Original subtitles

In 1935, life on Walton's Mountain began to change.

Our activities took us more and more away from home

and it was only knowing most of us would all be there again at night

that helped us keep the family ties

that had always been our strength.

To help pay back the money we had borrowed from the bank,

my father had taken a job in Norfolk.

And when possible, he returned home on weekends.

My mother, under the additional pressures

of being a substitute teacher,

found her life changed.

These changes took some getting used to

for all of us.

Jim-Bob, you can't take all that.

Here, Mama, I'll help Jim-Bob.

You get ready to go to work, all right?

Thank you, John-Boy. Here, Jim-Bob.

Jim-Bob, are you gonna eat all of this?

I'm a growing boy.

Oh, Elizabeth, you're last again.

Well, I'm the littlest.

And the slowest.

Ben! Ben!

I wish you'd come home right after school

to help me get that Carson order out come Saturday.

I heard you, Grandpa.

Hey, Jim-Bob, here you go.

Got a lot of food there, don't waste it.

You better share it with somebody.

I'll do this. All right.

John-Boy, you remind me

to turn the collar of your good shirt before Thursday.

Grandma, don't worry about that. I'm not even going to the dance. And why not?

You know, with Daddy away, there's too much work around here.

Besides, the girl he was gonna take is going with someone else.

Mary Ellen, I declare, you probably operate a spy ring.

I'm Mata Hari and I know all.

I believe it.

Livie, I hate to see you fretting so

over your substitute teaching.

You must've known that school board

would come calling on your room sooner or later.

I didn't know they'd send the assistant superintendent.

Well, haven't you been doing the work the way it should be done?

Yes, I have.

Then that Mr. Gordon won't have anything whatever to complain about.

They wanted you at that school, didn't they?

Livie, they asked you to substitute for Rosemary,

now you remember that.

I stopped at Ike's and there was a letter!

From your daddy?

No, it's for John-Boy.

Corabeth says it's from Richmond!

Well, if it's for me, I guess I'd better have it.

Oh, it smells divine, John-Boy.

Erin, may I have the letter, please?

Corabeth also says that the S.W.A.K on the back means "sealed with a kiss"!

Did Corabeth say what it says on the inside?

Of course not.

A postmaster's wife can only read what's on the outside.

Jim-Bob! Elizabeth!

Anybody that's going to school, I'm leaving now!

Have a good day.

Bye, Grandpa.

Bye-bye, Grandma. See you later, John-Boy.

John-Boy. S.W.A.K.

Oh, no.

Oh, no.

Must be something in that letter.

Yes, it would appear so.

John-Boy?

Something in that letter upsetting you?

What's so dumb is that it upsets me at all.

It's so unimportant.

Here. It's from Marcia Woolery. Uh-oh.

I didn't know you were still mooning over that little old girl.

I'm not mooning over her!

The thing is, I'm just afraid she's still mooning over me.

Whoopee! She's coming home.

And she wants me to pick her up at the bus depot.

That's what I can't figure out, why'd she ask me to do it?

Well, you were kind of special good friends, weren't you?

Well, I always thought so,

but she was just always so fickle all the time.

Pie-eyed filly for sure!

I mean, I wonder if she realizes it's been a whole year.

I mean, I've got a whole new circle of friends,

I'm moving in a different direction.

If she thinks she can just come in to town and knock me off my feet, I...

John-Boy, she's not proposing marriage to you.

She just wants you to be at the bus.

Well, I still don't like it.

I still think she should've asked somebody else.

I've got enough trouble with trigonometry.

I don't need Marcia Woolery.

Mrs. Walton. Yes, Annie.

May I get a drink of water? Yes, but don't take too long.

Mrs. Walton...

Oh, Tom, would you hand out those papers, please?

Yes, ma'am. Thank you.

Hey! Don't do that. You're gonna break it.

Sure has cramped your style, Ben.

Since your mama's been the teacher,

you've been scared to try anything.

Well, there's nothing so special about smoking cigarettes.

I just used to do it when I was a kid.

Mama'll probably make me permanent monitor soon.

But she doesn't want it to look like she's favoring me right away.

Well, I don't want any favors.

In fact, I've been thinking about calling Mama

"Mrs. Walton" while we're in school.

Oh, Mary Ellen, that's so sophisticated!

Sure, I think your mama is a good teacher.

I just said I wouldn't want my mama teaching at my school.

