Shannen Doherty Says ‘Little House On The Prairie’ Star Michael Landon “Was A Mentor” For Her: “He Taught Me So Much”

Before she was Brenda Walsh on Beverly Hills 90210, Shannen Doherty had a brief stint on Little House of the Prairie that she says “helped shape” her decades-long career.

The actress opened up about her experience starring on the show from 1982 to 1983 alongside Little House star Michael Landon, who passed away in 1991 from pancreatic cancer.

“That show – Little House – shaped me in so many ways and it still is the best experience of my entire career,” Doherty said on a recent episode of her podcast, Let’s Be Clear with Shannen Doherty.

She had high praise for Landon, who she said helped foster her passion for acting and directing early on. “I adored him. He was a mentor. He taught me so much,” she said.

“It’s kind of amazing because, when I think about the long span of my career, but also how rough some jobs were — and unenjoyable to be a part of, a little bit toxic — it was really the experience on Little House that spurred that passion on for being an actor,” she said. “And it was having a mentor like Michael Landon — and I don’t care what anybody else’s experience was like, I know the truth about that man, and he was just unbelievable.”

Little House was one of Doherty’s first acting roles. By the time she joined the cast as Jenny Wilder in Season 9, Landon had already left his role as Charles Ingalls, but he stayed on the show as executive producer and made a few guest appearances in Season 9. He also wrote and directed a couple of episodes during Doherty’s time on the show.

According to Doherty, Landon was “so, so, so talented, so kind, so considerate, and it really helped shape me. And he was incredibly caring for my entire family.”

After starring in Season 9, Doherty later reprised her role for three TV movies between 1983 and 1985: Little House: Look Back to Yesterday, Little House: The Last Farewell, and Little House: Bless All the Dear Children.

Doherty secured several acting credits soon after Little House, including a series regular role on Our House in 1986, and memorable performances in Heathers, Girls Just Want To Have Fun, and 21 Jump Street among several other titles. It wasn’t long before she eventually before she landed her iconic role on Beverly Hills, 90210 in 1990.

She has previously said that Little House was a formative experience for her as a young actress specifically because she got to work with Landon. “I got to work with Michael Landon — that’s one of my all-time favorite memories,” she said on a previous episode of her podcast.

Landon reportedly discovered Doherty when she made her acting debut in the 1981 series he created, Father Murphy.

“He taught me to embrace my voice, to stand up for myself,” she said of the late star.