At 74, Richard Thomas is finally opening up about Ellen Corby, the actress who played Grandma Walton on the iconic series that made him a star. Born Richard Earl Thomas on June 13, 1951, in New York City, he grew up surrounded by the arts. Both of his parents, Barbara Fall and Richard S. Thomas, were dancers with the New York City Ballet.
That creative household taught him discipline and a deep respect for performance from an early age. As a child, he appeared on Broadway and in television shows like The Defenders and The Edge of Night. His early work built the calm focus that would define his career. His breakthrough came in 1972 when he was cast as John Boy Walton on CBS’s The Waltons.
The role made him one of America’s most beloved TV figures, and in 1973 he won an Emmy for Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series, becoming one of the youngest actors ever to receive that honor. Richard left the show in 1977 by choice, turning away from superstardom to pursue a broader range of roles. He later appeared in films like Battle Beyond the Stars and Wonder Boys, and in Stephen King’s It in 1990, he introduced himself to a new generation of viewers. His television work spanned hits including Roots, The Americans, White Collar, NCIS, and Ozark.
Theater remained his creative anchor. He performed extensively on and off Broadway in plays such as Fifth of July, Democracy, Race, and You Can’t Take It With You. For Thomas, live theater never felt secondary to screen work; he called it his true home as an actor. His personal life followed a less public but equally demanding arc.
He married his first wife, Alma Gonzalez, in 1975. Their first son was born in 1976, and triplets arrived in 1981. The couple divorced in 1993 after nearly two decades together. A year later, he married Georgiana Bishoff, an art dealer in Santa Fe.
She brought children of her own into the marriage, and in 1996 they had a son together. Thomas later formally adopted Bishoff’s two daughters, a decision he saw as a commitment rooted in love rather than biology. The couple now lives in New York, where Thomas stays close to the theater world he has always loved. When he looks back on The Waltons, Thomas says the show’s lasting power came from the people who made it.
No one affected him more deeply, he explains, than Ellen Corby, who played Esther Walton, the strong and reserved grandmother. Their early days on set were formative for Thomas, still a teenager carrying the lead role of a major network show. Corby had been acting for decades, and the gap in experience shaped their bond. “She wasn’t noisy or trying to show off, but you always knew when she was around,” Thomas once recalled.
Corby suffered a stroke in 1976 that affected her speech and movement. The production adjusted her character, but she was determined to continue acting. Watching her push forward left a lasting impression on him. “The biggest thing I remember is how hard she fought,” he said.
“For her, acting wasn’t work. It was her whole self. ”
He describes her as a quiet teacher on set, someone who could elevate a scene with a single look. Even when words were difficult for her after the stroke, her acting instincts remained sharp.
People sometimes misread Corby’s private nature as coldness. Thomas offers a different view. “Some folks thought she was strict or cold,” he said. “But I think that was just her protection.
Deep down, she cared so much. ” Her care, he noted, was expressed through professionalism and presence rather than overt displays of affection. Decades later, Thomas speaks about Corby with deep gratitude. “Ellen is in TV history,” he said.
“But to me, she’s in my own story. I grew up with her right there, helping guide us in ways we didn’t even get back then. ”
Now 74 and still working, Thomas sees his reflections on Corby not as distant memories but as a tribute to a woman whose quiet strength helped shape both a beloved show and the young actor at its center.
