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Producers assumed that The Waltons was destined for failure
Though the series wasn't given much respect, it had an independence that only strengthened with time.
Despite the show’s wild success and its impact on television as a whole, people may be shocked to learn that originally, The Waltons seemed to be destined for failure.
It’s a tough idea to comprehend, though no one was more forthcoming with the network’s low expectations of the series than the show’s creator, Earl Hamner Jr.
During his memoir, Goodnight John-Boy, Hamner Jr. recalled the show’s beginnings. Because the higher-ups believed the series wouldn’t live to see the light of a second season, the writing staff was given free rein of the series.
”Usually with a new series, the network will hover over it and try to ‘fix’ it even before it goes on the air, even before there is anything wrong with it, even before the first episode is aired,” wrote Hamner. “With The Waltons, the assumption was that the series would fail. Consequently, there was very little interference.”
The independence gave Hamner the room to develop the show as he pleased. By the time the show began airing, it had yielded the fruitful rewards that both the cast and crew had spent so long working for.
“Thankfully, the audience found the show!” wrote Hamner. “Friends told other friends about it. Mail flowed into the network and into the production office in praise of the show, asking for cast autographs, asking questions about the ‘real’ family the series was based upon, wanting to know more about our actors.”
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