Melissa Gilbert left Los Angeles for a simple cottage life in the Catskills: See inside her happy life now

It is truly amazing when child actors grow up in front of the eyes of the audience. We see them become stars and celebrate their every success as though it’s our own.I bet most of you remember the children of the Ingalls family from Little House on the Prairie. If you do, you must be wondering where they are today and what they are up to.The second oldest daughter of the family, Laura Ingalls, was played by actress Melissa Gilbert, who captured the hearts of the fans and became an acting sensation almost overnight. Well, more or less like the rest of the cast. Melissa was featured in commercials and had some minor roles before taking the part in Little House on the Prairie. During the run of the series, she played parts in other films including The Diary of Anne Frank and The Miracle Worker.

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Born on on May 8, 1964, in Los Angeles, California, Melissa was given up for adoption by her parents who each had three children from their previous marriages and feared they couldn’t provide for another child. Melissa was lucky to be welcomed into the life of her adoptive parents, actor Paul Gilbert and actress/dancer Barbara Crane, from whom she learned all about the entertainment business.
In 2015, Melissa took a role in the short film One Smart Fellow, and played in Secret and Lies and The Night Shift some years before. She is also a writer. Her autobiography Prairie Tale: A Memoir speaks of the period of her life during the famous series.
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As she goes back to the time of filming the series, she recalls she had a fun time with the rest of the crew.Portraying a girl living on a farm seemed exciting back then, and it looks like Melissa got to love that way of living so she and her husband, actor-director Timothy Busfield, moved from Michigan to new home in New York a few years ago and even bought a hunting cabin and considered getting chickens and building a barn for goats and horses, she revealed during a virtual Television Critics Association panel focusing on the PBS American Masters biography “Laura Ingalls Wilder.” However, the coronavirus pandemic forced them to put their plans on hold.
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Today, however, they do live in the cabin and their days seem picture perfect. The place needed a full renovation, but despite the challenges, they were determined to turn the place into a comfortable home.

The first step was getting rid of the staff the previous owners left there. Next, they needed to get rid of the rodents and mildew and fix the plumbing.

They refurbished the cabinets, installed red vinyl chairs, and heated the house with a wood fire.

Gilbert and her husband grow their own fruits and vegetables.

The actress loves her peaceful home and the challenges that living at such a place brings. She copes with her responsibilities with a smile on her face and enjoys a cup of tea at the end of each day.

Lisa Marie Presley kept her son Benjamin’s body at home for two months after he passed away.

Lisa Marie Presley was so devastated by the loss of her son, Benjamin Keough, that she kept his body in her home for two months after he passed away. She even invited a tattoo artist to see him so she could get matching tattoos.

This is just one of many surprising details in Lisa Marie’s new memoir, From Here to the Great Unknown, which was completed by her daughter, actress Riley Keough, after Lisa Marie passed away in January 2023.

Lisa Marie (left) next to her beloved son Ben, along with her third husband, Michael Lockwood, and a guest, at the London premiere of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” in November 2010.
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In her book, Lisa Marie shared that she had to fight to stay alive for her other children, Riley and her twin daughters Harper and Finley, who are now 16. She didn’t say goodbye to Benjamin right away because she was torn between burying him in Hawaii or at Graceland, the Memphis estate where Elvis, her father, is buried.

Riley Keough shows off her “Ben” tattoo etched on her collarbone in honor of her late brother.
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Riley and Lisa Marie at the ELLE Women in Hollywood Awards at the Four Seasons Hotel Beverly Hills on Oct. 16, 2017, in LA.
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Lisa Marie kept the room at 55 degrees to preserve Benjamin’s body and got so used to caring for him and having him there.

Riley and Lisa Marie decided to honor Benjamin by getting tattoos like his. Benjamin had his sister’s name on his collarbone and his mom’s name on his hand. Riley had her brother’s name tattooed on her collarbone, and a tattoo artist was called to Lisa Marie’s home to add Benjamin’s name to her hand. When the artist asked if they had photos of Benjamin’s tattoos to match the font and placement, Lisa Marie said, “No, but I can show you.”

Lisa Marie was laid to rest next to son Ben at Graceland following her death in January 2023.
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Riley writes: “Lisa Marie Presley had just asked this poor man to look at her dead son, who was right next to us in the guest house. I’ve had a very strange life, but this moment is one of the weirdest.”

Lisa Marie also knew it was strange. She said, “I think it would scare the heck out of anyone else to have their son there like that. But not me.”

Lisa Marie said she lost her “spark” after her son, seen here as a 10-year-old with his mom and sister Riley, took his own life in July 2020.
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Soon after the tattoo day, Riley remembers that everyone felt like Benjamin wanted to be laid to rest.

Even Lisa Marie said she could feel him communicating with her, saying, “This is crazy, Mom, what are you doing? What the heck!”

The family held a funeral for Benjamin in Malibu, and New Age author Deepak Chopra led the ceremony. Riley said she had to keep her eyes closed the whole time because she was struggling to cope with everything.

Riley finished off her mother’s book after listening to hours of her tapes.
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Benjamin was buried at Graceland, next to Elvis, and Lisa Marie would later be buried there too.

Riley writes a lot about her brother’s struggles with mental health and how he often went on drinking binges. She doesn’t believe he truly wanted to die.

After his death, she and her mom went through his phone, looking for answers.

As the only daughter of Elvis and Priscilla Presley, Lisa Marie lived her life in the harsh spotlight.
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Lisa Marie is buried at her father’s estate, Graceland, alongside her dad and her son.
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Riley writes, “We found a text he sent to my mom a couple of weeks before he died that said, ‘I think something’s wrong with me mentally. I think I have a mental health issue.’ It’s heartbreaking to me that he only realized he might need help just two weeks before he took his own life.”

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