Ricky Nelson

Nelson was born on May 8, 1940, in Teaneck, New Jersey.[4][5][6] He was the second son of entertainment couple Harriet Hilliard Nelson (born Peggy Lou Snyder; July 18, 1909 – October 2, 1994) and Ozzie Nelson (March 20, 1906 – June 3, 1975). His father Ozzie was of half Swedish descent. The Nelsons' older son was actor David Nelson (October 24, 1936 – January 11, 2011).

Harriet, normally the vocalist for Ozzie's band, remained in Englewood, New Jersey, with her newborn and toddler. Meanwhile, bandleader Ozzie toured with the Nelson orchestra.[7] The Nelsons bought a two-story colonial house in Tenafly, New Jersey,[7][8][9] and six months after the purchase, moved with son David to Hollywood, where Ozzie and Harriet were slated to appear in the 1941–42 season of Red Skelton's The Raleigh Cigarette Hour; Ricky remained in Tenafly in the care of his paternal grandmother.[10] In November 1941, the Nelsons bought what would become their permanent home: a green and white, two-story, Cape Cod colonial home at 1822 Camino Palmero in Los Angeles.[11][8] Ricky joined his parents and brother in Los Angeles in 1942.[11]

Ricky was a small and insecure child who suffered from severe asthma. At night, his sleep was eased with a vaporizer emitting tincture of evergreen.[12] He was described by Red Skelton's producer John Guedel as "an odd little kid," likable, shy, introspective, mysterious, and inscrutable.[13] When Skelton was drafted in 1944, Guedel crafted the radio sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet for Ricky's parents.[13][14] The show debuted on Sunday, October 8, 1944, to favorable reviews.[15][16] Ozzie eventually became head writer for the show and based episodes on the fraternal exploits and enmity of his sons.[17] The Nelson boys were first played in the radio series by professional child actors until twelve-year-old Dave and eight-year-old Ricky joined the show on February 20, 1949, in the episode "Invitation to Dinner."[18][19]

The Nelson family, 1952

In 1952, the Nelsons tested the waters for a television series with the theatrically released film Here Come the Nelsons. The film was a hit, and Ozzie was convinced the family could make the transition from radio's airwaves to television's small screen. On October 3, 1952, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet made its television debut and was broadcast in first run until September 3, 1966, to become one of the longest-running sitcoms in television history.

Nelson attended Gardner Street Public School,[20] Bancroft Junior High,[21] and, between 1954 and 1958, Hollywood High School, from which he graduated with a B average.[22][23] He played football at Hollywood High[22][23] and represented the school in interscholastic tennis matches.[24] Twenty-five years later, Nelson told the Los Angeles Weekly he hated school because it "smelled of pencils" and he was forced to rise early in the morning to attend.[22]

Ozzie Nelson was a Rutgers alumnus and keen on college education,[25] but eighteen-year-old Ricky was already in the 93 percent income-tax bracket and saw no reason to attend.[23] At age thirteen, Ricky was making over $100,000 per annum, and at sixteen he had a personal fortune of $500,000.[26] (equivalent to $4,777,904.41 in 2020 dollar value).

Nelson's wealth was astutely managed by his parents, who channeled his earnings into trust funds. Although his parents permitted him a $50 allowance at the age of eighteen, Rick was often strapped for cash and one evening collected and redeemed empty pop bottles to gain entrance to a movie theater for himself and a date.[27]

Nelson in Rio Bravo, 1959

In addition to his recording career, Nelson appeared in movies. He made his film debut in Here Come the Nelsons (1952) and had a small role in The Story of Three Loves (1953) at MGM directed by Vincente Minnelli playing Farley Granger as a boy.

Following his success on TV and with singing, Howard Hawks cast him as a gunslinger in Rio Bravo (1959) with John Wayne and Dean Martin; Hawks attributed much of the film's box office success to Nelson.

Nelson co-starred with Jack Lemmon in The Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960), which was popular enough to give rise to a TV series (in which Nelson did not appear). He guest starred on General Electric Theatre ("The Wish Book") and starred in a romantic comedy feature written and directed by his father, Love and Kisses (1965) with Jack Kelly.

Nelson guest starred on Hondo (playing Jesse James), and had a support role in The Over-the-Hill Gang (1969) with Walter Brennan and Pat O'Brien.

Nelson was in Fol-de-Rol (1972), guest starred on McCloud, The Streets of San Francisco, Owen Marshall, Counselor at Law, Petrocelli, A Twist in the Tale, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, and The Love Boat. On The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries he played the part of "Tony Eagle" and performed various well-known Nelson songs throughout the episode.

He had support roles in the TV films Three on a Date and High School USA (1983).

