Grandma Walton

Esther Walton is the stern, tough love Grandmother of the Walton family. She is the church organist and helps Olivia run the kitchen and household chores. She can be proud, stubborn and jealous especially of her husband's relationship to other woman. Grandma would suffer a stroke and would recuperate in hospital care for 1 1/2 years before returning home. Soon after her return her husband Zeb would pass away and she continued to live with her son and family on Walton's Mountain.

... more links to come ASAP

Ellen Corby

Born: June 3, 1911
Died: April 14, 1999

When Ellen Corby was cast as the Walton Grandmother in The Homecoming, she challenged Earl Hamner's preference for the tone of the character. She wanted to be the "salt" of the show because she felt that there were too many "nice" characters on the show and her "spice" was needed to balance out the family. Obviously she was right about the character winning 3 Best Supporting Actress Emmys for her role on The Waltons. Ellen was the only adult cast member to reprise her role when The Waltons premiered the following fall season. In November 1976 she suffered a severe stroke and temporarily left the show to recuperate. The stroke she suffered was written into the show and served to explain her absence from the series and provide story material upon her return.

Further Links and Reading

Ellen's Wikipedia Page
Ellen's listing on IMDb

Tribute Fan Site to Ellen Corby

An inciteful article from 1973

Another article from 1973

Ellen is a veteran actress who began her career in Hollywood as a script assistant which she did for twelve years before moving in front of the camera. She played a number of small bit roles but is remembered as Ms. Davis in It's a Wonderful Life and in 1948 she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar and Golden Globe for her role as a lovelorn aunt in I Remember Mama.