Melissa Gilbert, a famous actress in Hollywood, had a troubled career marked by a variety of vices, failed romances, and a love affair that was bound to end with fellow actor Rob Lowe.
The much-loved character of Laura Ingalls, who first appeared in the 1970s television show “Little House on the Prairie,” was made famous by actress Melissa Gilbert. She did such a wonderful job playing Laura that many young girls aspired to have the same kind of life as the TV character on the show.
Gilbert was the ideal actor to play the part, but she secretly had the ambition to be just like Laura in real life. Unfortunately, Gilbert’s life was not an easy one, and the difficulties of his situation only increased as he became more famous. A glimpse into her difficult childhood is seen here.
Melissa Gilbert was aware of the fact that she was an adopted kid as she was growing up. Even though she was adopted, Melissa was aware of both her biological parents and the circumstances surrounding her adoption. Her life was challenging despite the fact that she had two adoptive parents who seemed to be supportive of her.
She was adopted by Barbara and Paul Gilbert, and as she got older, her adoptive parents saw that she has some ability. After that, Melissa was cast as Laura Ingalls, playing the role of the late Michael Landon’s daughter in the television series from 1974 through 1983.
Both Melissa and her TV character had the same birthday, but their lives couldn’t have been more different. She said that she had been more of “a geek” growing up and that her family environment had been one that was somewhat grounded.
As the public’s perception of her changed from that of a child star to that of a celebrity, the famous actress had more opportunities to experience life in Hollywood.
During her early adult years, Melissa struggled with substance abuse and alcoholism. Her rise to fame as an adult was fueled by affairs with Hollywood playboys, substance abuse, alcoholism, and three rhinoplasty procedures performed before she was 20.
All of them are included in her autobiography, titled “Prairie Tale,” which details the dramatic events that transpired in her actual life. Her turbulent connection with fellow actor Rob Lowe and her turbulent love life as a teenager were both key aspects of her early life.
Melissa met a young actor named Rob Lowe when she was living the rockstar lifestyle, and the two of them became good friends. In an interview with “Access,” Melissa claimed that she was “14 or 15” years old when she first met Lowe.
The actress from “Christmas in My Hometown” claimed that Lowe had approached her and presented himself to her as a kid actor. She said that he had done this unexpectedly. After some time had passed, he would reveal to her that in order to let her know he was an actor, he had concealed his screenplay inside his jacket.
After that day, they continued to work together in the business as friends, but the passage of time drove a wedge between them. The actress spoke on how their friendship eventually blossomed into a romantic connection.
After a period of time during which they had lost contact with one another, Melissa and Lowe ran into one another again. She stated that she was on her way home from the set of “Prairie” when Lowe came up at a stop and confronted her. Melissa went on to explain that the woman still wore makeup and had her “funky” hair pulled up into a bun.
That served as the catalyst for their reunion, and they exchanged contact information. Despite both of them having turbulent romantic histories, the two decided to start dating.
Before beginning her relationship with Lowe, Melissa dated a few young Hollywood stars, including Tom Cruise. She had previously met Cruise at an event that he had attended with Emilio Estevez, and the two of them had gotten along famously from the very beginning.
Melissa revealed that she and Cruise would often engage in makeout sessions in the living room of her mother’s house, and she stated that it gave her a joyful feeling. On the other hand, the fascination was taken to a whole new level with Lowe.
She said that the first chat they had together was “smooth and entertaining.” Their connection developed in a short amount of time. Melissa’s life was completely centered on the young man she loved, Lowe, and all she did.
She remembered a teacher explaining that love was like a hunger that went through the whole body, and that’s how Melissa felt. “Love is like a hunger that runs through the entire body,” the instructor had said. She said that she had “immediately, desperately, and foolishly fallen in love.”
A rocky relationship between Melissa and Lowe ultimately resulted in the two breaking up. However, this did not last for very long before Lowe returned, this time on his knees, and asked her to marry him.
She was thinking back to the time when he told her that he wanted her to be his forever. Melissa was taken aback and was speechless in response to the news. The unexpected nature of his proposal caught her off guard to the point that it took her a few days to regain her composure.
When Melissa informed Barbare that she was having second thoughts about agreeing to marry Lowe, Barbare persuaded her daughter that Lowe would be an excellent husband despite Melissa’s reservations. Melissa decided to marry her long-time beau despite the fact that this comment did not provide much assistance.
