49 on TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Stars of All Time.[3]. Ricky and David Nelson, the sons of ‘50s TV stars Harriet and Ozzy Nelson, were introduced in the entertainment industry at a very young age. [93] The plane was his own Douglas DC-3, which had a history of mechanical problems. While the two pilots of the plane would survive their attempted emergency landing in a field outside De Kalb, Texas, all seven passengers on board were killed, including the first pop star to cross over from the Nielsen charts to the Billboard charts, Rick Nelson. He had support roles in the TV films Three on a Date and High School USA (1983). All seven passengers, including Blair, died. MCA wanted Nelson to have a producer on his next album. "CTVA US Anthology - "Tales of the Unexpected" (Quinn Martin/NBC)(1977)", "In The Studio: Detailing The Techniques Used To Record Rick Nelson", "In Ricky Nelson's "Garden Party," who is Mr. Hughes? They found success in their professional lives but faced several struggles in their personal lives that, eventually, ended in tragedy for one of them. [23] At age thirteen, Ricky was making over $100,000 per annum, and at sixteen he had a personal fortune of $500,000. In 1985, Nelson began a "Comeback tour" with Fats Domino. [49][51] On August 4, 1958, "Poor Little Fool" became the #1 single on Billboard's newly instituted Hot 100 singles chart[52][53] and sold over two million copies. [90] Blair's parents wanted their daughter buried next to Nelson at Forest Lawn Cemetery, but Harriet Nelson dismissed the idea. A new band was formed by Lindy Goetz, then a promotion person at MCA Records. He was the last surviving member of the Nelson TV family. [70][71] The Nelsons and the Harmons had long been friends, and a union between their children held great appeal. They married on April 20, 1963. 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). December 31, 1985. In addition to his recording career, Nelson appeared in movies. [1][2] In 1996 Nelson was ranked No. In 1952, the Nelsons tested the waters for a television series with the theatrically released film Here Come the Nelsons. [86][87], Blair acted as personal assistant to Nelson, organizing his day and acting as a liaison for his fan club,[86] but Nelson's mother, brother, business manager, and manager disapproved of her presence in his life. – The Straight Dope", "Here Are Hundreds More Artists Whose Tapes Were Destroyed in the UMG Fire", The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography, Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart Presents Earth (The Audiobook), America Again: Re-becoming The Greatness We Never Weren't, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ricky_Nelson&oldid=1002037567, Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Hollywood Hills), Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States, Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1985, Articles with incomplete citations from August 2020, Short description is different from Wikidata, Wikipedia articles with MusicBrainz identifiers, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SNAC-ID identifiers, Wikipedia articles with SUDOC identifiers, Wikipedia articles with Trove identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, — "Ricky Nelson / Duke Ellington, Maria Cole, Eydie Gorme, Jo Anne Worley, George Kirby, Robert Bob King", — "Michele Lee, George Lindsey, Rick Nelson", — "Pat Pausen, Rick Nelson, Alex Dreier, Charo, Sidney Sheldon", Along with the recordings of others, Nelson earned the 1987, A Ricky Nelson impersonator appears in the 1994. 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. Nelson died in a plane crash on December 31, 1985, flying from Guntersville, Alabama, to Dallas, Texas, for a concert. On May 8, 1961 (his 21st birthday), he officially modified his recording name from "Ricky Nelson" to "Rick Nelson". [57] In 1979, he guest-hosted on Saturday Night Live, spoofing his television sitcom image by appearing in a Twilight Zone sendup in which, always trying to go "home," he finds himself among the characters from other 1950s/early 1960s-era sitcoms, Leave It to Beaver, Father Knows Best, Make Room for Daddy, and I Love Lucy. [82] After years of legal proceedings, they were divorced in December 1982. 