Editing Ed Nelson

{{short description|American actor, AMPAs member; mayor (1928–2014)}}
{{other people|Ed Nelson|Edward Nelson (disambiguation)}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name        = Ed Nelson 
| birth_name  = Edwin Stafford Nelson
| image       = Ed Nelson.jpg
| caption     = Nelson as Dr. Michael Rossi in ''[[Peyton Place (TV series)|Peyton Place]]''
|occupation   = Actor
| birth_date  = {{birth date|mf=yes|1928|12|21}}
| birth_place = [[New Orleans]], Louisiana, United States
| death_date  = {{death date and age|2014|8|9|1928|12|21}}
| death_place = [[Greensboro, North Carolina]], U.S.
| spouse      = {{marriage |Patricia Miller "Patsy" Nelson |1951}}
| children    = 6 
| alma_mater  = [[Tulane University]]
| yearsactive = 1952&ndash;2003}}

'''Edwin Stafford Nelson''' (December 21, 1928&nbsp;– August 9, 2014)<ref name="rp">{{cite book| last1=Wilson| first1=Scott| title=Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, (2 volume set)| edition=3d| date=September 5, 2016| publisher=McFarland| isbn=978-0-7864-7992-4| page=545|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7-DgDAAAQBAJ&q=%22Edwin+Stafford+Nelson%22&pg=PA545| access-date=24 November 2017| language=en}}</ref> was an American actor, best known for his role as Dr. Michael Rossi in the television series ''[[Peyton Place (TV series)|Peyton Place]]''.

Nelson appeared in episodes of many TV programs, more than 50 movies, and hundreds of stage productions.

==Early life==
Nelson was raised in North Carolina after having been born in New Orleans, Louisiana. He was educated at [[Southwood College|Edwards Military Institute]] and [[Lejeune High School|Camp Lejeune High School]], playing football and basketball at the latter school.<ref name="hsp" />

He began acting while attending Tulane University in New Orleans. He left college after two years to study at the [[New York School of Radio and Television]] Technique. He served in the [[United States Navy|U.S. Navy]] as a [[radioman]] on the [[light cruiser]] [[USS Dayton (CL-105)|USS ''Dayton'']]. He took a position as a director at [[WDSU|WDSU-TV]] in New Orleans. By 1956, acting became his central focus, and he moved to the Los Angeles area.<ref name="nytimes">{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/13/arts/television/ed-nelson-a-star-of-peyton-place-dies-at-85.html?_r=0| title=Ed Nelson, a Star of 'Peyton Place,' Dies at 85| first=William| last=McDonald| newspaper=[[The New York Times]]| date=August 12, 2014| access-date=August 12, 2014| url-access=subscription}}</ref>

== Career ==
Early in his career Nelson acted and did stunt work for B-movie producer [[Roger Corman]]<ref name="hsp">{{cite book| last1=Freese| first1=Gene Scott|title=Hollywood Stunt Performers, 1910s–1970s: A Biographical Dictionary| edition=2d| date=April 4, 2014| publisher=McFarland| isbn=978-1-4766-1470-0|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OLpqAwAAQBAJ&q=%22Edwin+Stafford+Nelson%22&pg=RA1-PA1974| access-date=24 November 2017| language=en}}</ref> on the films ''[[Swamp Women]]'' (1956), ''[[Attack of the Crab Monsters]]'' (1957), ''[[Rock All Night]]'' (1957), ''[[Carnival Rock]]'' (1957), ''[[Night of the Blood Beast]]'' (1958), ''[[The Cry Baby Killer]]'' (1958), ''[[Teenage Caveman (1958 film)|Teenage Cave Man]]'' (1958), and ''[[A Bucket of Blood]]'' (1959). In 1958, he acted in and produced actor-director Bruno VeSota's science-fiction/horror movie ''[[The Brain Eaters]]'', with Roger Corman as the executive producer. The same year, he was cast as the lead in ''[[Devil's Partner]]'', but the movie was not released until 1962. He also appeared in the 1960 thriller ''[[Valley of the Redwoods]]'' and the 1963 comedy drama ''[[Soldier in the Rain]]'', starring [[Steve McQueen]] and [[Jackie Gleason]].

