Does anyone know why Betty didn't appear in "Shoot for the Moon," the finale of Season 3? Was Eleanor Donohue not available? I don't recall that any explanation was given in the episode as to why Betty was not present.

I know that Eleanor Donahue was pregnant in the latter half of season 3 and was absent for several episodes.

I don't think they explained where she was in the show. This was actually a very good episode despite her absence.

That would explain it. They should have said something in the script about why she was not there - maybe she was on a trip with her debating team or something. I agree the episode was a great one, probably one of the deepest episodes of the series. Sageman the wood chopper was like some sort of prophet from another realm. I liked how he got the Andersons to accomplish various things by believing in the power inside of themselves.

Interesting. I'm a big fan and I never noticed her absence in several season 3 episodes.

It's weird, but I didn't notice her absence either the first time I saw the episode. It was only on my second viewing that I noticed.

That would explain it. They should have said something in the script about why she was not there - maybe she was on a trip with her debating team or something. I agree the episode was a great one, probably one of the deepest episodes of the series. Sageman the wood chopper was like some sort of prophet from another realm. I liked how he got the Andersons to accomplish various things by believing in the power inside of themselves.

In another episode where she was absent, a debating trip was the excuse (I'm reading old posts).

After finding out about this I'm paying careful attention to these late season 3 episodes. There are a few where she wears a coat for quite awhile after coming inside, or sometimes a sweater. They were making an attempt to kind of hide her pregnancy--sometimes they succeeded, sometimes not.

I noticed the coat on my second time through the show.