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. In 1973, he had an acting role in an episode of The Streets of San Francisco. But after a brief revival in the early 1970s fueled by the #6 pop hit “Garden Party” (1972), Nelson’s career as a recording artist essentially ended. In the mid-1960s, Nelson began to move towards country music, becoming a pioneer in the country-rock genre. [11], Ricky was a small and insecure child who suffered from severe asthma. [59] When he performed The Rolling Stones' "Honky Tonk Women", there was booing, said to be against police and not him. – NME – May 1960[56]. Doctors have told reporters that Nelson died of complications from colon cancer, the result of a lifetime of drinking warm Coke, but the mysterious presence of police investigators at the scene suggests a … In 1974, MCA was unsure as to what to do with the former teen idol. In October 1977, Kris filed for divorce and asked for alimony, custody of their four children, and a portion of community property. [48] Their first recording together was "Believe What You Say". [15][16] Ozzie eventually became head writer for the show and based episodes on the fraternal exploits and enmity of his sons. Nelson was born on May 8, 1940, in Teaneck, New Jersey. "Garden Party" reached No. 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.". It was the height of the Cold War and ...read more. Rick Nelson's Son, Gunnar Nelson, Mourns Uncle David Nelson's Death. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and was certified as a gold single. 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. After shows in Florida and Guntersville, Ricky and his band took off for a New Year's Eve extravaganza at the Park Suite Hotel in Dallas, Texas. Kristin’s life kept going downhill, so her brother Mark Harmon started a custody battle over Sam, Kristin’s youngest child, in 1987. His father Ozzie was of half Swedish descent. He had major success with "Travelin' Man" (#1), "A Teenager's Romance" (#2), "Poor Little Fool" (#1), "Young World" (#5), "Lonesome Town" (#7), "Never Be Anyone Else But You" (#6), "Sweeter Than You" (#9), "It's Up to You" (#6), and "Teen Age Idol" (#5), which clearly could have been about Nelson himself. All Rights Reserved. The divorce was financially devastating for Nelson, with attorneys and accountants taking over $1 million. She had certain expectations for Ricky's personal life as well as his career. The film was a hit, and Ozzie was convinced the family could make the transition from radio's airwaves to television's small screen. He and his band were scheduled to play a three-stop tour in the southern U.S. [68][69] Harriet Nelson never approved of Ricky's teenage girlfriends or of his dating during those younger years. harvnb error: no target: CITEREFWhitburn (, list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. 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. Nelson tried to score another hit but did not have any luck with songs like "Rock and Roll Lady." 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. Harriet, normally the vocalist for Ozzie's band, remained in Englewood, New Jersey, with her newborn and toddler. He was 45.) Ricky Nelson passed away on December 31, 1985 at 45 years old in a plane crash. [42], In early summer 1957, Ozzie Nelson pulled his son from Verve after disputes about royalties and signed him to a lucrative five-year deal with Imperial Records that gave him approval over song selection, sleeve artwork, and other production details. His estate was bequeathed to his children, and he did not provide for ex-wife Kris Nelson. [94] All seven passengers, including Blair, died. Nelson's first album, Ricky, was released in October 1957 and hit #1 before the end of the year. Ricky Pierce Florida [74] Kris Nelson joined the television show as a regular cast member in 1963. Like Elvis himself, Nelson saw his commercial appeal take a major hit with the arrival of the Beatles in 1964. HIS TRAGIC DEATH. Located near the borders of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana, for one winter’s night in late December of 1985, a farm pasture there would become the focal point of the entire nation as the location of one of America’s early rock-and-roll legend’s – Ricky Nelson … [12] He was described by Red Skelton's producer John Guedel as "an odd little kid," likable, shy, introspective, mysterious, and inscrutable. Rick Nelson’s DC-3 sits at the Guntersville Airport, shortly before taking off on its fatal flight 30 years ago this week. In 1958, Nelson recorded 17-year-old Sharon Sheeley's "Poor Little Fool" for his second album, Ricky Nelson, released in June 1958. Ricky Nelson passed away in a 1985 plane crash. 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. Nelson was the first teen idol to use television to promote hit records. She was the only woman he dated after his divorce. [90] They received a small settlement. In 1963, Nelson signed a 20-year contract with Decca Records. In 1958, Nelson released his first #1 single, "Poor Little Fool", and in 1959 received a Golden Globe nomination for "Most Promising Male Newcomer" after starring in Rio Bravo. ″That’s pure nonsense,″ manager Greg McDonald said when contacted at his Palm Springs home … On December 2, Arnold, Montgomery and their troops ...read more. 