Take a Look at the 'Little House on the Prairie' Cast Then and Now

The unspoken star of Little House on the Prairie is, without a doubt, Laura! Her adventurous character consistently had something going on with her throughout the series, usually resulting with a lesson learned at the end of each plot. She was played by the talented Melissa Gilbert, who was a rising child star at the time.

Little House on the Prairie was far from Melissa's last promising role! She went on to appear in shows like 7th Heaven, Stand By Your Man, Sweet Justice, and more. Not only that, but she also competed in season fourteen of Dancing With the Stars in 2012.

The head-honcho that is Charles was played by Michael Landon! Fun fact: Michael actually wrote many of the episodes throughout the series, which makes sense why his portrayal of the loving father was so well executed.

Other works of Michael include Highway to Heaven and Bonanza! (You can tell he had a specific type of character he liked playing.) Sadly, Michael passed in 1991 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Still, his legacy lives on, and he is missed by those who worked close with him and those who loved watching him on television.

Caroline was a sweet mother and monumental figure on the show. Whenever the Ingalls family faced trepidation, Caroline was quick to console her husband and family, letting them know that things were going to be okay. Karen Grassle was the talent that embodied Caroline's character.

Fast forward to today, and Karen is still working! You can catch her in her projects post Little House on the Prairie, with her most recent being the movie Not to Forget. Looks like she still has her acting chops!

Mary's story on Little House on the Prairie was a rollercoaster. Melissa Sue played the daughter who had a gentle way of going about things, as well as the the sharpest wits of the bunch! Her story completely flipped when we found out that her character went blind after suffering from scarlet fever. We went on to see how Mary and her family navigated this tough time, prevailing in the end.

Nowadays, Melissa is still kicking! You may know her from her roles in Veronica Mars, The Equalizer series, The Con Is On, and 10.5: Apocalypse.

Did you know that Carrie Ingalls was played by not one, but two child actresses? Yep! Twin sisters Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush played the young girl on the TV show, but you would have never recognized it was two people based on how identical they were! As a character, Carrie was the youngest of the family, naturally treated as such throughout all of the episodes.

The two sisters have not done much acting after the show, and ended up retiring all together shortly after. Though, both of them are set to be in the 50th reunion event, which is definitely enough to excite fans!

Fans of the show might remember Albert Quinn Ingalls as the adopted son in the family (who was portrayed by Matthew Labyorteaux). He had a tough upbringing, but was eventually taken in by the Ingalls. He faced lots of bullying in his new school, but we watched as he grew into his personality.

Matthew is mainly a voice actor today, securing spots in Mulan, Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Anastasia, and so much more. He has also acted a bit, specifically in the projects King of the Gypsies and Shattered Spirits.

Nellie was the character you loved to hate! She wasn't the nicest (though, she eventually came around... for a little). Though, did you know that Alison Arngrim, the actress who played her, originally auditioned for the spot of Laura? Are we wrong for saying that we can't see that at all?

Alison is a stand-up comedian who often references her time on the show during her acts. She's hilarious, which isn't hard to understand given that her character on Little House on the Prairie had so much spunk to her.