Oh, yeah? Well, wait till report cards come out.

Uh, children, we have a visitor.

Grace and John to your seat.

Stand here, Elizabeth. You two, stop that.

Good morning, Mr. Gordon. Mrs. Walton.

How is everything going? Oh, just fine.

It is well past 8:00, Mrs. Walton.

Uh, children, it's time to get started.

We have an important visitor.

Now get to your desks quickly, please.

Hurry up. Quickly, please.

We have an important visitor.

Mr. Gordon is assistant superintendent of schools.

I'd like you all to say good morning to him, please.

Good morning, Mr. Gordon.

Good morning, boys and girls.

I'm, uh, here today to observe your work,

because we at the Jefferson County Board of Education

like to keep up with...

Yes?

Corn's all harvested, so I'm back.

What's your name?

Samuel Miller.

What?

His name's Simple Miller.

Ira.

It's Samuel Miller not Simple.

Samuel, there's an empty desk in the back. Will you please sit down?

Mr. Gordon has something he wants to say to us.

Now, as I was saying, I'm... I'm here to observe your work.

Because we at the Jefferson County Board of Education

like to keep up with...

We like to keep an eye on what's happening in the schools.

Therefore it's my pleasure to drop by on occasion

and observe classroom activities.

Hi, John-Boy.

Marcia.

Would you please get my suitcases for me?

Of course.

Don't tell me which car's yours. Let me guess.

All right. That one.

How'd you know that?

It's just right.

It's all cute and shiny like you are.

Why, thank you.

Very chivalrous of you.

Oh, well...

Boy, a whole year and three months.

I hardly feel as if I've been away.

Do you feel as if I've been away, John-Boy?

No, not really. Not now that you're back.

Guess that's because we never really did say goodbye properly.

What a marvelous hello.

I guess it just goes to prove that we're not two ships

that passed in the dark.

Well...

If it was up to me, I'd say we nearly had

a couple of head-on collisions.

Better watch the road.

Yeah.

We'll drive over and you can leave off your suitcases

and then we'll take a ride and everyone can get a good look at you.

Tomorrow I can drive you into Westham

and show you the college and introduce you to some people.

Maybe we can sort of pick up where we didn't say goodbye.

You mustn't do that, John-Boy.

Why not?

What's that?

I'm engaged.

What? Mmm-hmm.

I... Well...

Why didn't you tell me that before?

Just wanted to see if you really did miss me.

Really?

Um, who's the fella?

Oh, his name is Frank Taylor.

Uh-huh.

You... You gonna live on the Mountain?

Lord, no, John-Boy.

Frank couldn't live here. He's a city man, born and bred.

I only came back to sell my property.

Frank's gonna buy himself a little business,

and he needs just a little more cash to close the deal.

I see.

My goodness! I didn't know a place could fall apart so fast.

Well, after your daddy died, there wasn't anybody to take care of it.

Well, I'm not gonna do it now.

Leave that to the new owners.

I intend to spend my time here having fun.

I thought you had to get back to your job.

Oh, I quit that.

Children. Excuse me.

Samuel! Samuel, wait.

You've missed so much, you're gonna need some help catching up.

I thought we could work on your reading during our lunch hours.

I can't read much, Mrs. Walton.

And I'll never learn.

So you'd just be wasting good time.

Samuel, wait! Mrs. Walton!

May I have a word with you?

Please sit down, Mrs. Walton.

Elizabeth, you'll have to wait outside.

I want to talk to your mother privately.

Mama? You go on outside, honey.

I'll be out as soon as I'm finished.

Go on. Just wait by the door. I'll be right there.

You're doing a good job, Mrs. Walton.

Thank you, Mr. Gordon.

I'm very favorably impressed.

Not that I agree with all of your methods, but we'll see.

Now, there are a couple of things.

The Miller boy, for instance.

I never saw him before today.

Well, the board has.

He's not very bright.

But the fact that he's absent so often,

wouldn't that be what's holding him back?

Mrs. Meriwether feels it would be wrong

to waste a teacher's valuable time on him.

And she is the superintendent of schools.

And now, about Elizabeth...

You really can't have one of your own children hanging onto your coattails

every minute when teaching school.

Now, she should sit in her regular place.

Mr. Gordon, Elizabeth is the baby in my family.

And she's not used to sharing me

with so many other children.

So I'm just gonna keep her close by me

until she's ready to let go.

Now, are you sure that that's the best place for it, John-Boy?