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. Ricky Nelson was born on May 8, 1940 in Teaneck, New Jersey, USA as Eric Hilliard Nelson. [13] When Skelton was drafted in 1944, Guedel crafted the radio sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet for Ricky's parents. 3 on the charts. [32][33][34][35] On March 26, 1957, he recorded the Fats Domino standard "I'm Walkin'" and "A Teenager's Romance" (released in late April 1957 as his first single),[36] and "You're My One and Only Love". Legacy.com is the leading provider of online obituaries for the newspaper industry. Former teen idol Rick Nelson dies in plane crash in De Kalb, Texas, on December 31, 1985. While Nelson preferred rockabilly and uptempo rock songs like "Believe What You Say" (Hot 100 #4), "I Got a Feeling" (#10), "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It" (#12), "Hello Mary Lou" (#9), "It's Late" (#9), "Stood Up" (#2), "Waitin' in School" (#18), "Be-Bop Baby" (#3), and "Just a Little Too Much" (#9), his smooth, calm voice made him a natural to sing ballads. 1 album titled Ricky. 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. His childhood nickname proved hard to shake, especially among the generation who had watched him grow up on "Ozzie and Harriet". Bassist James Kirkland, drummer Richie Frost, and pianist Gene Garf completed the band. Rickey Lee Nelson was born on May 1, 1954, in Winner, South Dakota to Lee and Delores (Sterling) Nelson. However, Nelson may have felt that the reason was because he was playing new songs instead of just his old hits. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/rick-nelson-dies-in-a-plane-crash. Prior to this, Joe Maphis had been playing the lead guitar part, and played lead on his first hits "Be-Bop Baby", "Stood Up", and "Waitin In School". © 2021 A&E Television Networks, LLC. Queen Elizabeth I of England grants a formal charter to the London merchants trading to the East Indies, hoping to break the Dutch monopoly of the spice trade in what is now Indonesia. He grew up on a dairy farm near Lucas, South Dakota. In the first few decades of its existence, the East India Company made far less progress in the ...read more, The Soviet Union’s TU-144 supersonic airliner makes its first flight, several months ahead of the Anglo-French Concorde. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com: accessed ), memorial page for Helen Blair (Sep 1957–31 Dec 1985), Find a Grave Memorial no. David Nelson proved to a very strong and supportive person to the memory and legacy of the Nelson family. [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). 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. When a single was released nonetheless, he exercised his contractual right to approve any artwork and vetoed a picture sleeve. Nelson did not provide for Blair in his will.[92]. 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. [72] Rick and Kris had much in common: quiet dispositions, Hollywood upbringings, and high-powered, domineering fathers.[73]. [38][39] About the same time, he made an unpaid public appearance, singing "Blue Moon of Kentucky" with the Four Preps at a Hamilton High School lunch-hour assembly[36] in Los Angeles and was greeted by hordes of screaming teens who had seen the television episode. Even though Rick's unexpected death hit the family hard, the Nelson household's troubles began long before his death. Ricky Nelson poses with his family while getting his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on September 17, 1975. Nelson started a "Comeback tour" with Fats Domino. [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. Legacy.com enhances online obituaries with Guest Books, funeral home information, and florist links. Goetz claimed that the men, all of whom had criminal records, were trying to rob him and ...read more, On December 31, 1775, Patriot forces under Colonel Benedict Arnold and General Richard Montgomery attempt to capture the city of Quebec under cover of darkness and snowfall. His comeback was short-lived, and Nelson's band soon resigned. [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]. In 1987, Rick Nelson was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame—an honor no other former child actor has yet achieved. Albums like Windfall failed to have an impact. At night, his sleep was eased with a vaporizer emitting tincture of evergreen. In 1957, he began a long and successful career as a popular recording artist. "[29][30], At age sixteen, he wanted to impress his girlfriend of two years, Diana Osborn(e), who was an Elvis fan and, although he had no record contract at the time, told her that he, too, was going to make a record. [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. [86] Within months of their meeting, she became his road companion, and in 1982 she moved in with him. [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]. As one of the top "teen idols" of the 1950s, his fame led to a motion picture role co-starring alongside John Wayne and Dean Martin in Howard Hawks's western feature film Rio Bravo (1959). [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. 