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Ricky Nelson: Ozzie Nelson
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Born in Teaneck, New Jersey, Ricky Nelson was the youngest son of Ozzie Nelson, the leader of a big band, and Harriet Hilliard Nelson, the band's singer. Along with brother David Nelson, the family starred in the long-running radio and television series The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet from 1944 to 1966; until 1949, the sons were played on radio by professional actors.
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After "Garden Party", Ricky Nelson never regained his career's momentum. By the late 1970s, his life was in shambles and he was heavily in debt. After a highly tumultuous marriage (the antithesis of what the public had seen on Ozzie and Harriet and in Love and Kisses), Kristin filed for divorce and took their four children. He wasn't making records and when he played live at all, it was in very small insignificant venues. Nelson began using drugs, especially marijuana and eventually cocaine.
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Ricky Nelson came from a family of talented entertainers and actors. His father, Ozzie Nelson, was a popular band leader in the 1930’s and his mother, Harriet Hillard, was a movie actress and later the lead singer of Ozzie’s band before they were married. Ricky Nelson was born Eric Hilliard Nelson on May 8, 1940 in Teaneck, New Jersey.
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Born, Eric Hilliard Nelson, on May 8th 1940, in Teaneck, New Jersey, 'Ricky', as he was called, grew up in a show biz family. His father was a bandleader, and his mother a singer and actress who had been famous since the early Thirties. In 1949, Rick and his older brother David began playing themselves on their parents' popular radio comedy series, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, which went to TV three years later. From his first appearance, the impish, wisecracking Rick became the most popular character. His trademark line, "I don't mess around boy," became a national catchphrase with prepubescent viewers. Not surprisingly, when Ricky began singing on the show in 1957, he had a massive audience.
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From All Movie Guide: The famous offspring of actors Ozzie Nelson and Harriet Hilliard Nelson, Rick Nelson (born Eric Hilliard Nelson) began performing on his parents' radio show when he was only four. When Ozzie and Harriet moved to television in 1952, Rick went with them and while on the show, grew up to become a teen idol, loved not only as an actor but ... as a rock & roll singer who racked up hits with such singles as "Hello Mary Lou," "Travelin' Man," and "Garden Party" (his biggest and last big hit). Nelson made his feature-film debut in A Story of Three Loves. He earned critical acclaim as a cocky young gunfighter in Rio Bravo (1959) starring opposite John Wayne and Dean Martin. He continued appearing in films, in concert, and on television through the early '80s. Nelson, the father of actress Tracy Nelson and twin pop stars Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, died in a plane crash along with his fiancée and his band on New Year's Eve 1985.
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His parents, Oswald George "Ozzie" Nelson and Harriet Hilliard were popular entertainers during the 1930s. Ozzie fronted a dance band and had a Number One hit in 1935 with "And Then Some." Harriet was a movie actress and became Ozzie's lead singer three years before she became his wife in 1935. Their marriage produced two sons, David born in Chicago on October 24, 1936 and Eric Hilliard (Ricky) born in Teaneck, New Jersey, on May 8, 1940. By the 1940s the big band era was changing. The best jazz virtuosos, were performing more frequently in concert settings as opposed to dance halls. Never a great instrumentalist, Ozzie continued to pursue a living in the old vaudeville fashion. Week after week he did one-nighters on the road while Harriet and the children remained at home in Tenafly, New Jersey.
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Ozzie Nelson