Nelson's television career featured many guest-starring roles, such as the talented, arrogant Dr. Wade Parsons in the 1962 episode "Doctor on Horseback" of the western series ''[[The Tall Man (TV series)|The Tall Man]]''.

Nelson was cast in episodes of such other westerns as ''[[Maverick (TV series)|Maverick]]'', ''[[Wagon Train]]'', ''[[Black Saddle]]'', ''[[Have Gun – Will Travel]]'', ''[[The Rebel (American TV series)|The Rebel]]'' (five times), ''[[Johnny Ringo (TV series)|Johnny Ringo]]'', ''[[Gunsmoke]]'', ''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]]'', ''[[Tombstone Territory]]'', ''[[Bat Masterson (TV series)|Bat Masterson]]'', ''[[Laramie (TV series)|Laramie]]'', ''[[Bonanza]]'', ''[[Stoney Burke (TV series)|Stoney Burke]]'', ''[[The Dakotas (TV series)|The Dakotas]]'', ''[[The Rifleman]]'' and ''Redigo''. He appeared on drama and adventure series too, such as ''[[Combat! (TV series)|Combat!]]'', ''[[The Fugitive (1963 TV series)|The Fugitive]]'', ''[[The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)|The Twilight Zone]]'', ''[[Flight (1958 TV series)|Flight]]'', ''[[The Silent Service]]'', ''[[The Untouchables (1959 TV series)|The Untouchables]]'', ''[[The Outer Limits (1963 TV series)|The Outer Limits]]'', ''[[Harbor Command]]'', ''[[Tightrope (TV series)|Tightrope]]'', ''[[Coronado 9]]'', ''[[The Eleventh Hour (1962 TV series)|The Eleventh Hour]]'', ''[[Thriller (U.S. TV series)|Thriller]]'', and ''[[Channing (TV series)|Channing]]''. He guest-starred on ''[[Mission: Impossible (1966 TV series)|Mission: Impossible]]'', [[Highway Patrol]], and military sitcom/drama ''[[Hennesey]]''.

He made two guest appearances on ''[[Perry Mason (1957 TV series)|Perry Mason]]'', both times as the defendant; in 1961, he played Ward Nichols in "The Case of the Left-Handed Liar," and in 1964, he played Dirk Blake, father of the title character, in "The Case of the Missing Button". He played rival mystery writer Tom Keller opposite James Mason as Warren Barrow on ''The Alfred Hitchcock Hour'' S1 E5 "Captive Audience" (1962).  He also portrayed an assistant district attorney on the TV series ''[[Adam-12]]'' in 1974.

==''Peyton Place'' and later roles==
In 1964, Nelson secured his most famous role, portraying Dr. Michael Rossi on the drama ''Peyton Place'', staying with the series during its entire run from 1964 to 1969. Nelson reprised his role in two TV movies: ''[[Murder in Peyton Place]]'' and ''[[Peyton Place: The Next Generation]]''.

After ''Peyton Place'', Nelson worked in many more productions of all varieties. He teamed with former ''Peyton Place'' co-star [[Percy Rodriguez]] in the television series ''[[The Silent Force (TV series)|The Silent Force]]'', which ran for 15 episodes in 1970–1971. He guest-starred with [[David Janssen]] in ''[[The Fugitive (1963 TV series)|The Fugitive]]'' in 1963, and appeared as a different character later in the series. Subsequently, Nelson had guest-starring roles on many of the popular dramas of the 1970s and 1980s, including ''[[Marcus Welby, M.D.]]'', ''[[Laramie (TV series)|Laramie]]'', ''[[Cannon (TV series)|Cannon]]'', ''[[O'Hara, U.S. Treasury]]'', ''[[Night Gallery]]'', ''[[Banacek]]'', ''[[Alias Smith and Jones]]'', ''[[Mod Squad]]'', ''[[Mission: Impossible (1966 TV series)|Mission: Impossible]]'', ''[[The Streets of San Francisco]]'', ''[[Kung Fu (1972 TV series)|Kung Fu]]'', ''[[The F.B.I. (TV series)|The F.B.I.]]'' (in 3 different roles), ''[[Adam-12]]'', ''[[Ironside (1967 TV series)|Ironside]]'', ''[[Police Woman (TV series)|Police Woman]]'', '' [[Medical Center (TV series)|Medical Center]]'' (3 roles), ''[[The Bionic Woman]]'', ''[[Gibbsville (TV series)|Gibbsville]]'', ''[[McMillan and Wife]]'', ''[[Dallas (TV series)|Dallas]]'', ''[[The Rockford Files]]'' (2 roles), ''[[Barnaby Jones]]'' (2 roles), ''[[Charlie's Angels]]'', ''[[Lou Grant (TV series)|Lou Grant]]'', ''[[Trapper John, M.D.]]'', ''[[Vega$]]'' (2 roles), ''[[CHiPs]]'', ''[[Quincy M.E.]]'', ''[[Matt Houston]]'', ''[[The Fall Guy]]'', ''[[Dynasty (1981 TV series)|Dynasty]]'', ''[[Cagney & Lacey]]'', ''[[MacGyver (1985 TV series)|MacGyver]]'', ''[[Jake and the Fatman]]'' (2 roles), and ''[[Murder, She Wrote]]'' (5 roles).

