RICK NELSON: THE FIRST TEEN IDOL
August 8th 2008 22:38
Rick Nelson
Eric Hilliard "Ricky" Nelson, was born in May 1940, he was the youngest son of Ozzie and Harriet Nelson and along with his brother the family had the hit TV show The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet from 1944 to 1954 on the radio, and 1952 to 1966 on television.
From 1957 to 1962 Ricky had thirty Top 40 hits more than any other artist except Elvis and Pat Boone. Ricky was an artist whose A and B sides both would chart and when the Hot 100 was introduced Ricky’s song “Poor little fool” was the first song to hit the #1 position.
Some of Ricky’s most famous songs included "Hello Mary Lou", "It's Late", "Stood Up" and "Be-Bop Baby" He had major success with "Travelin' Man", "Poor Little Fool", "Young World", "Lonesome Town" and "Teenage Idol", which became his alter ego and stuck like glue, Ricky was America’s and the world’s original Teen Idol.
Rick had success in the UK with a Top 100 hit “For You” and then crossed over to country performing with the likes of Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne and the Eagles.
In April 1963 Rick married Kristin Harmon and had daughter Tracy in 1963, twin boys Gunnar and Matthew in 1967 and son Sam in 1974. Tracy has gone on to be a successful television actress and Gunnar and Matthew pursued a short lived music career with the release of an album in 1990 under the name Nelson while Sam works as a music producer.
By this time Rick’s career had slowed and he began using drugs until he became addicted to cocaine.
On New Years Eve 1985, Rick and his band were flying to a gig in Texas when the plane crashed killing all passengers but the pilots escaped.
Nelson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and also to the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was nominated for a Golden Globe award.
Rumors say freebasing cocaine use on the plane caused the crash but an investigation shows a fire was the with a defective cabin heater the source.
In 45 years of life Rick Nelson took the music world by storm, took the movie world by storm and took the women of the world by storm, and all the time he remained a wonderful, thoughtful guy, who touched everyone he met.
If you go to Hollywood and ask after Rick Nelson the praise and admiration that his peers have for him 23 years after his death are as strong as ever. To find out more about Rick go to his official website www.ricknelson.com.
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