Marcia, I'm not gonna move this one more time.

Poor John-Boy, I made you work so hard.

You deserve a reward. Want a bite?

No, thank you.

Listen, Marcia, this is my one day off from classes.

I really ought to be home helping Grandpa at the sawmill.

Well, I thought you might drive me into Westham

so I could put that ad in the paper.

I'll drive you in tomorrow on the way to school.

Well, I really should get it in today.

Frank said to.

Why don't you get Frank to drive you?

Maybe he should have hammered the sign in for you, too.

Oh, John-Boy, now you're mad at me.

Come on. Let's make up.

What do you want out of me, Marcia?

Just to be your friend like you said we should be at graduation.

Well, I feel like I'm your friend,

but I feel like things have changed between us.

Don't you like me anymore, John-Boy?

Marcia.

John-Boy Walton! I am engaged!

We'd better get to Westham so I can put the ad in the paper.

You all right, John-Boy?

I don't know.

I really don't know.

Samuel, what are you interested in?

Sports? Movie pictures?

I don't know.

Horses?

Funnies?

Mama, Mr. Gordon.

Good morning, Mr. Gordon.

Are you starting late again, Mrs. Walton?

No, we started right on time this morning.

What is all this chaos?

This is our current events lesson.

Why don't you have a seat? We're about to start our reports.

Children, come on. Clean up the scraps now.

Get back to your desks.

Make sure you keep your scissors pointed to the floor.

"Mr. Costello offered to pay for the food his monkey consumed

"while it was in Mrs. Schneider's kitchen,

"and for cleaning the sofa in the living room.

"Mrs. Schneider said that she still liked organ grinders,

"but that she hoped they keep their monkeys on leashes from now on."

Thank you, Annie. That was very good.

All right. Now...

All right, Jim-Bob.

My current event is on an airplane ride.

"Richard Merrill, a veteran airline pilot,

"and his co-pilot Harry Richman

"were speeding over the North Atlantic this morning

"with a helping hand of 40-miles-per-hour winds behind them.

"Flying high and fast according to brief radio flashes from the plane,

"they were making about 200 miles per hour

"and should land on the ground

"at Henderson Field near London

"after 24 hours after their take-off from Floyd Bennett Field."

Thank you, Jim-Bob.

Samuel, did you have a report?

Yes, ma'am.

Stand up then.

M-My report is about the World Peace Conference in Brussels.

That's in Belgium.

Six thousand delegates from 32 countries

are... are meeting there to have a meeting about stopping war.

There were some delegates from Germany,

but they left before the meeting started.

Samuel, did you read that in the newspaper?

No, ma'am, I heard it last night on the radio.

Is that okay?

Wasn't it supposed to come from the newspaper?

I don't think that's important, Mr. Gordon.

This is a current events lesson, not a reading lesson.

Samuel, that was very, very good.

I'm just gonna give you an "A" for that report.

He seems like a frog there.

Jim-Bob, are you all right?

Yeah.

Jim-Bob... Yes, ma'am.

I beg your pardon?

Yes, ma'am.

Better.

What about you, John-Boy?

You don't look so good, either.

John-Boy?

Grandma?

I was afraid trigonometry and calculus

in one year would be too much to handle.

That's not what's bothering him, Mama.

It's Marcia Woolery's fiance coming to Walton's Mountain.

Well, why should that bother me?

When's this gonna happen?

Tonight.

Why should that get you all riled up?

It doesn't matter, Esther, which one of them does the jilting.

A man always feels a fool when the new beau comes along.

Grandpa, I didn't jilt Marcia Woolery

and she didn't jilt me. It's just that...

When we were in high school together

we were attracted to each other,

and now that she's back, I feel...

Attracted.

Mary Ellen, you're indiscreet.

Excuse me.

John-Boy, you don't have to see Marcia's sweetheart if you don't want to.

They're coming here, Mother, tonight. - Good Lord.

Well, thank you for asking me first.

Jim-Bob, something is wrong.

I'm okay, Mama.

You can't fool me, young man.

I've been your mother too long.

Sit down at the table.

Now talk.

Jim-Bob?

I gave a good report and you didn't even hear it.

When Simple Miller opens his mouth

for the first time in his life he gets an A.

I thought having my mother for a teacher would make school easier,

all it's done is make it worse.

And I thought I'd be monitor more often, not less often.