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. Death of Ricky Nelson. [43][44] Ricky's first Imperial single, "Be-Bop Baby", generated 750,000 advance orders, sold over one million copies, and reached No. Before the age of five, Tracy had a film credit to her name. The bodies of Nelson, his fiancee and five members of his band were found in the plane’s cabin, where they had died of smoke inhalation and burns. [55], Perhaps the most embarrassing moment in my career was when six girls tried to fling themselves under my car, and shouted to me to run over them. Meanwhile, bandleader Ozzie toured with the Nelson orchestra. He placed 53 songs on the Billboard Hot 100, and its predecessors, between 1957 and 1973, including "Poor Little Fool" in 1958, which was the first number 1 song on Billboard magazine's then-newly created Hot 100 chart. Nelson died Dec. 31, 1985, when his plane caught fire and crashed near DeKalb, Texas. 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. Clemente was on his way to deliver relief supplies to Nicaragua following a devastating earthquake there a ...read more, Bernhard Goetz, the white man dubbed the “subway vigilante” after he shot four young Black men on a New York City subway train, turns himself in at a police station in Concord, New Hampshire. He recorded 19 additional Top 10 hits and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 21, 1987. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! Nelson's wealth was astutely managed by his parents, who channeled his earnings into trust funds. Two years after the tragic death of his father, legendary rock and roller Rick Nelson, Sam Nelson is cradled by mother Kristin Harmon in a photo for the September 7, 1987 issue of People magazine. 4 on Billboard's Best Sellers in Stores chart, and its flip side, "A Teenager's Romance", hit #2. Nelson's music was very well recorded with a clear, punchy sound—thanks in part to engineer Bunny Robyn and producer Jimmy Haskell.[58]. That sort of thing can be very frightening! [27], Nelson played clarinet and drums in his tweens and early teens, learned the rudimentary guitar chords, and vocally imitated his favorite Sun Records rockabilly artists in the bathroom at home or in the showers at the Los Angeles Tennis Club. [83] Years of legal wrangling followed. We track celebrity net worths so you don't have to. Roberto Clemente, future Hall of Fame baseball player, is killed along with four others when the cargo plane in which he is traveling crashes off the coast of Puerto Rico. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); FACT CHECK: We strive for accuracy and fairness. I believe he played a big support to the children of Ricky after his very early and tragic death. [28][29][30] He was strongly influenced by the music of Carl Perkins and once said he tried to emulate the sound and the tone of the guitar break in Perkins's March 1956 Top Ten hit "Blue Suede Shoes. [84][85], In 1980, Nelson met Helen Blair, a part-time model and exotic-animal trainer, in Las Vegas. Then in 1985, Ricky died along with his fiancée Helen Blair and five members of his road company in a plane crash while traveling to Texas. Nelson appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1967, but his career by that time was in limbo. [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]. Clockwise from left: Matthew Nelson, Sam Nelson, Kristin Nelson, Tracy Nelson… Nelson still played nightclubs and bars, but he soon advanced to higher-paying venues because of the success of Garden Party. [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. He put the "y" back on his name and became "Ricky" again. Sign up now to learn about This Day in History straight from your inbox. Shortly before reaching Dallas, however, the cabin of Nelson’s plane apparently filled with smoke due to a fire of undetermined origin. [49], Anyone who knocks rock 'n' roll either doesn't understand it, or is prejudiced against it, or is just plain square. [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". (AP) After the horrific crash, Nelson said it was her brother, Mark Harmon, who urged her to get help and enter rehab. 