On May 8, 1961 (his 21st birthday), he officially modified his recording name from "Ricky Nelson" to "Rick Nelson". His childhood nickname proved hard to shake, especially among the generation who had watched him grow up on "Ozzie and Harriet". Even in the 1980s, when Nelson realized his dream of meeting Carl Perkins, Perkins noted that he and "Ricky" were the last of the "rockabilly breed."

In 1963, Nelson signed a 20-year contract with Decca Records. After some early successes with the label, most notably 1964's "For You" (#6), Nelson's chart career came to a dramatic halt in the wake of Beatlemania, The British Invasion, and later the Counterculture era. However, instead of dropping him, Decca kept him on board.

In the mid-1960s, Nelson began to move towards country music, becoming a pioneer in the country-rock genre. He was one of the early influences of the so-called "California Sound" (which would include singers like Jackson Browne and Linda Ronstadt and bands such as Eagles). Yet Nelson himself did not reach the Top 40 again until 1970, when he recorded Bob Dylan's "She Belongs to Me" with the Stone Canyon Band, featuring Randy Meisner, who in 1971 became a founding member of the Eagles, and former Buckaroo steel guitarist Tom Brumley.

Nelson performing on The Jim Nabors Show in 1970

In 1972, Nelson reached the Top 40 one last time with "Garden Party", a song he wrote in disgust after a Richard Nader Oldies Concert at Madison Square Garden where the audience booed, perhaps against some unrelated police action. However, Nelson may have felt that the reason was because he was playing new songs instead of just his old hits.[59] When he performed The Rolling Stones' "Honky Tonk Women", there was booing, said to be against police and not him.[59] He was watching the rest of the performance on a TV monitor backstage until Richard Nader finally convinced Nelson to return to the stage and play his "oldies". He returned to the stage and played his "oldies" and the audience responded with applause, according to Deborah Nader, President of Richard Nader Entertainment. He wanted to record an album featuring original material, but the single was released before the album because Nelson had not completed the entire Garden Party album yet. "Garden Party" reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and was certified as a gold single. The second single released from the album was "Palace Guard" which peaked at #65.

In 1973, MCA Records, whose parent company MCA Inc. had owned American Decca since 1962, ceased the label's operations, and transferred Nelson (and many other Decca artists) to its roster. His comeback was short-lived, and Nelson's band soon resigned. MCA wanted Nelson to have a producer on his next album. A new band was formed by Lindy Goetz, then a promotion person at MCA Records.[60] Nelson's band moved to Aspen and changed their name to "Canyon". Nelson and the new Stone Canyon Band began to tour for the Garden Party album. Nelson still played nightclubs and bars, but he soon advanced to higher-paying venues because of the success of Garden Party.

In 1974, MCA was unsure as to what to do with the former teen idol. Albums like Windfall failed to have an impact. Nelson became an attraction at theme parks like Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. He also started appearing in minor roles on television shows.

Nelson tried to score another hit but did not have any luck with songs like "Rock and Roll Lady." With seven years to go on his contract, MCA dropped him from the label.

In 1957, when Nelson was 17, he met and fell in love with Marianne Gaba, who played the role of Ricky's girlfriend in three episodes of Ozzie and Harriet.[61][62] Nelson and Gaba were too young to entertain a serious relationship, although according to Gaba "we used to neck for hours."[63][64]

The next year, Nelson fell in love with 15-year-old Lorrie Collins, a country singer appearing on a weekly telecast called Town Hall Party.[65][66] The two wrote Nelson's first composition, the song "My Gal," and she introduced him to Johnny Cash and Tex Ritter. Collins appeared in an Ozzie and Harriet episode as Ricky's girlfriend and sang "Just Because" with him in the musical finale.[67] They went steady and discussed marriage, but their parents discouraged the idea.[68][69] Harriet Nelson never approved of Ricky's teenage girlfriends or of his dating during those younger years. She had certain expectations for Ricky's personal life as well as his career.

Kris Harmon

Rick and Kris Nelson, 1964

At Christmas 1961, Nelson began dating Kristin Harmon (June 25, 1945 – April 26, 2018), the daughter of football player Tom Harmon and actress Elyse Knox (née Elsie Kornbrath) and the older sister of Kelly and Mark Harmon.[70][71] The Nelsons and the Harmons had long been friends, and a union between their children held great appeal.[72] Rick and Kris had much in common: quiet dispositions, Hollywood upbringings, and high-powered, domineering fathers.[73]

They married on April 20, 1963. Kris was pregnant,[74] and Rick later described the union as a "shotgun wedding".[75] Nelson, a nonpracticing Protestant, received instruction in Catholicism at the insistence of the bride's parents[75][76] and signed a pledge to have any children of the union raised in the Catholic faith.[74] Kris Nelson joined the television show as a regular cast member in 1963.[77][78] They had four children: actress Tracy Kristine Nelson, twin sons Gunnar Eric Nelson and Matthew Gray Nelson who formed the band Nelson, and Sam Hilliard Nelson.

