Despite five decades of different performances on the stage and television, actor Richard Thomas remains best known to many for his breakout role on “The Waltons.”
Thomas, starring as lawyer Atticus Finch on tour in “To Kill a Mockingbird,” played burgeoning author John-Boy Walton from 1972 to 1977 in the CBS Depression-era family dram
It should come as no surprise that the legendary 1970s sitcom The Waltons is still a topic of conversation among fans today.
The Waltons’ charming A-list cast was one of the show’s strongest points; Richard Thomas, who played John-Boy Walton from 1972 until his departure following Season 5 in 1977, was a particular standout.
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What caused Richard Thomas to leave ‘The Waltons’?
Since there is no evidence of a dispute between Richard Thomas and the show or the network, he merely departed The Waltons over 40 years ago to pursue other interests.
He did make a triumphant return in Season 6 and a plethora of 1990s films based on the show, despite leaving after five seasons.
At the end of his storyline as John-Boy on The Waltons, Richard leaves college and heads to New York City to pursue a career in writing. He became a war correspondent after enlisting in the military after the Pearl Harbour attack.
During the cast’s 30th reunion, he gushed to Entertainment Weekly about his character, saying, “John-Boy was a new kind of male protagonist on television.”. “An emotionally complex man like that was as unlike any male lead in an hour-long TV show as you could get.”
Even though Richard’s run on the show ended, the producers weren’t ready to conclude John-Boy’s riveting story yet. For Seasons 8 and 9, actor Robert Wightman replaced Richard.
When the character was reintroduced, he was missing in action. It turned out he was in a bad jet crash while at war, which prompted him to return home for treatment.
At the end of the episode, he soon rebounded as a news reporter and married the love of his life, Janet. Although Richard finished John-Boy’s tale, the series creator, Earl Hamner Jr., always praised Richard’s performance.
“He was marvelous, and as it turned out, he was perfect in the role,” Earl once told MeTV. “I often said he made a better John-Boy than I did being myself. He was just perfect.”
Although Richard agreed that the character of John-Boy was “very rich to play,” he did state in the same interview that “there are no words to express what I owe Earl Hamner,” demonstrating that the two always got along and had mutual respect for one another despite Richard’s retirement from the show.
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Richard’s Carrier After Leaving the Waltons
After leaving The Waltons, Richard continued his great career with a variety of additional parts, including Roots: The Next Generations, Promised Land, The Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson, It’s a Miracle, Just Cause, The Americans, Billions, Tell Me Your Secrets, NCIS: New Orleans, and more.
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