Waltons 5.1: “The First Edition”

Airdate: 9/23/76

The Waltons’ fifth season opener finds John-Boy madly at work on the first edition of his own, hand wrought newspaper, The Blue Ridge Chronicle. He finds out, however, that telling the truth and popularity do not always go hand in hand. When the local judge, Graham Thornbury, drives his car into a restaurant window, apparently under the influence of alcohol, John-Boy is determined to use this as a front page story, despite the judge’s wishes that it be quietly swept under the carpet. An even stronger crisis of conscience occurs when Ben is busted for breaking and entering; this time, Olivia admonishes him to hide the story lest the town find out about this disgrace to the family. Ultimately, John-Boy offers to compromise – he’ll print the stories but “bury” the on the back page, until Ben himself urges John-Boy to put them where they belong: on the front.

Subplot: Corabeth is excited to learn she’s pregnant, until her doctor reveals she is not, nor will ever be able to be. Ashamed, she plans to go back to her home in Doe Run, until Olivia convinces her that her marriage is “for better or worse,” and she returns to Ike.

Rock-solid season opener, with the same starring cast for 5 years in a row, has the dramatic heft of any great Waltons episode. The journalist’s ethical dilemma no doubt had great cultural resonance when the episode aired in 1976, two years after Bernstein and Woodward’s revelation of President Nixon’s Watergate involvement led to his resignation, and the same year as the release of All the President’s Men, the movie about the expose. Olivia is also a strong presence in this episode – one thing I always admired about Miss Learned’s performance in this role is how she was never afraid to be “the heavy”; she can dish out the tongue-lashings but still be consistently likeable.

Subplot establishes the Godseys as unable to have children; we’ll see what happens there.

Richard Thomas walks with a cane in this, and the next two, episodes. Thomas broke his leg when he drove his motorcycle under a parade float while filming the homecoming parade scene in the movie September 30^th, 1955, about a guy who goes nuts when he hears about James Dean’s death.

Opening is now preceded by a teaser of episode highlights (like all the dramas did at the time). The last highlight freeze-frames, turns sepia, and dissolves into the first frame of the opening titles.