By 1975, following the birth of their last child, the marriage had deteriorated and a very public, controversial divorce involving both families was covered in the press for several years. In October 1977, Kris filed for divorce and asked for alimony, custody of their four children, and a portion of community property. The couple temporarily resolved their differences, but Kris retained her attorney to pursue a permanent break.[79][80] Kris wanted Rick to give up music, spend more time at home, and focus on acting, but the family enjoyed a recklessly expensive lifestyle, and Kris's extravagant spending left Rick no choice but to tour relentlessly.[81] The impasse over Rick's career created unpleasantness at home. Kris became an alcoholic and left the children in the care of household help.[82] After years of legal proceedings, they were divorced in December 1982. The divorce was financially devastating for Nelson, with attorneys and accountants taking over $1 million.[83] Years of legal wrangling followed.[84][85]

Nelson died in a plane crash on December 31, 1985, flying from Guntersville, Alabama, to Dallas, Texas, for a concert.[93] The plane he was on, a Douglas DC-3, had a history of mechanical problems.[94] All seven passengers, including Blair, died. Only the two pilots survived.[95]

Nelson's funeral took place at the Church of the Hills, Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills Cemetery, on January 6, 1986, and he was privately buried in the Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. His estate was bequeathed to his children, and he did not provide for ex-wife Kris Nelson.

Nelson plays at a concert in Lawton, Oklahoma

• Nelson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and to the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1515 Vine Street.
• Along with the recordings of others, Nelson earned the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for Interviews from the Class of '55 Recording Sessions.
• In 1994, a Golden Palm Star on the Palm Springs, California, Walk of Stars was dedicated to him.[96]
• A Ricky Nelson impersonator appears in the 1994 Quentin Tarantino movie Pulp Fiction performing "Waitin' in School" at the 1950s themed restaurant Jack Rabbit Slim's.
• In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Nelson #91 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[97]
• At the 20th anniversary of Nelson's death, PBS televised Ricky Nelson Sings, a documentary featuring interviews with his children, as well as James Burton and Kris Kristofferson. On December 27, 2005, EMI Music released an album entitled Ricky Nelson's Greatest Hits which peaked at #56 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
• Bob Dylan wrote about Nelson's influence on his music in his 2004 memoir, Chronicles, Vol. 1.
• Nelson's estate (The Rick Nelson Company, LLC) owns ancillary rights to the Ozzie and Harriet television series and, in 2007, Shout! Factory released official editions of the show on DVD. Also in 2007, Nelson was inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.
• The John Frusciante song "Ricky" was inspired by Ricky Nelson.
• Hall of Fame baseball player Rickey Henderson was named Rickey Nelson Henley after Ricky Nelson.[98]
• For the 25th anniversary of Nelson's death, Rock and Roll Hall-of-Famer James Burton, Nelson's original guitarist for nearly ten years, spoke about his friendship and experiences with the singer in an extensive series of interviews for Examiner.com. The first installment is entitled "Remembering Rick Nelson: An Interview With His Friend, Guitarist James Burton."
• Nelson was inducted into the Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame in 2013.
• On June 25, 2019, The New York Times Magazine listed Ricky Nelson (twice, the second time listing the Stone Canyon Band) among hundreds of artists whose material was reportedly destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.[99]

• Bashe, Philip (1992). Teenage Idol, Travelin' Man: The Complete Biography of Rick Nelson. New York: Hyperion Books. ISBN 1-56282-969-6.
• Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
• Bronson, Fred (2003). Billboard's Hottest Hot 100 Hits. New York: Watson-Guptill Publications. ISBN 0-8230-7738-1.
• Dennis, Jeffrey P. (2006). Queering Teen Culture: All-American Boys and Same-Sex Desire in Film and Television. Binghamton, NY: Haworth Press, Inc. ISBN 1-56023-349-4.
• Holdship, Bill (2005). Ricky Nelson Greatest Hits. Hollywood, CA: Capitol Records.
• Pohlen, Jerome (2006). Oddball Texas: A Guide to Some Really Strange Places. Chicago Review Press. ISBN 1-55652-583-4.
• Selvin, Joel (1990). Ricky Nelson: Idol for a Generation. Contemporary Books. ISBN 0-8092-4187-0.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ricky Nelson.

• Rick/Ricky Nelson's Official Website
• Ricky Nelson at IMDb
• Ricky Nelson at AllMusic
• Ricky Nelson at Find a Grave
• Rockabilly Hall
• Ricky Nelson interviewed on The Pop Chronicles (recorded November 17, 1967)