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. [26] (equivalent to $4,777,904.41 in 2020 dollar value). Ozzie Nelson even had the idea to edit footage together to create some of the first music videos. An attempted crash landing of his band's aircraft resulted in the death of Ricky Nelson on December 31, 1985. [91] The Blairs refused to bury Helen's remains and filed a $2 million wrongful death suit against Nelson's estate. However, instead of dropping him, Decca kept him on board. But what Ricky Nelson had that so many other actors who failed as pop stars didn’t was undeniable musical talent. 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. Ricky Nelson, who gained childhood fame on his parents' radio and television programs and went on to became one of rock-and-roll's earliest teen … Nelson and Sharon Kristin Harmon were married on April 20, 1963, and divorced in December 1982. 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. Many of Nelson's early records were double hits with both the A and B sides hitting the Billboard charts. And Ricky Nelson didn’t stink—not by a long shot. Collins appeared in an Ozzie and Harriet episode as Ricky's girlfriend and sang "Just Because" with him in the musical finale. Kris was pregnant,[74] and Rick later described the union as a "shotgun wedding". Initially, the “NCIS” star was granted temporary custody of Sam. Nelson and the new Stone Canyon Band began to tour for the Garden Party album. A look into Ricky Nelson's net worth, money and current earnings. This show made Tracy's name well-known in Hollywood. Kris became an alcoholic and left the children in the care of household help. Ricky’s Tragic Death On December 31, 1985, Ricky and six others were killed when his private plane crashed-landed into a grove of trees northeast of Dallas, Texas. When the teenage Ricky Nelson launched his pop career in 1957 by Nelson became an attraction at theme parks like Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. He also started appearing in minor roles on television shows. Having the full weight of the American Broadcasting Corporation behind him at the start of his career certainly guaranteed that the younger son of Ozzie and Harriet Nelson would sell a few records, but it didn’t guarantee that he wouldn’t stink. On December 31, 1985, Ricky died in a plane crash. [32][41] When the television series went on summer break in 1957, Nelson made his first road trip and played four state and county fairs in Ohio and Wisconsin with the Four Preps, who opened and closed for him. 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. That launched Ricky Nelson’s career as a teen idol, with such hits as “Hello Mary Lou,” “Travelin’ Man” and later, “Garden Party.” (Nelson died in 1985 from a plane crash. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company ran special trains to Menlo Park on the day of the demonstration in response to public enthusiasm ...read more, On December 31, 1999, the United States, in accordance with the Torrijos-Carter Treaties, officially hands over control of the Panama Canal, putting the strategic waterway into Panamanian hands for the first time. He starred in the episode "A Hand For Sonny Blue" from the 1977 series Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected (known in the United Kingdom as Twist in the Tale). [49][50] Radio airplay brought the tune notice, and Imperial suggested releasing a single, but Nelson opposed the idea, believing a single would diminish EP sales. From age eight he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. [13][14] The show debuted on Sunday, October 8, 1944, to favorable reviews. [89] Blair died with Nelson in the airplane fire. [88] He contemplated marrying her but eventually declined. His comeback was cut short when, while on the tour circuit, his plane crashed on New Year's Eve. Crowds of Panamanians celebrated the transfer of the 50-mile ...read more, The provisional government of Hungary officially declares war on Germany, bringing an end to Hungary’s cooperation—sometimes free, sometimes coerced—with the Axis power. 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. ( October 24, 1936 – January 11, 2011 ) as 's! Ozzie toured with the ricky nelson death teen idol Rick Nelson dies in plane crash in De Kalb Texas. The television show as a gold single dekalb, Texas, USA the radio and television series Adventures. The Guntersville Airport, shortly before taking off on its fatal flight 30 years ago week... 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