Yeah, I thought it would be fun pretending you weren't my mother,

but I didn't expect you to pretend I wasn't your daughter.

Well, why didn't somebody say something?

Mama, that's because you were too busy with Simple Miller.

His name is not Simple! It is Samuel! Samuel Miller.

And I do not want to hear that other name again!

Now, now.

You young ones, stop your grumbling.

Give her a chance. She's just getting started out at that school.

She needs your help.

Livie, don't you have some papers to correct or something?

Thank you, Grandma.

I'd better study, too.

Me, too.

I'd rather work than study.

I'll help you with the dishes, old woman.

I do my thinking in school.

Whatever just pops into my head.

Here I am, old girl. You wash and I'll wipe.

It's like when our own were young.

We've gone full circle, Zeb.

Old darling, I've loved every curve in that circle.

Elizabeth is here.

Thanks to us and our circle.

What circle, Grandpa?

Over there.

The board of education thinks it's a waste of time trying to educate him.

But that boy is not stupid.

I just can't let him fall by the wayside.

Of course not, but you can't ignore your own either, you know.

I'll watch myself, Grandma.

But each child needs something different,

and some children need a whole lot more than others.

That's what teaching's all about.

Well, John did agree to my taking the job.

Well, I guess he didn't know exactly how much

it was gonna ask of you, now, did he?

Mrs. Walton and Mrs. Olivia Walton,

this is my fiance Frank Taylor.

Hi, ladies. How do you do.

Oh, and this is John-Boy, my high school beau.

How do you do, John-Boy.

It's John.

What did you go and change your name for?

I never changed it. It's always been John.

I don't know if I'll ever get used to that.

Ah. I got it.

It's a good corner. Two major streets.

He's let it go a little since he's been sick,

but I know I can build it back up again.

And if I put on a mechanic, too,

I could do better than he ever did.

We can pump 800 gallons a day.

A week, Marcia, honey.

That's 800 gallons a week. Oh.

I keep telling her, but it just doesn't stick.

You're adorable, honey, but stay out of the business talk.

Excuse me.

You had any answers on your ad yet, Marcia?

Just one, but he wasn't interested.

I don't know how this girl managed before I came along.

She didn't even ask the man to come out and look at the place.

But, Frank, w-when I told him where it was,

he said he wanted to stay closer to Charlottesville.

Mmm. See what I mean?

You didn't need to tell him where it is.

You should've said, "Not far at all,"

and then once you've got him on his way, start selling.

She wants to help me in the filling station,

but I really don't think I'm gonna let her near the place.

Well, as I recall, Marcia was always pretty good at math.

She could probably help you out with the bookkeeping.

Oh, I don't believe in women dealing with accounts.

That takes a man's head.

Why don't you tell Mrs. Walton about the letter, Frank?

Right.

Marcia's told you she wants to sell her parents' property?

Yes.

The problem is that her father's will says

she can't sell until she's 21.

Then she has to hold on to it.

Not necessarily.

My lawyer in Richmond tells me

that if I can find an adult who knows Marcia or knew her parents

to sign a letter saying she's capable of making such a decision,

then the court will allow her to sell.

And you want me to sign that letter?

Well, I'd thought of Mr. Walton,

but with him away, I'm sure you can see the sense in it, Mrs. Walton.

Do you want to sell, Marcia?

Of course she does.

I mean, what does she want

with a little old backcountry cabin like that

when she can live like a human being in the city?

Is that the way you feel about it, Marcia?

I... I guess so.

Well, I think before Mama signs any letters

somebody ought to take it down to the bank and have them look at it.

Maybe grandpa can do that.

Oh, it's all perfectly legal, John-Boy. Uh, John.

Give Mrs. Walton the letter, honey.

Oh, you have it, Frank.

The lawyer gave it to you.

Yes, but you said that I would probably lose it,

and that you would bring it out with you.

Well, you should have reminded me!

Now I've got to come all the way back out here again

and that's more time lost.

I'll be back with that letter in a day or two, Mrs. Walton. Good night.

Well, come on, Marcia.

He's usually much nicer.

I should hope so.

She's not gonna marry that!

You know what time it... Come on!

Bye-bye, Grandpa, bye-bye, Grandma.

You packed your lunch? Lunch? Bye, Grandma.

Bye-bye.

And, Livie, you just remember you got five of your own in that class.

I will, Grandma.

Wait for me!

Hey, hey, hold on there, boys. Where are you going?

