as a result of I’ve grandchildren. I feel I’m simply extra decided to proceed to convey tales to mild that have an effect on the best way folks work together with each other.”
Melissa Gilbert Deleted Her Social Media Accounts
Melissa Gilbert deleted her social media account in 2026 amid the accusations towards Busfield. Her account on Instagram and Threads stated that the web page was not accessible.
If you happen to or somebody you realize has been sexually assaulted, contact the Nationwide Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). If you happen to or somebody you realize is experiencing baby abuse, name or textual content Youngster Assist Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.