Nelson appeared in many television movies such as ''Along Came a Spider'' (1970), ''[[The Screaming Woman]]'' (1972), ''[[Runaway! (1973 film)|Runaway!]]'' (1973), ''[[Houston, We've Got a Problem]]'' (1974), ''The Missing Are Deadly'' (1975), ''[[Superdome (film)|Superdome]]'' (1978), ''[[Doctors' Private Lives]]'' (1978) and ''[[Crash (1978 film)|Crash]]'' (1978), and served as host on the morning talk show ''The Ed Nelson Show'', which he hosted for three years. During the 1980s, Nelson took on the role of patriarchal Senator Mark Denning in the daytime serial ''[[Capitol (TV series)|Capitol]]''. In late 1986, Nelson was upset to discover that the show's writers had turned his character into a traitor, and quit the show in disgust, last airing in early January 1987, two months before the show's cancellation.{{Citation needed |date=March 2022}}

He also continued appearing in theatrical films, such as ''[[Airport 1975]]'' (1974), ''[[That's the Way of the World (film)|That's the Way of the World]]'' (1975), ''[[Acapulco Gold (1976 film)|Acapulco Gold]]'' (1976), ''[[Midway (1976 film)|Midway]]'' (1976), ''[[For the Love of Benji]]'' (1977), ''[[Police Academy 3: Back in Training]]'' (1986), ''[[Brenda Starr (1989 film)|Brenda Starr]]'' (1989), ''[[The Boneyard]]'' (1991), ''[[Who Am I? (1998 film)|Who Am I?]]'' (1998) and ''[[Runaway Jury]]'' (2003).

He spent several years playing U.S. President [[Harry S. Truman]] on stage, replacing [[James Whitmore]] for the National Tour of ''Give 'Em Hell, Harry''.<ref name="nola">{{cite news| last1=Simmons| first1=David Lee| title=Ed Nelson, TV and film actor from New Orleans, dies at age 85| url=http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2014/08/ed_nelson_tv_and_film_actor_fr.html| access-date=24 November 2017| newspaper=[[The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate|The Times-Picayune]]| location=New Orleans| date=August 12, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171124032637/http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2014/08/ed_nelson_tv_and_film_actor_fr.html| archive-date=24 November 2017}}</ref>

==Personal life==
While living in Los Angeles, Nelson was an active member of the [[Screen Actors Guild]] and was elected to the union board for many years. Nelson was a long-standing member of the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]]. In the early 1970s, he ran for city council and mayor of San Dimas, California until a [[Federal Communications Commission]] ruling stated that his political opponents must be given equal time if he appeared in television programs.<ref>{{cite news| title=FCC in Another Blunder| newspaper=[[Pasadena Star-News|Pasadena Independent]]| url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2335563/ed_nelson_fcc/|date=March 8, 1972| page=15| via=[[Newspapers.com]]| access-date = May 3, 2015}}</ref>

== Later years ==
In 1999, Nelson returned to Tulane University to finish credits toward his undergraduate degree,<ref name="nola" /> which he completed the following year at age 71. He and his wife, Patsy, enjoyed semi-retirement visiting their six children and 14 grandchildren. One of his children is actor Christopher S. Nelson.