However, everything did fall apart in the end. Melissa was in the midst of the craziness of planning her wedding when she learned that she was going to be a mother. Despite the fact that this startled her, she hurried off to inform Lowe of the wonderful news.
On the other hand, his response was not the same as hers. Instead, Lowe had a sudden onset of terror and immediately disclosed to her the news that he was unable to be a parent, a spouse, or even a lover. Melissa was left in shambles as a result of this, and she ultimately abandoned him to pick up the pieces. In her autobiography, she wrote:
“We split up. It had reached its conclusion. I believe that we were simply too young at the time,”
Melissa was left feeling helpless and unable to cope with her circumstances once she became pregnant. She contemplated her options, which included raising the child on her own, placing the child for adoption, or terminating the pregnancy.
Sadly, the actress from “When We Last Spoke” did not survive the loss of her kid despite all of her anxieties, anguish, and suffering. Melissa was quite grateful that her mother was there for her during her difficult time, even though the agony was intolerable.
After a few weeks had passed, Melissa was beginning to feel more like her former self and was socializing with her friends. On the day that would change her life forever, she spent time with her friends Glenn Zagoren and Howard Gilman, and it was they who put her in contact with Bo Brinkman.
The courtship lasted for six weeks when Brinkman made his move and proposed to her, and she accepted. Her wedding ceremony on Long Island was quite the spectacle. Just as the wedding officiant was urging Brinkman and Melissa to give one other a kiss, firemen burst into the room and demanded that everyone leave the premises immediately.
The couple would learn at a later time that it had all been a joke. In 1988, Melissa and Brinkman tied the knot, and the following year, in 1989, they became parents to a boy named Dakota. After a marriage that lasted six years, the pair divorced each other in 1994 and went their separate ways.
Both Brinkman’s infidelity and Melissa’s alcoholism, which she had begun to struggle with after the end of her relationship with Lowe, were contributing factors to the difficulties that plagued her marriage.
Following the dissolution of her marriage to Brinkman, Melissa resumed her career in the entertainment industry. It was okay for her to bring her son with her to the film set even though she was a single mother. She first became acquainted with Bruce Boxeitner when she was at work on one of the days.
They hit it off right away and started having an affair not long after they realized how much they cared for one another. Melissa said in her autobiography that she had once paid Boxleitner a visit on set and that after they had had a lovely time together, Boxleitner became anxious.
He had developed feelings for her, but he was hesitant to confess it to himself or to advance their relationship to the next level. After some time, Boxleitner came to the conclusion that he wanted to be with Melissa. As a result, he went back and made the necessary adjustments.
The actor from “Scarecrow and Mrs. King” and Melissa just tied the knot, thus becoming a part of their combined family. Both Boxleitner and Melissa already had children from previous relationships with other partners.
The actress from “Bless All the Dear Children” announced that she was expecting another child, which came as a complete and total surprise to everyone. When Boxleitner originally accused her of becoming pregnant in order to trick him into getting married, she stared at him in bewilderment.
Later on, he recanted his remark and said that he had panicked since he did not know how to care for another kid. He said this to explain his behavior. Later on, Melissa gave birth to her child earlier than expected, but the doctors were able to save his life. After that point, Melissa made her two children her first priority.
Melissa continued to battle her drinking issue even after she married Boxleitner. However, the actress did finally go through a defining moment in her life. It was at that point that she became aware that she had a problem with her drinking. Therapy was something that Melissa went to, as well as AA meetings. After that, she started to become sober.
It seemed that she and Boxleitner were doing well in their marriage until a video was sent to the latter. In her autobiography, Melissa described how her husband contacted her at work and yelled at the top of his lungs. Melissa was at work at the time.
According to the statements made on the recording, Melissa was involved in an affair. But their marriage was beyond repair, and no amount of reconciliation could save it. In the end, Melissa and Boxleitner decided to break their marriage after they had been together for 16 years.
It seemed like something out of a romantic comedy when Timothy Busfield and Melissa first started talking to each other at a pub. The two people moved into the same social circle, which is how they first became acquainted twenty years previously.
After striking up a conversation, the two individuals discovered that they had a lot of similarities. Melissa and Busfield were married in 2013 and shortly after acquired a Victorian-style house in Howell that they had completely renovated.
When asked about his marriage to Melissa, Busfield once said that he considered himself very fortunate to have been able to marry her “without a chin.” He said that in order to have a shot with her at the time that she was seeing Rob Lowe, he would have had to wait until she was in her thirties.