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Photo of Gene Nelson

Gene Nelson

Director, Actor, Writer, Producer, Additional Credits
Born March 24, 1920Died September 16, 1996 (76 years)
Gene Nelson was an American dancer, actor, screenwriter, and director. Born Leander Eugene Berg in Astoria, Oregon, he moved to Seattle when he was a year old. He was inspired to become a dancer by watching Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers when he was a child. After serving in the Army during World War II during which he also performed in the musical This Is the Army, Nelson landed his first Broadway role in Lend an Ear, for which he received the Theatre World Award. He also appeared onstage in Follies, which garnered him a Tony Award nomination, and Good News. Nelson's longtime professional dance partner during the 1950s was actress JoAnn Dean Killingsworth.

Gene Nelson co-starred with Doris Day in "Lullaby of Broadway" in 1951. He played Will Parker in the film Oklahoma!

In 1959, he appeared in Northwest Passage as a young man trying to prove his innocence in a murder case. Nelson appeared on the March 17, 1960 episode of "You Bet Your Life", hosted by Groucho Marx. He and Groucho's daughter, Melinda, performed a dance number together.

Nelson directed eight episodes of The Rifleman in the 1961-62 season, the original Star Trek, the first season of I Dream of Jeannie, Gunsmoke, The Silent Force, and The San Pedro Beach Bums. He directed the Elvis Presley films Kissin' Cousins, which screenplay he wrote, and Harum Scarum. For the Kissin' Cousins screenplay he received a WGA award nomination for best written musical. He later taught in the Theater Arts Department at San Francisco State University in the late 1980s.

He starred as Buddy in the 1971 Broadway musical Follies, for which he received a 1972 Tony Award nomination for Featured Actor In A Musical. The production featured a score by Stephen Sondheim and was co-directed by Michael Bennett and Harold Prince.

For contribution to the motion picture industry, in 1990, Nelson was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Nelson's star is located at 7005 Hollywood Boulevard.

Description above from the Wikipedia article Gene Nelson, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.​
Movies & Shows on Plex
  • I Am Not Your Negro
  • The Rifleman
  • This Is the Army
Known For
  • I Dream of Jeannie
  • Oklahoma!
  • Star Trek
  • Kissin' Cousins
  • The Mod Squad
  • Crime Wave
  • Harum Scarum
  • The Rifleman
  • Gilligan's Island
  • The Andy Griffith Show
  • Tea for Two
  • Your Cheatin' Heart
  • Starsky & Hutch
  • Fantasy Island
  • The Donna Reed Show
  • Lullaby of Broadway
  • The Invisible Man (1975)
  • F Troop
  • The Atomic Man
  • Quincy, M.E.
  • The Rookies
  • The Cool Ones
  • The West Point Story

Filmography

1979
Shirley (TV Series)
1979
Eischied (TV Series)
1979
The Bad News Bears (TV Series)
1979
Salvage 1 (TV Series)
1977
1977
1977
Fantasy Island (TV Series)
1976
Quincy, M.E. (TV Series)
1975
1975
Starsky & Hutch (TV Series)
1974
Get Christie Love (TV Series)
1973
1973
Barnaby Jones (TV Series)
1972
The Rookies (TV Series)
1971
Cannon (TV Series)
1970
Most Deadly Game (TV Series)
1970
Dan August (TV Series)
1969
1968
Blondie (1968) (TV Series)
1968
The Mod Squad (TV Series)
1968
Lancer (TV Series)
1968
Hawaii Five-O (TV Series)
1967
Ironside (TV Series)
1967
Cowboy in Africa (TV Series)
1967
1966
The Felony Squad (TV Series)
1966
The Iron Horse (TV Series)
1966
Star Trek (TV Series)
1966
1965
1965
I Dream of Jeannie (TV Series)
1965
Tammy (TV Series)
1965
Laredo (TV Series)
1965
The F.B.I. (TV Series)
1965
F Troop (TV Series)
1964
1964
Gilligan's Island (TV Series)
1964
1964
1964
Destry (TV Series)
1964
1963
Burke's Law (TV Series)
1963
1963
1963
Vacation Playhouse (TV Series)
1962
1960
1959
1958
1958

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