'Little House on the Prairie' star Melissa Gilbert says being 'raggedy and dirty' landed her iconic role

Melissa Gilbert ditched the Hollywood glam to prima successful "Little House connected the Prairie."

The actress, who starred arsenic Laura Ingalls, precocious appeared connected the "Hey Dude… The 90s Called!" podcast and opened up astir what it was similar auditioning for her relation successful the film, which paved the mode for the series. 

"Little House connected the Prairie" aired from 1974 to 1983.

"I would alteration into my audition uniform, which was conscionable overalls and a flannel garment and tennis shoes," the 61-year-old recalled, according to People magazine.

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Melissa Gilbert arsenic Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder successful "Little House connected the Prairie." (Ted Shepherd/NBCU Photo Bank)

"And immoderate ungraded was connected my look astatine the clip oregon nutrient oregon whatever, it was conscionable near there. My ma would propulsion my hairsbreadth into pigtails, and past I’d conscionable spell successful and beryllium connected the level and bash my homework until they called maine in.

"That’s what happened with the ‘Little House audition,’" Gilbert told the outlet. "The archetypal audition, it was similar a country afloat of girls with their ma primping and making tube curls connected their fingers, you know, and straightening their pinafores. And I came successful each raggedy and soiled and messy.

"It worked."

The prima described however the audition process was competitive, but ditching the Hollywood glam proved to beryllium key. Gilbert aboriginal recovered retired she got the relation from Michael Landon’s daughter, Leslie.

Melissa Gilbert arsenic Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder and Alison Arngrim arsenic Nellie Oleson during a scene. (NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)

"I was astatine schoolhouse 1 day, and I was successful the luncheon area. And this miss successful an precocious people walked implicit to me, and she said, ‘Are you Melissa?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I am.’ And she said, ‘I’m Leslie Landon. And my dada says you’re gonna beryllium Half Pint.’"

According to the outlet, Leslie heard the quality astatine a household meal the erstwhile night. It was determination wherever the patriarch declared, "We recovered our Laura."

"There were nary cellphones, obviously, backmost then," said Gilbert. "So, I tally screaming to the bureau and archer them I person to telephone my ma immediately. My agents didn’t cognize yet. My ma didn’t cognize yet. Leslie got successful truthful overmuch trouble. We’ve been truly adjacent friends ever since that day. … That was conscionable the opening of a relationship that was filled with a batch of misadventures too, for, now, 50 years oregon more."

WATCH: ‘LITTLE HOUSE’ STAR MICHAEL LANDON WAS STUBBORN ABOUT HIS HEALTH: DAUGHTER

It was a fortunate interruption for Gilbert, who was antecedently rejected for a relation successful a remake of "A Miracle connected 34th Street," a portion she truly wanted.

"I was truly sad, and I retrieve my dad. … I was sitting successful the garage," she said. "My dada utilized to physique furnishings erstwhile helium wasn’t connected the roadworthy erstwhile helium wasn’t working. So, I was successful his instrumentality shop, and helium said to me, ‘Listen, conscionable due to the fact that you didn’t get this, it’s OK. It conscionable means thing amended is gonna travel along.’

"I retrieve crying and saying, ‘There’s thing better! What’s better?’ And 2 weeks later, ‘Little House connected the Prairie.’"

The formed of the tv bid "Little House connected the Prairie" connected the acceptable of the amusement during the 1970s. Clockwise from left: Melissa Gilbert; Michael Landon (1936-1991); Karen Grassle, who holds an unidentified baby; Melissa Sue Anderson; and Lindsay oregon Sidney Greenbush.  (Fotos International/Getty Images)

In 2024, Gilbert told Fox News Digital she had to permission Los Angeles to property gracefully.

"I looked astatine myself successful the reflector respective years back," Gilbert recalled. "I was surviving successful Los Angeles, and I did not admit who I was. I had overfilled my look and my lips. My forehead didn’t move. I was inactive dyeing my hairsbreadth red. I was driving a Mustang convertible. I was a size 2 successful an unhealthy way. I looked similar a frozen mentation of my younger self, and that’s not who I was.

"I was stuck," Gilbert admitted. "I could consciousness myself warring it. And I said to myself, ‘It’s clip to age.’ I had to permission Los Angeles to bash that — not Hollywood — Los Angeles specifically."

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Melissa Gilbert said she was capable to property gracefully aft leaving Los Angeles. (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Gilbert said she and her husband, histrion Timothy Busfield, moved to his location authorities of Michigan aft their wedding successful 2013.

They lived determination for 5 years. She felt escaped to yet age.

"I halt coloring my hair," she explained. "I had [my] bosom implants removed. I decided to conscionable beryllium the best, healthiest mentation of myself without this unit to look a definite way, and it paid disconnected successful a immense way. 

Melissa Gilbert successful 2012 (Cindy Ord/Getty Images)

"I yet recovered my feet arsenic a woman, fully, 100% beardown successful my ain knowledge, successful my ain accomplishments. Everything got easier. And a bonus? I person a batch much escaped clip not staring successful a mirror, sitting successful a dermatologist's seat oregon sitting successful a hairsbreadth chair."

In 2019, Gilbert and Busfield bought a rustic cottage on 14 acres successful the Catskill Mountains. Life contiguous is "incredibly fulfilling," she said.

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Melissa Gilbert and hubby Timothy Busfield be the 62nd Monte Carlo TV Festival June 20, 2023, successful Monte Carlo, Monaco.  (Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

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"It’s remarkable," Gilbert gushed. "I emotion being this age. There are things astir it that are not a batch of fun. I don’t similar it erstwhile my ankles ache successful the greeting oregon my skin’s drier. Aging is not for sissies, but it is surely amended than the alternative. And I’ve ne'er felt amended successful my skin."