Ozzie

Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc, 1973. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Good. viii, [2], 309, [1] pages. Illustrations. Signed by Ozzie on fep. Many copies signed by Harriet after Ozzie's death. DJ in plastic sleeve has some wear and edge tear. Oswald George Nelson (March 20, 1906 - June 3, 1975) was an American band leader, actor, director, and producer. He originated and starred in The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, a radio and television series with his wife Harriet and two sons David and Ricky Nelson. Nelson started his entertainment career as a band leader. Nelson made his own "big break" in 1930, when The New York Daily Mirror ran a poll of its readers to determine their favorite band. Since he knew that news vendors got credit from the newspaper for unsold copies by returning the front page and discarding the rest of the issue, he cannily had his band's members gather hundreds of discarded newspapers and fill out ballots in their own favor. They edged out Paul Whiteman and were pronounced the winners. From 1930 through the 1940s, Nelson's band recorded prolifically. Nelson's records were consistently popular, and in 1934, Nelson enjoyed success with his hit song, "Over Somebody Else's Shoulder." In October 1935 he married the band's vocalist Harriet Hilliard. Nelson developed and produced his own radio series, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. The show originally aired in 1944, with their sons played by actors until 1949. In 1952 it moved to television, where David and Ricky appeared on-camera. The radio version continued for another two years, and the last television episode aired in 1966. His last television show, in1973, was Ozzie's Girls. Oswald Nelson began his spectacular career as a musician at age 14 when he and a friend were paid $5 to play for the local Woman's Club dance in his native Ridgefield Park, N.J. Before Ozzie knew it, his "band" was in such demand that people were willing to pay them an incredible $10 per night. Ozzie divided his free time at Rutgers University between football and music. Music won out and within five years of graduation, he was the leader of one of the big bands of the 1930s and an established radio personality. During this period, he met Harriet Hilliard, who became his partner and, of course, his wife. Together, they won millions of radio fans when they joined Red Skelton on the highly popular Raleigh Cigarette Hour. In 1944, "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" was first broadcast. It went on to run for 22 years, first on radio and then television. Ozzie's career did not end there--he returned to the stage, and this fall [1973] will be back on television with a new series, Ozzie's Girls. More than Ozzie's success story or family album this is a nostalgic evocation of one of the most glamorous eras of show business. Enriched by a wealth of amusing anecdotes, it presents a genuinely nice man who writes with warmth and unaffected charm. Readers will like the man and enjoy his entertaining story.