Kevin June 5th, 2008
Matt sent out a summer newsletter today with updates about the family and farm. For those with sort attention spans, here are a few highlights:
* You can now buy Roloff Farms merchandise directly from ShopRoloff.com.
* The major remodel to the house is now finished.
* Molly was co-valedictorian of her middle school.
* Jacob just finished 5th grade.
* The twins just turned 18.
* The TLC crew is out in full force at the farm this summer, taping what will be the 4th season of the show, set to air this fall.
You can read the full news letter below.
Continue Reading »
Kevin February 14th, 2008
In this month’s newsletter, Matt revealed and talked about the results of his DUI trial. He was found not guilty by the jury for drunk driving, but was found guilty of crossing over double yellow lines due to drowsiness and driving an unfamiliar vehicle. You can read Matt’s side of things below:
I am grateful to everybody who stood by me in the months-long ordeal leading up to my trial. The hundreds of letters and e-mails showing support gave me the strength and courage to stand up and fight for my rights to have my day in court and be vindicated.
I was found not guilty of driving under the influence of alcohol. From the beginning of this nightmare, I tried to explain to the arresting officer that I had just returned from a 4,000 mile road trip, was driving an unfamiliar vehicle, and was exhausted. I was not drinking or effected by alcohol in any way whatsoever.
I know that many of you feel I was guilty because of my prior DUI and my refusal to take a breathalyzer test. I can assure you that ever since my past transgression, which I admitted and did restitution for, I have been firm in my conviction to never drink and drive. The facts will bear me out, as did the criminal justice system. I am thankful to the many friends who offered to testify to my constant refusal to drink and drive. My doctor even offered to share with the court all the possible ways my recent health issues could have played a role in that night, but my lawyer decided to keep things simple and place the bulk of my defense on the bottom line: I was not drinking and driving.
It was a scary experience, and I am thankful that it is over. I was, however, found guilty of driving over the yellow lines; which I readily admit. I was too tired to be driving an unfamiliar vehicle on a winding, curvy road after having driven a 42-foot RV from California earlier that day.
It would have been much easier to plead guilty, pay a fine, and keep this whole embarrassing event in my life quiet and out of the public eye - but I’ve always told my children, just like my father told me: “When you are right, be willing to fight.”
Although it was an uncomfortable experience, and something I would rather have not had to go through, I felt it was important to not sweep this event under the rug. My family has shared our ups and down for over three years now, and despite the embarrassing nature of the charges, I felt we owed it to viewers to tell this story. So the cameras were there, and everybody will have the opportunity to see all the details of the case unfold when the new season of “Little People, Big World” premieres in March.
Kevin December 21st, 2007
The Roloffs recently sent out a holiday newsletter which you can sign up for here. Matt gave a rundown of all the latest projects on the farm, and what the family has been up to. He also talks about the pending DUI trial, and shares his feelings about the whole ordeal.
Rather than paraphrase the whole thing, we have included an excerpt of the newsletter below so you can read about what the family has been up to. Click the link below for the newsletter.
Continue Reading »
Kevin December 11th, 2007
The editor of Orato, Robyn Stubbs, has this cool process where she interviews people, then takes their responses and puts them in a first-person, narrative format. She recently featured Matt in this format, and the result is a very insightful and entertaining article.
One point of interest from the article worth noting is where Matt talks about how much TLC pays the Roloffs for appearing on the show:
People don’t believe this, but Discovery and TLC don’t pay a lot for these reality shows. They treat you well and take you on vacations and sometimes companies give you things to balance the compensation, but for the most part, you’re left to your own income.
So the point I take is that TLC is basically willing to pay for projects, vacations, and other things for the family as a way to create different themes and settings for the show … but they don’t necessarily pay the Roloffs a huge salary in addition to that. Still, take that with a grain of salt. When Matt says they don’t pay “a lot”, that’s a pretty vague term. What might not be a lot to Matt, might seem like a huge amount to some people. And I’d imagine Matt downplays the compensation they are paid, because like most people, he doesn’t want the world to know all the details about his finances.
You can read the full article here.
Kevin November 12th, 2007
Fox12 in Oregon reported Friday that Matt’s DUI trial has been set for December 5th. Matt was pulled over last June, and later cited after failing a sobriety test.
HILLSBORO, Ore. — A trial date has been set for television star Matt Roloff, who is accused of driving under the influence.
Roloff stars in “Little People, Big World,” a reality television show on The Learning Channel that focuses on the lives of Roloff, his wife and his son, all of whom are dwarfs.
He appeared in court Friday and a trial date was set for Dec. 5.
In June, a Washington County deputy pulled Roloff over as he was driving on West Union Road.
