Michael Landon's Third Marriage Began As An Affair — His Second Marriage Ending Was 'Painful'

Mar 18, 2022 by apost team

Michael Landon was an American actor, writer, director, and producer. He is best known for his television roles, primarily Little Joe on "Bonanza" and Charles Ingalls on "Little House On The Prairie." The actor was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1995 and has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He has appeared on the cover of TV Guide 22 times — a feat only accomplished previously by Lucille Ball. 

Landon has been recognized for his writing abilities as well as for his acting. His script for the "Bonanza" episode "Forever" was considered one of the most memorable television specials of all time by TV Guide in 2002. The script featured an emotional recalling of the beloved character Hoss, portrayed by Dan Blocker prior to his passing. Landon began directing the show in 1968.

The star used much of what he learned from writing and directing on "Bonanza" when he worked on "Little House On The Prairie." Landon was also incredibly loyal to the people he worked with, including producer Kent McCray, director William F. Claxton and composer David Rose who all worked with Landon on "Bonanza," "Little House On The Prairie" and "Highway to Heaven."

Outside of his career, Landon was a family man who was married three times and had nine children. His first marriage was to Dodie Levy-Fraser, his second to Marjorie Lynn Noe, and his third wife was Cindy Clerico. Despite the tumultuous nature of some of the relationships, most ended amicably. His last marriage ended with his death in 1991 from pancreatic cancer. Read on to learn more about Landon's life, his passing, and his three wives. 

Landon was born Eugene Maurice Orowitz on October 31, 1936, in a neighborhood of Queens, New York, called Forest Hills. He was born to Peggy O'Neil, a dancer and comedian, and Eli Maurice Orowitz. When he was 4, Landon's family moved to Collingswood, New Jersey, near Philadelphia. 

Landon attended Collingswood High School and was an excellent javelin thrower. His 193 feet and 4-inch toss in 1954 was the longest throw by a high schooler that year in the entire United States. Being a javelin thrower earned Landon a scholarship to the University of Southern California. However, he tore his shoulder ligaments his freshman year and decided to leave school entirely. 

In an interview with People in 1985, Landon said, "I always wanted to get away from my family. (His mother was a) childish person (who) was always attempting suicide. She would stick her head in the oven but she always had knee pads on the floor, or one window open. (In a family like that) you get to thinking, 'Gee, if it's Tuesday it must be suicide.'"

According to an interview with the Philadelphia Daily News from 1991, Landon's mother tried to drown herself when he was a child, and he was the one to save her. After the incident, she pretended as if nothing happened, but Landon was traumatized by the event and described it as the worst day of his life.

The star had a difficult time growing up but made sure not to repeat the same mistakes his family made. Landon said to People magazine, "I never wanted to have a family even close to what (my parents had), and I never have." 

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After dropping out of college and still living in Los Angeles, Landon decided to pursue a career in show business. He took a job as a gas station attendant at a service station across from Warner Bros. studios and was eventually noticed by an agent. This was when he decided to change his name by selecting "Michael Landon" from a phone book.

Landon went on to be featured in a number of films, including the 1957 flick "I Was a Teenage Werewolf," "High School Confidential" in 1958, and "The Legend of Tom Dooley" in 1959. He also appeared in many television series throughout the late 50s before landing the role of Little Joe Cartwright on "Bonanza." Landon was 22 when the series began airing, and it ran from 1959 till 1973. While working on the series, Landon had the opportunity to write and direct some of the episodes. 

The star took the valuable lessons he learned from acting, writing, and directing on "Bonanza" with him, then he went to work on "Little House On The Prairie." IMDB quotes Landon as having said, "I came home and found my 12-year-old daughter devouring the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Then I discovered that my wife had devoured them too when she was a girl, and was reading them again. So I went to NBC and told them 'Little House' was it."

While the series was developed by NBC executive Ed Friendly, Landon did have a lot of creative control over the show. He is also quoted saying, "We're trying to stick close to the true story. The problem is the books were short and over four years--I think we can run four years--we'll need more than 100 stories. So, we have to invent some."

Landon is well remembered for playing the role of Charles Ingalls, although there were many differences between him and the character. "Ingalls had a beard in real life, but I don't. The problem is that I can't grow a beard--it just looks like stubble. I wasn't going to play the part for six months with a beard glued to my face so I decided to play him clean-shaven," Landon said, according to IMDB. 

From 1984 to 1989, Landon starred in the television series "Highway to Heaven," which was about an angel trying to earn his wings by helping people on Earth. While starring in the series, Landon also worked as executive producer, writer, and director –– continuing his track record as a triple threat. The series was the only show throughout Landon's career that he owned outright.

Illness and Passing

Landon's nickname while on the series "Bonanza" was "Socks" because his coworkers said even his feet smelled of cigarette smoke. In 1991, Landon was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and he died later that same year. He was only 54. 

