The Waltons (TV Series) The Foundling (1972) User Reviews

Fine start to a wonderful series

[FlushingCaps · 8/10 · 3 February 2014]

The series begins with a view of the Walton home, with a strange woman walking up and leaving a bundle near the back door and hurrying away. Presently, John-Boy discovers a young girl, about Elizabeth's age, and the family rushes out to see her. Unseen by them, the woman is watching from the trees nearby.

They come to understand that the girl, who never speaks, is deaf. Unwilling to take her to the county home, they take care of her temporarily. One of the neatest scenes dealt with the family all laughing at a radio program, where we see the living room from the deaf girl's perspective—smiling, laughing faces but no sound.

They had been trying to teach her deaf sign language but were unable for some time to communicate. In a wonderfully dramatic scene, John-Boy gets her to understand one word, and from then the learning comes quickly.

We see scenes involving the girl's parents quarreling about what to do with her. Resolution comes after she proves to her father that she is intelligent by aiding a Walton in distress.

The minor plot has John-Boy trying to become more friendly with a girl at school and her not understanding, at first, why he kept wanting to read poetry to her. Unlike most later episodes, this secondary plot was given little time in the episode.

I was impressed with how they did not take too much time to introduce all of the characters. I don't think we even heard the names of each Walton. They were smart enough to know that we wouldn't really learn everyone's name right away, and that they didn't have enough time for a plot involving everyone. So we got to know the oldest and youngest well, and meet the others. We'd get to know them all, in time.

The one thing that stood out as different from most episodes is the Southern accents, most noticeably by Jason. They also used more "county" expressions, such as "reckon" a few times.

It was a fine start to a series that will always stand out as one of the best family dramas TV ever produced.

A Breath of Fresh Air

[janet-conant · 8/10 · 26 July 2022]

After watching those tedious episodes from the last season seeing the first Waltons episode was a real treat. If only they ended the show after maybe season 6. It's rewarding to see the children young and impressionable, even John boy, and it really was quite a special series especially those first 3 seasons after we got to know all the characters. Waite and Learned had an unusual chemistry and the casting was first rate.

A joy in the beginning

[katiecarsi · 8/10 · 8 April 2024]

Loved seeing the first 5 seasons. The acting by all principals is top notch. Great ensemble and amazing writing. We are lucky to have had it produced back in the day, they wouldn't make it now. I was. 6 when it started, but I remember watching it with my family. And now, watching on ME TV.

Should have ended it after Season 6. Once Michael Learned left, the magic was gone. The last seasons were pretty awful and pandering to the audience. Stories stretched reality a little to far and were frankly boring and silly. Same thing happened with Little House on the Prairie, but a bit worse on The Waltons. Have to know when to put it to bed....

It's Interesting

[mitchrmp · 10/10 · 15 March 2011]

Of course, when I was a kid I remember watching reruns in the afternoons. This show started, I believe, in 1972, right? I was born in July 1973, so I was a little late for the beginning. By the time I knew Walton's existed, I believe it was in it's final season. I think I started watching it when Rose (I remember the actress best as Lulu Hog on Dukes of Hazard.).

It's interesting watching this episode. John Boy seemed so immature! The girl, Marcia, he's chasing after just doesn't seem like his type AT ALL! It's quite funny to watch him reading all that silly poetry and trying to impress her. Of course, I know how she turned out, so maybe that causes me to see the whole thing silly.

The woman that played Holly's mother looked so familiar to me! I kept trying to place her, then when I realized it was Charlotte Stewart (Miss Beadle from Little House on the Prairie) I WAS excited!

I also enjoy how all the kids run around barefoot and plain. Money was tight during the Great Depression, and kids didn't really NEED shoes. I think that later in the series, the kids do end up with shoes.

Some of the characters are just developing, and it's interesting to see just how little they are in this episode! This was a good starter episode. It shows John's love for his family (in giving in to keeping the little girl) and the family's love for each other and strangers!

A remarkable beginning.

[rfgoebel · 6 July 2013]

For starters, I am age-wise four months younger than Elizabeth. Since I was very young when the show began, I only remember a few of the episodes from their original air-date. While the original Homecoming is considered the pilot, I consider this to be.

Four wonderful life lessons are wrapped up into the dialog that I believe is so well written and so well portrayed by all the actors. Elizabeth gets the first lesson when she asks her dad where he found her. While the hand alphabet by itself is easy to learn, the deaf girl would have to first have a language understanding to be able to use it. That is nit-picking I know. There probably should have been a little more of Ben and Jason, I felt they were left out.

The writers were just beginning to build the characters, the actors were beginning to create them. The idea of abandoning a child during the time portrayed would more likely to have happened at a much younger age, and I believed the writers understood that so they went with someone who in real life is nearly exactly Elizabeth's age. I would like to know who it could have been in the barber chair getting prepared for a shave from Ike. Could it have been Yancy Tucker? The importance of communication, especially listening to children when they know something adults don't. John-Boy learned that sometimes, actions speak louder than words.

I live in eastern Virginia, and spend quite a bit of time in the mountains that border West Virginia. Having visited Schuyler, VA, I'm amazed at how well they make most of the local scenery look as close to Virginia as they could. Perhaps someone could have sent a film crew to do some scenery footage for the opening and transitioning. I have to remind myself often that those on the screen are actors, and they have lives away from the set, and those producing have to produce with the resources at hand. Otherwise, I love this episode.

The Start to The Walton Era

[garyldibert · 10/10 · 29 January 2008]

I was in 9th grade when the showed aired on September 14 1972. I loved this show because back in those days they seem to be more then just TV shows. I loved the Waltons because it showed so much family loved that I wish I could of experience. It's early in the morning when you see a woman running near the Walton house like down something in a blanket near the back porch. Reckless that old hound barked but the family was so use to Reckless barking that they paid no attention to it. Olivia gets up and comes down to start breakfast for the children so they can go to school. She tells John Boy that the cow needs milked and John Boy comes down, grabs the bucket and heads for the back porch. When he gets outside, he sees the little girl lying on the fruit cellar door rapped in the blanket. He hollers for his folks and they come to check on her. John Boy goes to pick her up and she bites him on the hand. Olivia takes her inside and gives her a bath. After she's clean up Olivia brings her downstairs and feeds her. Olivia finds a note in the Childs pocket telling her that the girls name is Holly. John and Olivia takes Holly into town to the Sheriff where there told the only place they can put her is in the County home. Before going home the Waltons take Holly over to the doctors to have her check out. The Doctor tells the Waltons that Holly is ****. Now John has to decide whether to keep Holly at the house or send her to the County Home. I always loved this show because of theme and this was the being of along and running TV show.