Until 2005, he had been teaching acting and screenwriting in New Orleans at two local universities. [[Hurricane Katrina]] prompted him to move his family far to the north to [[Sterlington, Louisiana]]. At the time of his death, however, he had moved to [[Greensboro, North Carolina]], where he had been in hospice care. He died at age 85.<ref name="nytimes" />

== Death ==
Nelson died on August 9, 2014, in Greensboro, North Carolina from congestive heart failure.<ref name=nytimes/> He was 85 years old.<ref name="rp" /><ref>{{cite news| last=Dagan| first=Carmel| title=Ed Nelson, 'Peyton Place' Star, Character Actor, Dies at 85| url=https://variety.com/2014/tv/obituaries-people-news/ed-nelson-peyton-place-star-character-actor-dies-at-85-1201281181/| access-date=24 November 2017| magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]| date=August 12, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171124034229/http://variety.com/2014/tv/obituaries-people-news/ed-nelson-peyton-place-star-character-actor-dies-at-85-1201281181/| archive-date=24 November 2017}}</ref>

==Selected filmography==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
*''[[The Steel Trap]]'' (1952) as Man in Ticket Line at Airport
*''[[New Orleans Uncensored]]'' (1955) as Charlie
*''[[Swamp Women]]'' (1956) as Police Sergeant
*''[[Attack of the Crab Monsters]]'' (1957) as Ensign Quinlan
*''[[Rock All Night]]'' (1957) as Pete
*''[[Invasion of the Saucer Men]]'' (1957) as Tom
*''[[Bayou (film)|Bayou]]'' (1957) as Etienne 
*''[[Hell on Devil's Island]]'' (1957) as Guard No. 2
*''[[Teenage Doll]]'' (1957) as Police Officer 'Dutch' / Blind Man
*''[[Carnival Rock]]'' (1957) as Cannon
*''[[Street of Darkness]]'' (1958) as Slavo
*''[[Teenage Caveman (1958 film)|Teenage Caveman]]'' (1958) as Blond Tribe Member
*''[[She Gods of Shark Reef]]'' (1958) as Guard
*''[[Devil's Partner]]'' (filmed in 1958, released in 1961) as Nick Richards / Pete Jensen
*''[[Night of the Blood Beast]]'' (1958) as Dave Randall
*''[[The Cry Baby Killer]]'' (1958) as Rick Connor
*''[[Hot Car Girl]]'' (1958) as Second Cop at Soda Bar
*''[[The Brain Eaters]]'' (1958) as Dr. Paul Kettering
*''[[I Mobster]]'' (1959) as Sid - Henchman
*''[[The Young Captives]]'' (1959) as Norm Britt
*''[[T-Bird Gang]]'' (1959) as Alex Hendricks 
*''[[A Bucket of Blood]]'' (1959) as Art Lacroix
*''[[Valley of the Redwoods]]'' (1960) as Dino Michaelis
*''[[Code of Silence (1960 film)|Code of Silence]]'' (1960) as Paul Lane
*''[[Elmer Gantry (film)|Elmer Gantry]]'' (1960) as Man on Phone at Sister Sharon Headquarters
*''[[Judgment at Nuremberg]]'' (1961) as Captain at Nightclub Announcing Call-up of Officers
*''[[The Alfred Hitchcock Hour]]'' (1962) (Season 1 Episode 5: "Captive Audience") as Tom Keller
*''[[The Alfred Hitchcock Hour]]'' (1963) (Season 1 Episode 21: "I'll Be Judge, I'll Be Jury") as Alex Trevor
*''[[Soldier in the Rain]]'' (1963) as MP Sergeant James Priest
*''The Man from Galveston'' (1963) as Cole Marteen
*''Along Came a Spider'' (1970) as Dr. Martin Becker
*''[[The Screaming Woman]]'' (1972) as Carl Nesbitt
*''Time to Run'' (1973) as Warren Cole
*''[[Airport 1975]]'' (1974) as Major John Alexander
*''[[That's the Way of the World (film)|That's the Way of the World]]'' (1975) as Carlton James
*''[[Acapulco Gold (1976 film)|Acapulco Gold]]'' (1976) as Ray Hollister
*''[[Midway (1976 film)|Midway]]'' (1976) as Admiral Harry Pearson
*''[[For the Love of Benji]]'' (1977) as Chandler Dietrich
*''[[Police Academy 3: Back in Training]]'' (1986) as Governor Neilson
*''[[Brenda Starr (1989 film)|Brenda Starr]]'' (1989) as President Harry S. Truman
*''[[Deadly Weapon]]'' (1989) as General Stone
*''[[The Boneyard]]'' (1991) as Jersey Callum
*''Cries of Silence'' (1996) as Dr. August Claiborne
*''[[Who Am I? (1998 film)|Who Am I?]]'' (1998) as General Sherman
*''Tony Bravo in Scenes from a Forgotten Cinema'' (2000) as Ghost of Mary's Dad
*''[[Runaway Jury]]'' (2003) as George Dressler
{{div col end}}