The news of his illness was a surprise for Landon. "Well, the news shocked the hell out of me. Nothing was further from my mind, since I'm only 54 and, with rare exceptions, I'd been healthy my whole life. Not that I don't deserve to have cancer. I'm a good athlete and I work out hard--before this happened I could bench press 300, 350 pounds, no sweat --but I've abused my body over the years," the star said, according to IMDB. 

Landon continued, "I don't want people to think that everybody is a likely candidate for cancer of this type. I think I have it because for most of my life, though I was never a drunk, I drank too much. I also smoked too many cigarettes and ate a lot of wrong things. And if you do that, even if you think you're too strong to get anything, somehow you're going to pay."

Despite being told the cancer was inoperable, Landon turned to natural remedies to find relief from the cramping and other pain he was experiencing. He spoke with the Associated Press after his diagnosis and said, ″I'm not the kind of person who gives up without a fight. If I'm gonna die, death's gonna have to do a lot of fighting to get me. I want to see my kids grow up."

In the face of uncertainty, Landon was incredibly brave. He added, "So I don't see why I should fear death – and I don't. I don't want to die, and I'm going to fight like hell not to, but I'm not afraid to die.″

First Marriage to Dodie Levy-Fraser

Landon and Levy-Fraser were married in 1956, which was at the time he was beginning his acting career. Levy-Fraser was a legal secretary by profession, according to Celeb Suburb, but there is not much known about her career accomplishments. 

Landon adopted Levy-Fraser's son Mark from her previous marriage, and the couple adopted another son together named Josh Fraser Landon in 1960. The pair began having marital problems soon after this and considered adopting another baby to try and fix things, but they eventually saw that was not a good idea. They were divorced in 1962, and it is believed that Landon had begun seeing his second wife, Lynn Noe, that same year. 

Tragically, Mark Fraser Landon was found dead in 2009 in his home in West Hollywood, California. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department announced that there was no evidence of foul play, and he had died of natural causes at age 60.

Second Marriage to Marjorie Lynn Noe

Noe is an American actress who is best known for her time on the television series "The Mike Douglas Show." She was born on June 6, 1933, in Louisville, Kentucky. Upon meeting Landon, Noe already had a daughter from a previous relationship named Cheryl, who was nine at the time. 

Noe and Landon initially met on the set of "Bonanza" when she appeared as an uncredited saloon girl. They were married in 1963, the year after the birth of their first child together, Leslie Ann. Landon chose to adopt Cheryl when the couple got married. The pair then went on to have three more children, Michael Jr., Shawna Leigh, and Christopher Beau.

Unfortunately, the relationship did not last, and the couple divorced in 1982. There were rumors that Landon had cheated on Noe with Cindy Clerico, who would become his third wife. Landon addressed those rumors in an interview with People in 1985, as he said:  

"You don't dissolve a relationship to go to bed with someone 20 years younger. You have to have major differences and a deep-rooted need to stop a relationship after as many years as I was married. I would have done anything to make that relationship continue, but I could not. It's not just difficult for the wife. It is painful for the husband too. But it is far better than letting it stay the way it was."

Noe agrees with Landon, at least in part. She told the publication, "I was too busy being the kind of wife he wanted me to be. I lost myself little by little. I made Michael my god." 

The pair ended things on mostly amicable terms. Noe described their conversations post-divorce, saying, "We speak without talking. Our conversation consists of, 'When will you pick up the children?'"

Despite the rumors that she was the other woman, Noe does not harbor any ill will toward Clerico. Noe told People, "If it hadn't been Cindy, it would have been somebody. He had reached that point in his life."

Following her divorce from Landon, Noe founded a support group for women named "Life After Divorce Is Eventually Sane," or LADIES. 

Third Marriage to Cindy Clerico

Clerico is a producer who first met Landon when she was working as a makeup artist on the set of "Little House On The Prairie." She was born on January 27, 1957, in Los Angeles, California. Her most recent project was producing a documentary in 2018 titled "The Game Changers." 

Clerico and Landon were married on Valentine's Day the same year their daughter Jennifer was born, in 1983. Jennifer would grow up to follow in her mother and father's footsteps by pursuing a career in Hollywood. She is best known for her role on the CBS soap opera, "As The World Turns," and for joining the cast of "Yellowstone" in 2020.

In 1986, Clerico and Landon had another child, this time a son named Sean. Tragically, Jennifer and Sean were still young children when their father passed away in 1991. 

In February 2020, Clerico shared a photo of Landon with their children on her Instagram account. The caption read: "Wow, I took this photo many years ago.. I found it going through my storage .. It ended up in a coffee table book."

One person commented, "The most precious treasure! Photos truly are the gift that keeps giving! I grew up loving him in 'Bonanza' and 'Little House On The Prairie' but what I loved more as I got older is his love of family."

Were you a fan of any of Landon's television shows? What do you think of his three marriages? Let us know your opinion, and be sure to pass this along to your loved ones.