Airdate: 9/12/74
Aunt Martha Corinne (Zeb’s sister-in-law), along with her son, Boone, grandson, Wade, and his new wife, Vera, face eviction from their cabin by the government for the building of the Blue Ridge Parkway and Shenandoah National Park. Staunch, feisty, and willing to use violence for her cause, she begrudgingly goes with the Waltons to check out the relocation houses in the flatlands (to mollify a state senator that could not dissuade the government from building). While staying with them, she regales all with stories of family history, all the while reinforcing her firm belief that the land is your life: you live on it, and you die on it. Meanwhile, John-Boy, staying back at the cabin, learns of Wade’s artistic skill at creating miniature wood figures, as well as his big dreams of starting a family and building his home on a beautiful Blue Ridge crest overlooking the Shenandoah Valley.
But the builders won’t back down, and neither will Martha, who’s unimpressed with the relocation housing and all its modern “amenities.” She returns to the cabin and stands her ground with Zeb and the rest of her family; only John-Boy, swayed by his grandfather at first, decides negotiation is the only solution, but is shot in the crossfire. John and senator return with the news that all appeals have failed, and Martha finally relents. After John-Boy recovers, he helps her move, after hearing her remember how she crossed the threshold as a new bride to a Confederate soldier in 1865 – poignantly, she wants to leave the abode just as clean now as when she first entered it 70 years earlier.
Excellent double-length episode begins The Waltons’ third season. Higher production values indicate a bigger budget, thanks to the show’s impressive performance in the Neilson ratings the previous season. The theme of heritage vs. progress will become an oft-explored one on the show, but never more poignantly as it is displayed here, thanks largely in part to a stirring, credible performance by Beulah Bondi as Martha, who created such a memorable character she would return for two more episodes. Every line she utters from her careworn, craggy face conveys everything the Waltons are about: integrity, honesty, and years of living and learning off the land. Kudos also goes to Jeb Rosebrook, the writer who based this story off a true incident he had read about while studying at the University of Virginia in 1952.
Best scene: John-Boy faces off against his grandpa over the best way to confront the land developers – the first time the two had such a heated altercation. Second best scene: the aforementioned last scene of Martha leaving he cabin.
By the way, after doing some research on the show, I came across a website run by a man named Del. The website focus on his favorite pastime, road trips, but he also features a section on The Waltons, his favorite TV show. Check it out here and look around – he talks about this episode and a few others. I enjoyed his analysis of the Waltons’ most famous sound effect, the screen door (which you can play on his site!).
Guest star alert: Bondi was a veteran character actor for many years, most notably in film playing matriarchs. She was Jimmy Stewart’s mother four times, most famously as Ma Bailey in It’s a Wonderful Life. She received two Supporting Actress Oscar nominations and would later win an Emmy playing Martha again on The Waltons.
Children of the 70s will remember Mills Watson as Blake, the head developer and episode’s heavy. He was a portly comedy actor best known as Deputy Perkins on NBC’s Lobo.
And lest we forget… Richard Hatch as Wade Walton. No, not Survivor Richard Hatch, Battlestar Galactica Richard Hatch – you remember, Captain Apollo!
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