The Man Behind the Television Almanzo, Part 1

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Dean Butler, who played Almanzo in the television series “Little House on the Prairie,” was our next door neighbor at the Indiana Association of Home Educators convention in Indianapolis last weekend. IAHE invited him to speak at the convention last weekend because of his involvement in continuing the legacy of author Laura Ingalls Wilder.

When we arrived to set up our own booth at the convention, Butler’s booth was ready for the weekend. At the front was a tall banner with a larger-than-life sepia photo of Almanzo from the television series, wearing the familiar clothes of a pioneer farmer, a big wide-brimmed hat, and the familiar Almanzo grin. On the table were music CDs produced by Pa’s Fiddle Recordings, digitally-remastered DVDs of the Little House series which include bonus documentary material produced by Butler, and the two original documentaries Butler has produced about Laura and Almanzo:

Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura

Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder

Knowing that Mr. Butler was to be at the convention, Ray had printed a copy of our Laura’s Little Houses: A Guide to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Sites book to give to him. We had to wait our turn to visit with Mr. Butler and give him the book because of the long lines of people waiting to get his autograph and have a picture made with him (as I observed several of those photo ops, I learned that the Almanzo grin is a genuine one that belongs to Butler himself). Finally, we decided just to get in line ourselves.

Ray and I were both surprised when Mr. Butler immediately recognized us from our previous meeting at the Florida Parent-Educators Association conference in 2013. At that conference we had spent only a few minutes with Butler, discussing our mutual interest in Laura. It was on our way home from that conference that Ray and I visited the site near Westville, Florida where Laura and Almanzo lived with some of their relatives in 1891-92. They lived there hoping the weather would help Almanzo recover from diphtheria, which he contracted early in their marriage.

We thought we were completing our seventeen-year quest of visiting every place that Laura and Almanzo ever lived. Here is my blog about that visit: Laura Fans (I have mentioned Laura in previous posts. Here are links to those: Home, Sharing the Family Stories, Teaching with Confidence). Boy, were we surprised when our family did research for the e-book and found out about one more out-of-the-way historic marker in Missouri! Now we have one more to go!

After meeting Mr. Butler in Florida, I was grateful that he was continuing to tell people about the real family behind the books and the television series. After talking with him in Indianapolis, I am grateful that this is being accomplished by a man of such intelligence and kindness. I am also thankful that this actor and producer from LA is interacting with homeschoolers. Ray and I respect people who are always learning. I can tell that Dean Butler is learning wherever he is and that he has a passion to share that learning with others.

Do you see a man skilled in his work?
He will stand before kings;
He will not stand before obscure men.
Proverbs 22:29

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