Comments on: The last of the Nelsons is gone.

The last of the Nelsons is gone.

crunchland — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:23:43 -0800

The last surviving member of the classic radio and TV series "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" has died. David Nelson, the older son of Ozzie and Harriet Nelson has died. He was 74.

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet started as a situation comedy radio program in the 40's when Red Skelton was drafted. Ozzie Nelson was known as an orchestra leader until then. The show moved to television in 1952. It was cancelled in 1965. "The family were constantly entangled in the amusing situations Ozzie had caused. Once he had set his mind to something, nothing could dissuade him until disaster had run its inevitable course." (RUSC Old Time Radio) His younger brother, Ricky, died in a plane crash in 1985. Along with the radio and television show, you might remember a song he put out, Garden Party, in 1972. (previously) TV: The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Tutti-Frutti Ice Cream (1, 2, 3) (1957) Radio: The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - Ozzie Enters an Essay Contest (more shows, Old Time Radio Archive)

By: crunchland

crunchland — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:28:39 -0800

That television show is so quaint, it might as well have aired a thousand years ago, and not just 54.

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:33:11 -0800

By: Sidhedevil

Sidhedevil — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:37:26 -0800

By: Capt. Renault

Capt. Renault — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:38:19 -0800

No offence, but Garden Party is probably Ricky Nelson's least significant hit. Not to derail already... Godspeed, Mr. Nelson.

By: Tullyogallaghan

Tullyogallaghan — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:40:01 -0800

I always thought that the Nelson's and the Anderson's ("Father Knows Best") were typical American families and that mine fell far, far short of theirs. Sort of ruined my childhood as I was so jealous of them that I became contemptuous of my own immigrant family. The tv parents and kids were so proper and they lived in pretty houses in quiet suburban neighborhoods and they were so nice to each other quite unlike our wild bunch of hard fightin, hard drinkin' Irishers. The grass is always greener.

By: crunchland

crunchland — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:40:23 -0800

You're probably right, Capt., but I was taking into account the younger audience here on Metafilter.

By: clavdivs

clavdivs — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:43:48 -0800

By: brundlefly

brundlefly — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:44:57 -0800

By: brundlefly

brundlefly — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:45:36 -0800

Whoa. I didn't know there was a spin-off.

By: Sys Rq

Sys Rq — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:53:22 -0800

Whoa. I didn't know there was a spin-off. Indeed. (Sorry.) .

By: tustinrick

tustinrick — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:53:57 -0800

R. I.P. to the last member of a time when we were YOUNG and INNOCENT too.

By: jonp72

jonp72 — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:58:09 -0800

Given these odes to lost innocence, it's ironic that, after 9/11, David Nelson was placed on the no-fly list. .

By: wreckingball

wreckingball — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:14:22 -0800

Yes, yes, very sad—but seriously: when they started in about the tutti-frutti ice cream, I felt like I was watching Greg Nog's baked potato people.

By: Mchelly

Mchelly — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:23:53 -0800

Also the uncle of Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, also known as NELSON .

By: hippybear

hippybear — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:34:12 -0800

An ex-boyfriend of mine was named Ricky. Not Richard... RICKY. You know, after the Nelson child. .

By: blucevalo

blucevalo — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:48:19 -0800

I was fortunate to grow up in a time when the sitcom families were just as bad as mine if not worse -- not paragons on a pedestal -- even though even then the likes of "Ozzie and Harriet" and "Leave It to Beaver" were being trumpeted as what America had really been like, once upon a time, in the gauzy, airbrushed Eisenhower years. Thank God for Norman Lear. Although I kind of had guilty crushes on David Nelson and Wally Cleaver. Anyway, David Nelson had a refreshingly blasé and lackadisaical attitude about all of the fame and the glory of the series. And he did a lot of work behind the camera, too. RIP.

By: Eideteker

Eideteker — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:55:17 -0800

"Indeed. (Sorry.)" "Also the uncle of Matthew and Gunnar Nelson, also known as NELSON" Apparently, no one reads the comments up here. I mean, I know I'm subtle, but geez.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 17:07:34 -0800

No offence, but Garden Party is probably Ricky Nelson's least significant hit. Eh. "Hello Mary Lou" was his most important and best, but "Garden Party" is pretty fucking good, too. RIP, David.

By: jgaiser

jgaiser — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 17:17:05 -0800

By: Ideefixe

Ideefixe — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 17:21:32 -0800

I had the great fortune to interview him for some mindless "Where Are They Now?" show and he could not have been more gracious or professional. After the camera was off, he told funny semi-ribald stories about his family.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 17:47:41 -0800

The show was purposefully retro in 1954; Ozzie Nelson and Harriet Hilliard (as she was known before her marriage) were 1930s singing and movie stars known for their squeaky-clean stage and screen image, and the idea of starring them in a sit-com centered around their being throwbacks to "the good old days." yeah the big danger in trying to gauge how the actual Mid Century was by it's cultural products is not realizing a lot of TV (and radio) was self-consciously Old Fashioned and homey, complete with insane production code requirements (twin beds) that everyone laughed at at the time. TV was still a new thing, and they wanted to pull in the larger older crowd with old stars and favorite and stuff that would read as nostalgic to them but not us. That being said, no one blinks that the top sit-com at the time was a childless multi-ethnic couple living the big city. Also, .

By: crunchland

crunchland — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:01:37 -0800

I think you're forgetting Little Ricky.

By: The Whelk

The Whelk — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:05:32 -0800

Not at the start!

By: Sys Rq

Sys Rq — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:05:45 -0800

I think you're forgetting Little Ricky. D'you mean the "blessed event"?

By: crunchland

crunchland — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:10:04 -0800

no one blinks that the top sit-com at the time was a childless multi-ethnic couple living the big city. --- Well, I guess you have a point. That, and that show with the drag queen.

By: HuronBob

HuronBob — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:31:31 -0800

I grew up in the 50's, in a family which consisted of my mom, my two sisters, and me (my dad died when I was 6 months old). Not knowing what was like to have either a father or a brother, Ozzie and Harriet, David and Ricky were the imaginary family I didn't have.. .

By: Mchelly

Mchelly — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:41:13 -0800

"I mean, I know I'm subtle, but geez." Sorry. I wasn't expecting so much awesome in such an understated package.

By: HotPatatta

HotPatatta — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:42:46 -0800

When I was a kid in the early 80s, my grandma often dragged me to go shopping at South Coast Plaza. I loved going with her because we didn't so much shop as watch wealthy people buy designer duds while we nibbled on chocolates and talked about the rich ladies' flowy fabrics, flawless makeup, and huge hair. On one of these outings, grandma jumped up from our bench and yelled, "Harriet! Oh, Harriet!" Harriet and David Nelson were shopping together and both of them graciously hugged grandma and listened to her yack about what a big fan she was. Harriet asked her questions about our family and made her feel like she was a dear old friend. David kissed my grandma's hand as they parted and he couldn't have been more charming. Grandma was positively giddy afterward and told that story for years. She would have gotten a kick out of knowing that they'd all be buried in the same cemetery someday.

By: carsonb

carsonb — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 18:59:39 -0800

I saw the wreath over his Walk of Fame star today, and wondered... .

By: nickyskye

nickyskye — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 20:49:18 -0800

Aww, I liked him. .

By: cass

cass — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:51:52 -0800