Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth Interview with Dean Butler, Actor (“Almanzo Wilder” from “Little House on the Prairie”) Producer, Director, Author.
Dean Butler is a beloved actor, producer and director who has been immortalized for his unforgettable portrayal of “Almanzo Wilder”, the innocent and pure-hearted young man who won “Laura’s” heart and married her, on one of the most cherished and treasured television series ever made, “Little House on the Prairie”, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its debut in 1974.
Dean Butler also appeared in the 3 “Little House” movies, “Look Back to Yesterday”, “The Last Farewell”, and “Bless All the Dear Children”. He also wrote, produced and directed the 2008 video, “Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura”. And he produced and directed the 2015 video, “Little House on the Prairie: The Legacy of Laura Ingalls Wilder”.
In 2012 he co-produced the hugely popular PBS Music Special, “Pa’s Fiddle: The Music of America”. And yes, he and his co-star Melissa Gilbert have the singular distinction of having won the 2006 TV Land Award for the Most Memorable Onscreen Kiss, which warmed everyone’s hearts, and still resonates in all of our memories. But our guest has had a highly successful career that has gone well beyond his work on “Little House”.
He co-starred in the TV movie “Forever”, and the ground-breaking 1985 LGBTQ feature film, “Desert Hearts”. And he’s also remembered for his portrayal of “Moondoggie”, Gidget’s husband, in the TV movie “Gidget’s Summer Reunion”, which generated the TV series “The New Gidget”. And he had a recurring role as Buffy’s father “Hank Summers” in the hit TV show, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”.
Our guest has also had a distinguished stage career, having appeared on Broadway in “Into the Woods”, which ran for 11 months, and he starred in “West Side Story” in a highly acclaimed tour of Japan.
And if all of that weren’t enough, he’s had a highly successful career as the producer of the immensely popular interview program, “FAIR-ER-TY”, which ran for 10 seasons on the NBC Golf Channel.
And now Dean Butler is releasing his brand new memoir entitled “Prairie Man: My Little House Life and Beyond”. This is an illuminating, intimate and poignant book in which Dean shares his personal journey of family, relationships, a diverse career, and the remarkable experience of being part of a legendary show which is so deeply entrenched in American pop culture.
Harvey Brownstone is a retired judge of the Ontario Court of Justice and was the first openly gay judge in Canada. He is also the bestselling author of “Tug of War: A Judge’s Verdict on Separation, Custody Battles and the Bitter Realities of Family Court” and hosted “Family Matters with Justice Harvey Brownstone,” a television talk show on matters involving the family justice system.
After a distinguished legal career, Harvey was appointed a judge at the age of 38 in 1995. He has presided in family and criminal courts. He has been a trailblazer in several ways. He was the first openly gay judge in Canada. He was the first sitting judge in the world to write a national best seller and to host a TV talk show.
Harvey has been a role model and icon in the LGBTQ community. When same-sex marriage was legalized in Canada in 2003, he was the only judge to make himself publicly available to officiate at weddings for lesbian and gay couples travelling to Toronto from all over the world to get married. In 2007, he officiated at the wedding of Edith Windsor and Thea Spyer, the American couple whose marriage triggered the 2013 United States Supreme Court decision overturning the definition of “spouse” in the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
In February 2021, Harvey launched his online talk show “Harvey Brownstone Interviews” on his own YouTube channel. He saw this as an interesting hobby. Within several months, the show attracted hundreds of thousands – and then eventually, millions – of viewers. Because of the overwhelming success of the show, Harvey decided to retire from the judiciary on December 31, 2021 after having presided as a full-time judge for 26 1/2 years. Free from the constraints imposed upon judges regarding the expression of opinions and the endorsement of private enterprise, Harvey now happily devotes his full-time attention to hosting “Harvey Brownstone Interviews” as a regular member of the public – albeit one with a rather illustrious and unique career history.
Watch Dean Butler on Harvey Brownstone Interviews on Youtube here:
The official website for Harvey Brownstone Interviews may be found at https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com
Get “The Talk Show Blend” – Coffee For The Modern Day Trailblazer! By Harvey Brownstone from Breakfast At Dominique’s available at https://www.HollywoodBlends.com
For more information about Harvey Brownstone, here’s his Wikipedia page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Brownstone