Michael Landon
Michael Landon was already a major TV star when he created Highway to Heaven and played Jonathan Smith.
Landon first became famous as Little Joe Cartwright on Bonanza, then as Charles Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie. With Highway to Heaven, he had even more creative control. Besides playing the role of Jonathan, Landon was also the executive producer and often wrote and directed episodes.
After Highway to Heaven ended in 1989, Landon kept working for a short time. In April 1991, Landon revealed that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He passed away at his home in Malibu, California, on July 1, 1991. He was 54 and left behind his wife, Cindy, and nine children.
Landon’s life ended just two years after Highway to Heaven, but the show became a key part of his TV legacy. More than thirty years later, that legacy lives on. Cindy Landon and her late husband’s production company are working on a reboot of the Highway to Heaven series for Fox.
