Ben was inspired to write his poem, "The Winter Mountain", from one of his older brother John Boy's poems and secretly submitted it to a poetry contest sponsored by Liberty Magazine, a real-life popular weekly published from 1924-1950. It is noted in this episode that Ben sold subscriptions for the magazine, which at the time probably went for 5 cents an issue. Ben's excitement that his poem won a prize was overshadowed by his worry that John Boy would be angry when he found out that Ben had "stolen" the idea for the poem from him. There was no indication in the episode's credits as to who actually wrote the verse. Ben's poem is as follows:
Our mountain in winter is something to see. At times it is just like a person to me,
Grand and white, all covered with snow, it changes each day as the heavy winds blow. And when I'm alone and I go for a walk, it's almost as if that old mountain can talk. It seems to say, "Welcome my winter friend, I was here in the beginning, I'll be here in the end."
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content