BONANZA

Possibly she was not a shallow person and did not judge a person by his outward appearance 
Perhaps she did not find him ugly or dweeby. 

Perhaps the script called for "Laura Ingalls" to like the character he was playing.


He played the role of Lucius in the film adaptation of the William Faulkner coming-of-age novel. The Reivers (1969)
The film won both Mitch and star Steve McQueen Golden Globe nominations.

Following this success, Mitch became a popular face on TV and in 1970 joined the by-now classic western series Bonanza (1959), enjoying a two-year stint on the show playing the character of Jamie Hunter (later Cartwright), an orphan taken in by the Cartwright men and later adopted. In casting Mitch as Jamie, producers felt that the western needed a face lift as Michael Landon, at age 34, was a bit long in the tooth to be receiving fatherly guidance by patriarch Ben. The series ended in 1972. Mitch forged a friendship with Landon during that time and went on to appear in a few of Landon's Little House on the Prairie (1974) episodes.



Disney also took an interest in the fair, wholesome-looking lad with the vital homespun appeal. Mitch appeared impressively for them in lead roles with Menace on the Mountain (1970) and The Boy from Dead Man's Bayou (1971) [aka Bayou Boy]. He continued to be seen outdoors as well with episodes of Here Come the Brides,  Gunsmoke  and others.

He must have been acting well  enough if you followed his career and know how many  episodes of a program he was in.