Remember the twins from ‘Little House on the Prairie’? Insights into their lives 40 years later

The unforgettable TV series ‘Little House on the Prairie’ is still one of my favorite shows, and I enjoy watching the reruns.

Back in the good old days, I used to watch the series every week with my family, and it taught us many valuable lessons about the Golden Rule, morals, and values that sadly aren’t as prevalent today.

There were some truly talented actors and fantastic characters in the series, and recently, I couldn’t help but think of one of them: Carrie Ingalls, the third daughter of the Ingalls family.

I’ve always regarded Carrie as such a cute, sweet, and funny character – but did you know that Carrie was portrayed by two identical twins?

I only remember watching the beginning when they all ran down the wildflower hill, and seeing ‘Lindsay Sidney Greenbush’ and for the longest time, I thought she was one person.

In fact, the twins Sidney and Lindsay Greenbush shared the role of “Carrie” from 1974 to 1982.

Today, Sidney and Rachel Lindsay have recently turned 51 years old. And when you look at them today, you can certainly say that “Carrie” has grown into two beautiful women…

Born into Acting Rachel Lindsay and Sidney Robyn Greenbush were born on May 25, 1970, in Los Angeles, California. Sidney came into the world three minutes after her sister Rachel.

The girls were born with acting in their blood – their father was an American actor commonly known as Billy “Green” Bush, and their mother was Carole Kay Bush. The girls’ father, Billy Greenbush, typically portrayed sheriffs and state troopers with the image of a good old boy.

He appeared in movies like “Five Easy Pieces” (1971) and made a guest appearance in an episode of the TV hit series “MAS*H,” where he played the character Cowboy.

Billy Bush also portrayed Vernon Presley, Elvis Presley’s father, in the 1988 TV movie “Elvis and Me.” Additionally, he appeared in shows like “Bonanza” and “Gunsmoke,” along with many other Westerns.

During their childhood, Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush spent a lot of time with their father on various filming locations. They grew up on a ranch in Malibu, but when they were 7 years old, the family moved to a condominium in Malibu to be closer to the set of “Little House on the Prairie.”

In 1973, the sisters got their first big break in the TV movie “Sunshine,” where they shared the role of Jill Hayden. It was a friend of their father’s who thought of Rachel and Sidney when a director was looking for twins for the lead role in “Sunshine.”

When Michael Landon was conducting the casting for “Little House on the Prairie,” he spoke with the director of “Sunshine,” Joseph Sargent. Joseph recommended the twins for the role of Carrie Ingalls and arranged a meeting.

Michael Landon didn’t need much time to decide, and Lindsay and Sidney were quickly signed for the role. The girls got the part immediately after the first casting call.

Early on, the production decided to have the twins share the role of Carrie Ingalls. This is a quite common solution when it comes to roles played by younger children – the Olsen twins, who became child stars in the sitcom Full House, are probably the most famous example.

The series “Little House on the Prairie,” which ran from 1974 to 1983, is based on the bestselling children’s books by Laura Ingalls Wilder and depicts the life of the Ingalls family in the American Midwest during the 19th century.

From its very first broadcast, the series was an instant success.

Rachel Lindsay and Sidney Robyn did their best to portray little Carrie, the sweet younger sister, the third child of Charles and Caroline Ingalls.

Many remember the Carrie from the opening credits and the theme song, where one of the twins is seen running and then falling in a meadow.

“Robyn actually fell because she had the wrong shoes on. But Michael Landon ended up loving it. It was a natural accident, and it became so endearing,” Rachel Lindsay said to People Weekly in 2001.

“I remember running down the hill and getting too fast. I fell, and when I got up, my mother was next to the camera trying to get me to run again. I didn’t want to do it again, and neither did Rachel, and since both takes included falls, they decided to leave it at that. Who knows, maybe that was the inspiration for America’s Funniest Home Videos,” Robyn said.

Carrie’s character seemed to slowly mature, and looking back, the sisters revealed some interesting details.

“Michael was never in the mood for pranks. I was always afraid of making a mistake,” said Rachel Lindsay.

