She received the name "Michael", because her father had firmly counted on a male successor. When his child turned out to be a girl, he decided to give her male name anyway. Michael Learned kept on acting as well as many of her former „Walton“ co-stars. Besides many other TV parts, had a recurring role in on “Scrubs“ and lastly appeared in the blockbuster “After Life“ in 2014. Since 1988, Learned is happily married to her third husband, the lawyer John Doherty.