Just a few years after AC/DC had a hit singing about the “Highway to Hell,” Michael Landon was headed the other direction: after wrapping his run on Little House on the Prairie, the actor-turned-producer created the NBC drama Highway to Heaven. He also took the leading role, playing Jonathan Smith, an angel on probation, who enlists the help of an ex-cop, played by Landon’s former Little House costar Victor French, to help mortals in need. Landon didn’t just create the show as part of his next professional act; it was deeply personal, inspired by a tragic car accident that nearly took his daughter’s life.
Highway to Heaven, which debuted on September 19, 1984, wasn’t a show that NBC was particularly jazzed about — as you’ll see below. But the network put it on the schedule anyway. And by the time it was done, Landon had been on the network for 30 years between his time on Bonanza, Little House, and Highway to Heaven. Here’s how his final TV series came together…