In September 1978, the twins appeared together in the episode “The Godsister.” The sisters played together as Carrie invented an imaginary friend named Alyssa. Once again, the twins switched roles during the episode.

“My favorite episode was ‘The Godsister’ because we finally had the opportunity to prove to Michael that we were just as good and talented as everyone else on the show,” Sidney Robyn later said.

The popular series certainly opened up significant opportunities for the sisters, as they became familiar faces to almost every American.

Thanks to their role as Carrie, Rachel Lindsay and Sidney Robyn had the chance to visit the White House after writing a letter to Amy Carter, the daughter of President Jimmy Carter. Amy loved “Little House on the Prairie” and invited the sisters for a tour of the residence and to see the lighting of the Christmas tree.

By the way, the twins were not the only members of the Greenbush family who appeared in the series. Their older brother, Clay, also occasionally made appearances in “Little House on the Prairie.”

Clay later pursued an acting career and appeared in several Hollywood productions, including the 2008 film “Superhero Movie.”

In 1982, the sisters disappeared from the series as Michael Landon decided to take “Little House on the Prairie” in a different direction. Carrie’s absence was explained by the Ingalls family supposedly moving to Iowa to start a new and better life.

However, even after their breakthrough as Carrie, the twins continued to work as actresses. In 1983, Lindsay had a guest role in “Matt Houston,” a crime series. Sidney played the lead role in “Hillie and Hambone,” a comedy-drama released in 1984.

Retirement from Acting In addition, the girls appeared in several commercials and magazines. But they found it quite challenging to secure new roles in Hollywood.

“We auditioned for many of the same roles, and that cost us a lot of parts because no one wanted to choose between us and hurt the other’s feelings. We were used to that, and we knew that only one of us could get the role,” Rachel Lindsay said to Zunshine.com.

As they grew older, Lindsay and Sidney shifted their focus more towards their education. Both of them graduated from Santa Monica High School in 1988. After stepping back from acting, both Lindsay and Sidney attended college.

The twins have a deep interest in horses and started riding at a very young age (they began when they were only 3 years old). Together, they purchased a 28-acre ranch in Malibu.

Lindsay Today In 1993, Lindsay moved to New Mexico and started working at the Taos Ski Valley ski resort. There, she met a construction worker with whom she had a brief relationship.

Together, they had a daughter named Katlynn. Today, neither Lindsay nor her daughter have contact with her father.

According to the latest information, Lindsay is living in California with her husband, Daniel Sanchez. The couple first met on the set of “Little House on the Prairie” at the Big Sky Ranch in Simi Valley.

Daniel lived near the filming location and received permission from Michael Landon to visit the set. At that time, Daniel was still a young teenager, and Lindsay was a little girl. However, their paths crossed decades later, and they got married in 2004 – at the same place where they first met, at the Big Sky Ranch.

In recent years, Lindsay has worked as an equine iridologist and in property management. She has also been involved in horse training.

She mentions that she still watches old episodes of “Little House on the Prairie” when reruns are shown on television.

“Yes, I still watch them. I still see things I would like to change and scenes I’d like to do over because I know I could do them better now,” she told the fan site Zunshine.com.

Sidney Robyn Today After graduating from Santa Monica High School, Sidney Robyn attended Pierce College and obtained an education in animal sciences. In high school, she changed the spelling of her name from Robin to Robyn to make it appear more feminine.

The horse enthusiast Sidney later pursued a career in professional rodeo and became a member of the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association.

“As for my current life, I work full-time, have just started studying again to pursue my master’s degree, and I breed, train, show, and sell American Quarter Horses. I’m trying to establish a larger breeding program and hope to perform embryo transfers in the future,” she said in 2003.

Sidney was married to horse breeder and veterinarian William “Rocky” Foster for nine years. The couple worked closely together on his ranch in Visalia, California, breeding and training horses.

However, tragically, the marriage came to a cruel end. Sidney’s husband took his own life on May 5, 2009, two days after Sidney reportedly wanted to end their marriage, as it was reported.

“They were beautiful girls back then, and they still look great at 50!”

Thank you for the many memories.