Waltons 4.14: "The Intruders"

Airdate: 12/18/75

Competition arrives at Waltons Mountain in the form of Murdock Wood Supplies, a ruthless lumber company with younger workers, better equipment, lower prices, and less care for the environment than John’s mill has. John-Boy, however, sees a chance to get ahead when he makes a deal with a supplier that he can beat out Murdock for an order – the purse being a lucrative contract that could feed them for the winter. Meantime, Ben, jilted by a girl for being too “childish,” sets out for Charlottesville on his own and takes a job with Murdock, not knowing about the competition. Once he figures it out, he returns home, to find that Grandpa has outsmarted their rivals by fooling them into transporting their lumber downriver – a river loaded with sandbars!

Plot-driven episode with a clever twist at the end – and another “tired of being misunderstood” theme that could be the basis for a day-long Waltons marathon, if one were so inclined (I’m not). Character actor Bill Lucking has guest-acted in some of my favorite shows, notably in The Incredible Hulk (of course) in the classic episodes “The Antowuk Horror” and “Dark Side.” Since 1981 he has been billed as William Lucking.