Deputies said Roloff failed a field sobriety test and was arrested. He was taken to the Washington County Jail and cited on charges of DUII, refusing a breath test and failing to drive within a lane.
It was the second time Roloff had been linked to a driving under the influence charge. In 2003, he had a DUII charge dismissed after completing an alcohol diversion program.
Roloff and his family live on a farm in Helvetia, Ore.
The news site also has a video of Matt in court - for those interested.
[Update - 12/17/07]
Word has it on the TLC forums that the trial has been delayed until mid January, which explains why there has been no news about the outcome of the December 5th trial.
Kevin November 12th, 2007
Have you ever missed an episode of the show, or wanted to download that one in particular you just loved - without paying for an entire season on DVD? iTunes makes it easier than ever to get your LPBW fix! You can download any episode you want, starting with the first season, for just $1.99 a show.
There are a few that aren’t available, such as the “Lost Episodes” aired during Season 3, and the specials at the end of Season 1 where the family looked back on the previous season and summarized their favorite memories. The regular season episodes are all there though. You can even watch a small preview of each show to help refresh your memory of what was shown on that episode. We have updated our episode guide with a link to the iTunes store for each show.
Also available for free, are several of “Matt’s Chats” video podcasts where he interviews other little people that have inspired him. Among the interviews are Chris Rutte of the LPO about teasing, psychiatrist and Hollywood actress Merideth Eaton, and R. Ernie Lee about the challenges little people face when they decide to become parents. You can download all of the podcasts here.
If you don’t have iTunes installed, you can download it here. Once you have it installed, clicking on any of the iTunes links will automatically open the iTunes store for that item. Happy downloading 
Kevin October 30th, 2007
It’s not every day that you see Matt with his shirt off, but check him out! He looks great for a guy in his late 40’s. And why not? It only makes sense that when you use your upper body as much as him, you’re bound to be in pretty good shape.
This pic came from Matt’s site, and I can only assume it is from another trip they went on - not Hawaii, but somewhere else tropical because there are other pics of the family and you can tell it’s not the Hawaii trip. Chances are we’ll see it on the show later this season … at least we can hope.
Kevin October 15th, 2007
I stumbled across this video today made by a couple fans that shows Matt, Zach, and Molly on their visit to Paducah, KY back in August ‘07. Watch as Matt tells the audience that Molly’s favorite show is “Hannah Banana” (mistaken for Hannah Montana), and also reveals that his all-time favorite episode is the camping trip where Zach knocks himself on his keaster shooting the shotgun.
Kevin October 14th, 2007
Last Friday (October 12th), Matt & Amy were guests on the Rachael Ray Show. They discussed topics from how doing the show has actually helped them be better parents, to Matt’s DUI. From Rachael’s website:
Matt and Amy Roloff, stars of the reality show Little People Big World, tell Rachael that sometimes it’s an advantage having cameras around 24-7. “We just previewed an episode the other day,” Matt says, “where [son] Jeremy is on the phone with his girlfriend all the time. I’m thinking, as soon as I get home from this trip I’m going to talk to him about how often he’s on the phone with his girlfriend, because we don’t see it.” Amy agrees. “Mom usually knows a lot, but I’m realizing I don’t know everything!”
Rach wants to know if the show will deal with Matt’s DUI case. “We put everything else out there so we don’t want to hide anything,” he says. “It makes what the show is all about. I think there are still pieces of it that are all being put together, but it’s been a great experience being able to do a show where we can show the good, the bad, the ugly — our successes and our failures.”
It should be interesting to see what Matt has to say about the DUI when they cover it on the show - and you know they will. Like Matt said, the show is about the good, the bad, and the ugly … not to mention a topic like that is bound to bring in the viewers and raise the show ratings.
Kevin September 15th, 2007
Sometimes good people make bad decisions. That’s the angle I’m gonna take with this story recently reported by Access Hollywood and MSNBC.
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Oregon - Matthew Roloff, the well-known farming father on TLC’s “Little People Big World,” was arrested last month on allegations of DUI.
Roloff was driving a white, 2005 Chevrolet van on West Union Road in Washington County, when officers spotted the vehicle, which appeared unable to stay within its own lane. Sheriffs pulled over the vehicle and identified the driver as the 45-year-old Roloff.
Authorities report Roloff allegedly failed the field sobriety test. He was taken to the Washington County jail where he was cited for a DUI. Sherriff’s Department officials confirm Roloff refused to take a breath test.
After being cited, Roloff was later released.
As far as I know, (aside from pleading innocent) Matt has yet to comment about this publicly. If you want to read more about fan reactions, there is an ongoing discussion over on Matt’s official site about it.