I thought we'd get a little work done this morning.

I go when John-Boy goes till I get my own car.

But you don't have a class till 10:00, I thought.

Grandpa, Grandpa, Marcia Woolery asked me to drive her into town.

I figured I'm gonna have a talk with that girl.

I'm just gonna come right out and tell her

I think that man's a gold digger.

Now... Now, she's engaged to him, so you...

Now, Grandma, don't worry about it.

Just an old friend giving advice to an old friend.

Don't worry. Coming, Jason.

Oh, sure. They're all in that age...

They know everything.

Now, this one was painted later in Van Gogh's life.

During this period, he painted mostly in blues.

But you can still see the lovely composition.

Samuel, I don't think you should sit way back there.

You're kind of out of things.

Come on up front here a little.

You can't put him in front of anybody, Mrs. Walton.

He's too big.

Well, it's just for a little while, Annie, all right?

Come on, Samuel.

Not there. Over there.

Samuel, I want you to read the board for me, please.

"The Senate is made up of

"96 senators,

"two from each state.

"The House of..."

The House of Representatives has

435.

Now, yesterday you told me you couldn't read that.

From back there I couldn't see the words, ma'am.

And I sort of remember what you said it was.

Samuel, you wait for me after school.

I'm gonna go home with you. I wanna talk to your parents.

Yes, ma'am.

All right.

Now,

this one...

Well, I'd like two root beers and a...

She wanted... W-What did you want? Tuna... Tuna fish sandwich.

And I want a hamburger well-done with everything on it.

Except onions.

You remembered. So did you.

I guess we must've been pretty silly then, huh?

It was nice.

What'd you do today, John-boy?

Oh, it was very exciting.

I had Latin and English literature

and trigonometry, which is my nemesis.

I walked in the front door of every store in town,

and I went to every counter and every clothes rack.

I just kept thinking how nice it was,

not being walking in the back door

and down those stairs to the stockroom in the basement.

I thought you liked working.

I did at first.

What happened?

Nothing. That's the trouble.

I had this great plan. I was going to start out as a stock clerk,

and then work myself up to a salesgirl and maybe even a buyer.

That doesn't sound like a bad idea to me.

But I never got out of the stockroom.

Well, these things take time, Marcia.

No, John-Boy.

Everybody else that started when I did, almost,

is already selling and Rita Simons is even a buyer's assistant.

I figured the only way out for me is to marry my way out.

Thank you.

Marcia.

Thanks.

Marcia, I know this is none of my business, but I wanted...

You still have this pen.

Oh, yeah.

You remember when I got it?

I sure do.

Ike Godsey gave it to you for a graduation present

while you were trying to kiss me.

What do you mean, trying to kiss you? I was kissing you.

Marcia, when Frank proposed to you,

was it before or after he knew that you had property?

There's nothing wrong with helping your husband get ahead.

It's either that or winding up like old Miss Jackson.

She started in the stockroom almost 30 years ago.

And now she has the grand job of being head clerk,

which only means she has to stay

after everybody else has gone home

and finish up the work that's left.

John-Boy,

I have to face the fact that I'm not bright enough to be a buyer,

or even a salesgirl.

And I don't want to be a stock clerk the rest of my life.

And I am gonna marry Frank Taylor.

Bye-bye. Bye-bye.

Samuel.

I'd like you to wait for me a minute, please.

I'm gonna go over to Samuel's house to see his parents.

There's something I want to explain to them.

Jim-Bob.

Who's that?

Uh-oh.

Uh, Mrs. Walton.

Uh, this is Mrs. Meriwether, superintendent of schools.

How do you do, Mrs. Meriwether, Mr. Gordon.

Mrs. Walton, I've been wanting to talk to you.

I understand you're breaking away

from some of our traditional methods.

You're allowing unsupervised activities.

And I hear you're giving preferential treatment

to a student with a limited ability

at the expense of the others.

Mrs. Meriwether, that's called progress.

Now if you'll excuse me, school is out

and I have important things to do.

Come on, Samuel. I'm walking you home.

Children, I'll see you at home later.

Okay, Mama. ERIN: Okay, Mama.

Well!

What's he need glasses for? He can't read.

That's why he has difficulty reading, Mr. Miller.

He can't make out the words.

No, he just ain't bright, that's all.

He come along when the wife's getting on in years, you know.

Or maybe he's just a throwback.

He ain't no throwback.

