The Ricky Nelson Story (1999)

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(46 ratings)

The life and career of Ricky Nelson--from awkward kiddie TV star to teenaged singing idol to "young hasbeen"--is adequately encapsulated in this made-for-cable movie, one of several celebrity biopics produced for VH-1. Told in flashback as Ricky Nelson (Gregory Calpakis) recounts his experiences to… More The life and career of Ricky Nelson--from awkward kiddie TV star to teenaged singing idol to "young hasbeen"--is adequately encapsulated in this made-for-cable movie, one of several celebrity biopics produced for VH-1. Told in flashback as Ricky Nelson (Gregory Calpakis) recounts his experiences to a worshiping fan in the last hours before the 1985 air crash that would take his life, the story begins around 1952, as the adolescent Ricky is recruited by his bandleader-producer father Ozzie Nelson (Jamey Sheridan) to play "himself" on the movie and TV version of the popular radio series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. Anxious to crawl out from under the shadow of his dictatorial father Ozzie, his vocalist mom Harriet (Sara Botsford) and his marginally more talented older brother David (Anthony Lemke), the 16-year-old Ricky begs for a chance to sing on the family's series. The wildly enthusiastic audience response to Ricky's warblings prompt Ozzie to aggressive promote Ricky's musical career, but ultimately Ricky breaks loose from the family's influence to strike out on his own. Alas, after several years at the top, Ricky's career and fan following plummets, before he has reached his 30th birthday he is grasping at straws by performing at county fairs and trade shows. Making matters worse is his unhappy marriage to Kris Harmon (depicted as something of a conniving opportunist by Anne Openshaw) and his ever-increasing dependence upon drugs. Astonishingly, the film never allows us to hear Ricky perform "Garden Party", the song that enabled him to make a spectacular comeback. Ricky Nelson: Original Teen Idol first aired on August 22, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 33 min.
Directed By: Sturla Gunnarsson
Genres: Musical & Performing Arts, Drama

In Theaters: Aug 22, 1999 Wide
On DVD: Jul 8, 2008

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Cast

            Damir Andrei as Prof. Randolph

            Sara Botsford as Harriet Nelson

            David Eisner as Dan Cohen

            Barry Flatman as Charles Koppelman

            Michael Rhoades as Victor Vouhdum

            Jamey Sheridan as Ozzie Nelson

            Booth Savage as Lew Chudd

            Nicky Guadagni as Donna Fontana

            Bruce McFee as Brad Rank

            Melodie Johnson as Lorrie Collins

            Jessica Lynn Cohen as Euphemia Wells

            Kelly Harms as Randy Meisner

            Anne Openshaw as Kris

            Larissa Laskin as Helen Blair

            Balazs Koos as John Boylan

            David Keeley as Bobby Neal

            Paulino Nunes as Toreador

            Katie Griffin as June Blair

            Gregory Calpakis as Ricky Nelson

            Vince Corazza as Freddie

            Anthony Lemke as David Nelson

            Peter Oldring as Terry

            Lizz Alexander as Ginger

            Tara Rosling as Suzanne Fontana

            Chris Loane as James Burton

            Rob Fenton as Elvis

            Christopher Dignan as Johnny Burnette

            Sean Dignan as Dorsey Burnette

            Natalie Urquhart as Alma Jean Viator

            John Hyatt as Dennis

            Melody Johnson
            
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