==Selected television==
*''[[Highway Patrol (American TV series)|Highway Patrol]]'' (1957) as Monty in "Wounded"
*''[[Have Gun - Will Travel]]'' (1959) as Will Gage in Season 2, Episode 31 "The Man Who Lost"
*''Have Gun - Will Travel'' (1959) as Ed Stacy in Season 2, Episode 35 "Homecoming"
*''Have Gun - Will Travel'' (1959) as Pierre Deverell in Season 3, Episode 9 "The Black Handkerchief"
*''Have Gun - Will Travel'' (1960) as Carl - Gambler in Season 3, Episode 32 "Ambush"
*''[[The Rifleman]]'' (1960) as Stacey Beldon in Season 3, Episode 9 "Dead Cold Cash"
*''The Rifleman'' (1960) as Ben Travis in Season 3, Episode 12 "The Illustrator"
*''The Rifleman'' (1961) as Ben Vargas in Season 4, Episode 2 "First Wages"
*''[[Gunsmoke]]'' (1961) as Perce McCall in Season 7, Episode 1 "Perce"
*''[[Perry Mason (1957 TV series)|Perry Mason]]'' (1961) as Ward Nichols
*''Have Gun - Will Travel'' (1961) as Rack in Season 4, Episode 33 "Brothers Keeper"
*''[[Bat Masterson (TV series)|Bat Masterson]]'' (1961) as Outlaw Browder
*''[[Rawhide (TV series)|Rawhide]]'' (1961) as Lieutenant Cory Clemens in S3:E26, "Incident of the Painted Lady"
*''[[Death Valley Days]]'' (1962) as Frank Girard in Episode "Fort Bowie:Urgent"
*''[[Bonanza]]'' (1962) as Garth in Episode: "The Miracle Maker" 
*''[[The Alfred Hitchcock Hour]]'' (1962) (Season 1 Episode 5: "Captive Audience") as Tom Keller
*''[[The Alfred Hitchcock Hour]]'' (1963) (Season 1 Episode 21: "I'll Be Judge - I'll Be Jury") as Alex Trevor
*''Gunsmoke'' (1964) as Tom King in Season 9, Episode 24 "Father’s Love"
*''[[Combat!]]'' (1964) as Burgess in Episode: "The Eyes of the Hunter" 
*''Perry Mason'' (1964) as Dirk Blake
*''[[The Rockford Files]]'' (1977) as Edgar 'Bud' Clement in "Trouble in Chapter 17"

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{IMDb name|0625343}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Portal bar|Biography|United States|Greater Los Angeles|California|Film|Television|Theatre|Organized Labour|Education}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Ed}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2014 deaths]]
[[Category:American male film actors]]
[[Category:American male soap opera actors]]
[[Category:American male television actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from New Orleans]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Louisiana]]
[[Category:Military personnel from New Orleans]]
[[Category:People from Greensboro, North Carolina]]
[[Category:People from Monroe, Louisiana]]
[[Category:People from San Dimas, California]]
[[Category:Tulane University alumni]]
[[Category:United States Navy sailors]]
[[Category:Western (genre) television actors]]