I wouldn't send him to that school at all

if the two of them didn't keep after me so.

Mr. Miller, if you could've seen Samuel in school today...

All I want to see is him working in that field.

He's good with the corn.

Ain't nobody gonna be laughing at him out there.

Now, I got work to do.

Hello, Mama.

Bye.

Where you going?

Um, well, I'm going to the Boatwright dance.

I thought you weren't gonna go.

I changed my mind.

Who are you taking?

Marcia Woolery.

John-Boy, that girl is engaged to be married!

I know. I know. She's just my friend, Mama.

She's not my girlfriend.

Well, isn't Frank Taylor due back tonight?

Not till later.

Besides, she might meet somebody else she likes

better.

John-Boy, where are those old glasses you used to wear?

I don't know. I... I think they're in the top drawer of my desk.

You want them?

I need them.

Okay. You can take them.

Hi.

John-Boy, wait a minute.

Marcia? What's the matter, Marcia?

I'm scared.

Scared? Why, you're one of the best dancers in the state of Virginia.

But I'll have to talk, too, and they're all college kids.

Marcia, you're gonna charm the socks off of them. Now come on.

Hi. Hello.

Hey! Leave it to John Walton to fly out a movie star for his date.

Well, are you gonna introduce her around,

or you're just gonna keep her to yourself all evening?

That's hardly possible. This is Marcia Woolery.

And, well, counterclockwise, this is Peggy Hill.

Hello. Hi.

And Randolph Lee.

Hi. Hi.

And this is Gloria Davis.

Hi. Hi.

And Eubank Swanson.

Hello.

Marcia and I went to school together, high school.

She lives in Richmond now.

Richmond? Really?

Yes. EUBANK: You go to school there?

No. I've been working.

A career woman!

May I?

Would you care to dance?

♪ You do ♪ Something to me

♪ Something that simply mystifies me ♪

Here you go. Oh, thank you.

I'll bet they don't roll up the streets in Richmond at 9:00 at night.

Heavens no.

There's too many movie houses for that.

You can never have too many movie houses!

No. I'll bet you've been to every one of them.

Yes, lots of them.

I wonder if I'll ever be able to live life like you are, Marcia,

instead of eternally preparing to live.

Oh, you will, Gloria, someday.

Come on, Marcia, let's cut the rug.

Excuse us, please.

Peggy?

You know what, John-Boy? What?

I could dance all the way back to Walton's Mountain.

♪ I've got a crush on you, sweetie pie

♪ All the day and night-time hear me sigh

♪ I never had any notion

♪ That I could fall

With so much emotion... ♪

Frank! Hello, Frank.

John-Boy!

You're not even smart enough to wait until we get married

before you start playing around on me.

I wasn't... You're lucky I'm a gentleman

or you'd get the same treatment he did.

I wasn't playing around!

Oh, this is all your fault!

I-If you'd only given me your ring in the first place

we'd never had to gone through all this!

Does it hurt bad?

Not bad.

It's your own fault.

John-Boy, don't say I didn't tell you, but I did.

Well, at least the way it worked out

I got him to break the engagement.

It's why he almost broke your jaw, maybe,

but it's not why he broke the engagement.

What do you mean?

I was by the bank today.

It seems that Marcia did not know

there still was a mortgage on that house.

So the bank foreclosed.

Oh. So that's why he's not interested anymore.

That leaves Marcia without any money, without any job.

Most likely, she'd be looking around

for someone to honeymoon with.

Well, I... I did want to take her to the dance.

I mean, I... I did want her to meet other people.

I thought that'd be a good idea.

But I'm not glad that she thinks we're sparking again.

I certainly have no intention of marrying her.

Then don't. Well, I won't.

Don't.

I won't.

No!

I know these glasses won't correct Samuel's vision, Mr. Miller.

But I just brought them to show you how

glasses can change the way a person sees.

He don't need no glasses.

Won't you just try them on? Please?

Can I try them, ma'am?

Of course you can.

I'd like to try them, Mrs. Walton.

Why, it's just like that funhouse at the circus...

Samuel ain't got no use for no funhouse, Mrs. Walton.

Now you just take them specs and leave us be.

With the right kind of glasses,

it wouldn't be like a funhouse.

With the right kind of glasses, Samuel can...

How much would they cost, them new glasses?

With the doctor's examination and the glasses together,

it'd probably come to about $3 or $4.

I don't have the money.

If you re-use these frames, it'd probably come to less.

My cousin Louella has glasses,

but she didn't get them from no doctor.

She bought them at the five-and-ten. For 50 cents.

Only 50 cents, Reuben.

I don't have the time to go into town to get them.

I'd be happy to drive Samuel to town, Mr. Miller.

Samuel's gonna have to ride in the rumble seat.

He'll probably love that.

Marcia will ride up here with us.

Where are you going? Into Charlottesville.

To get Samuel Miller his glasses.

Can I come with you?

I guess it's all right. As long as you get your coat

and tell your grandma where you're going.

Okay. Hurry up.

Yes, sir!

I've never seen Samuel act like a child before. It's lovely.

You still haven't told me where we're going, John-Boy.

Well, I want to give it a couple more miles.

I don't want you to get out and walk back.

Well, I know anyway. I guessed.

Did you? Yeah.

You're taking me to pick up my ring.

Actually, Marcia, we're going in to Charlottesville

because I saw an ad in the paper

for a salesgirl at the Federal Department Store.

But they wouldn't let me be a salesgirl in Richmond.

Well, that was Richmond.

But I can't do it.

Marcia, you have to have a job.

Right, Mama? I mean...

You don't have your parents anymore,

you don't have any property to sell.

Right, Mama? I mean...

I mean, you're just... you're just liable to get desperate enough

to... to say yes to the first fella who proposes to you.

And, uh...

Marcia, I really like you too much to...

Well, to see you throw yourself away

on somebody just for the security.

You really have to support yourself

so that you'd be able to pick and choose.

Don't you think so, Mama?

I bet she gets the job.

You're getting it.

I bet she has years of experience.

She doesn't have dimples.

Here. Try one of these dark ones over here.

Zeb, come and wash your hands.

Zeb, you're gonna catch a cold.

Not these either.

Try another. Try this pair.

I don't think it's gonna work unless

I get them from the doctor, Mrs. Walton.

Samuel, you can't say that until you've tried every last one.

Now, come on. That's what I said.

Jim-Bob!

Next, please. Who's next here?

Marcia Woolery. Yes, sir.

Well, Marcia, won't you please come this way?

You know, I just love this store, Mr. Keats.

It's my favorite place to shop.

When are we going home?

As soon as Samuel finds his glasses.

Now come on, Samuel.

J-A...

Jawbreakers!

And licorice!

And jellybeans, and peppermint sticks!

It's beautiful.

It's beautiful!

Mrs. Walton, you sure are pretty.

Samuel, I think you better try on another pair of glasses.

Well, thank you, Mr. Keats. Mmm-hmm.

You got the job?

Uh-huh. He's a real nice man!

Well, well.

I'd say we better go pick up Mama and the boys

and then we'll just celebrate the working girl, all right?

Oh, well, I'll be staying in town this evening.

I'm having dinner with Mr. Keats.

How do you plan to get home?

Oh, he said he wouldn't mind driving me out.

He just loves to ride in the country.

I don't know why you're so unhappy, John-Boy.

Marcia got the job.

It has nothing to do with it.

It's not right for her to be spending the evening in Charlottesville

having dinner with a man that she doesn't even know.

You go back and forth with your opinion so much, I got a crick in my neck.

I think you're the fickle one.

Me? Fickle? I have never been fickle. I...

That's not fair, Mama. I don't like it when other people are fickle.

I mean, it's terrible. One minute they feel one way

and then... and then the next minute, you turn around

and they feel a whole other way.

♪ I'm looking over a four-leaf clover

Well, with Marcia Woolery I never know where I stand.

♪ I'm looking over a four-leaf clover

♪ That I overlooked before

♪ One leaf is sunshine, the second is rain

♪ Third is the roses... ♪

Samuel Miller continued on in Walton's Mountain School,

learning more and more every day.

My mother was very proud of him and of herself.

Marcia Woolery became a good salesclerk

and when she did marry, it was not out of desperation

but out of love.

John-Boy, you get Marcia all settled in?

Yes, Grandpa.

Is it a nice place?

Very nice. She's got a corner room, big...

And two meals a day.

Mary Ellen, how did you know that?

Her boss buys her lunch.

Mary Ellen!

Mata Hari knows all.

Does she know when her bedtime is?

Mata Hari never sleeps.

No, she's too busy snooping.

Good night, Mata Hari.

Good night, fickle-face!

Mary Ellen.

Good night, John-Boy.

Good night.