ED NELSON BIOGRAPHY & FILMOGRAPHY:

Ed Nelson was born on December 21st, 1928 in New Orleans, Louisiana with the birth name Edwin Stafford Nelson.  He had ever intention growing up of pursuing a profession in the legal field, however when studying at college he became involved in school productions and began to rethink his career goals.
 
So after only two years of school, he left in pursuit of a career as an actor and relocated to New York City.  He enrolled at the School of Radio Technique and studied direction and production.  After completing his education, he relocated back to Louisiana and found work at WDSU-TV as an assistant director.
 
In 1950 he became a member of the Roger Corman's unofficial stock company and would do a number of different jobs in addition to acting.  He was also given the opportunity to  narrate and sometimes even write for a local Television series called, "N.O.P.D" (1956).  Corman also allowed Nelson to work on the feature film, "Swamp Women" (1956).  He was not only an actor in the film, Corman also let him experience working as a location manager.
 
It was this film opportunity that opened more doors in the industry, and the director Corman employed Nelson on a number of other films, many shot in Hollywood, California such as, "Attack of the Crab Monsters" (1957).
 
Nelson also found work on his own and earned a decent amount of fame when he became one of the most well recognized stars on the television soap opera, "Peyton's Place" (1964).  He married only once to Patricia Miller in 1950 and they are still married and have six children together.  His one son, Christopher is also a working actor and was in the film, "Without Warning" (1980).  While his son was starring in this film, Nelson appeared in the film, "Capitol" (1984).     
 
Along with appearing on screen as an actor, Nelson is involved with the acting industry on a number of levels.  He was and still is an active member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and was elected as a board member for a number of years.  He is also still in good standing as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
 
At the age of seventy one he completed his undergraduate degree at Tulane University and still remains active in the industry today.

Filmography

2003 Runaway Jury 
2000 Tony Bravo in Scenes from a Forgotten Cinema
1998 Jackie Chan's Who Am I? 
1996 Sister Island 
1985-1995 Murder, She Wrote
1991 The Boneyard
1988-1990 Jake and the Fatman
1989 Deadly Weapon 
1989 Brenda Starr 
1989 MacGyver
1988 J.J. Starbuck
1988 Cagney & Lacey 
1988 The Law and Harry McGraw
1987 Hotel 
1987 Sworn to Silence 
1987 Dynasty
1986 Police Academy 3: Back in Training 
1985 Peyton Place: The Next Generation 
1984 Capitol 
1984 Finder of Lost Loves
1983 The Fall Guy
1983 Matt Houston 
1982 Help Wanted: Male 
1982 Bret Maverick 
1981 Quincy M.E.
1981 CHiPs
1981 Born to Be Sold 
1981 Walking Tall
1978-1981 Vega$
1981 Trapper John, M.D.
1980 Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb
1980 The Return of Frank Cannon 
1980 Lou Grant
1980 The Girl, the Gold Watch & Everything 
1980 Hagen
1980 Charlie's Angels
1974-1979 Barnaby Jones 
1977-1979 The Rockford Files
1979 Anatomy of a Seduction 
1979 Salvage 1
1979 Doctors' Private Lives 
1978 David Cassidy - Man Undercover
1978 Crash 
1978 Dallas
1978 Leave Yesterday Behind 
1978 Acapulco Gold
1978 Doctors' Private Lives 
1978 Superdome 
1977 Logan's Run
1977 Murder in Peyton Place 
1977 For the Love of Benji 
1977 McMillan & Wife
1976 Gibbsville
1976 Gemini Man
1976 Most Wanted
1976 The Bionic Woman 
1976 Midway
1976 Riding with Death 
1975 That's the Way of the World
1975 Get Christie Love!
1971-1975 Medical Center
1975 The Missing Are Deadly 
1974 Police Woman
1974 Ironside 
1974 Airport 1975
1974 Adam-12
1974 Houston, We've Got a Problem
1971-1973 The F.B.I. 
1973 Linda 
1973 Runaway! 
1973 Kung Fu
1973 The Streets of San Francisco
1973 Mission: Impossible
1973 Mod Squad
1973 Escape 
1973 Tenafly 
1973 Search
1973 Time to Run 
1971-1972 Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law
1972 Alias Smith and Jones
1972 The Sixth Sense
1972 Banacek
1972 Rod Serling's Night Gallery
1972 The Screaming Woman 
1972 O'Hara, U.S. Treasury
1971 Cannon
1971 A Little Game 
1971 Marcus Welby, M.D.
1971 The Man and the City
1971 Police Surgeon 
1970-1971 The Silent Force
1970 Along Came a Spider 
1964-1969 Peyton Place
1961-1964 Perry Mason
1964 This Is the Life
1964 Arrest and Trial
1959-1964 Gunsmoke
1963-1964 The Fugitive
1964 Combat!
1963 The Man from Galveston 
1963 Redigo
1961-1963 Wagon Train
1963 The Outer Limits
1963 Dr. Kildare 
1963 Soldier in the Rain
1963 Channing
1961-1963 The Untouchables
1963 77 Sunset Strip
1963 The Eleventh Hour
1963 The Gallant Men 
1963 The Dakotas
1962-1963 The Alfred Hitchcock Hour
1960-1963 Laramie
1962-1963 Alcoa Premiere
1963 Twilight Zone
1963 The Virginian
1963 Saints and Sinners
1962 Stoney Burke
1959-1962 Rawhide 
1962 Sam Benedict
1962 The Wide Country
1962 Death Valley Days
1961-1962 Checkmate
1962 The New Breed
1962 Bonanza
1962 The Tall Man
1962 Hawaiian Eye
1961-1962 The Detectives Starring Robert Taylor
1962 Cain's Hundred
1959-1962 Maverick
1962 87th Precinct
1961 Hennesey
1961 Judgment at Nuremberg
1960-1961 Thriller
1961 Tales of Wells Fargo
1960-1961 The Rifleman
1961 Devil's Partner
1959-1961 Bat Masterson 
1959-1961 Have Gun - Will Travel 
1961 Surfside 6 
1958-1961 Zane Grey Theater
1961 The Aquanauts
1959-1961 The Rebel 
1960 The Deputy
1960 The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp 
1960 Outlaws 
1960 The Blue Angels 
1960 Coronado 9 
1960 Elmer Gantry 
1958-1960 Tombstone Territory
1960 Valley of the Redwoods 
1958-1960 M Squad
1960 Riverboat
1960 Johnny Ringo
1960 Code of Silence 
1959 Black Saddle
1959 A Bucket of Blood
1959 Tightrope 
1959 The Walter Winchell File
1959 T-Bird Gang 
1959 The Young Captives 
1957-1959 Highway Patrol 
1958 The Brain Eaters 
1958 She Gods of Shark Reef 
1958 Night of the Blood Beast 
1958 Hot Car Girl 
1958 The Cry Baby Killer 
1958 Teenage Cave Man
1958 Street of Darkness 
1958 I Mobster 
1957 Harbor Command 
1957 Teenage Doll 
1957 Hell on Devil's Island 
1957 Bayou 
1957 Invasion of the Saucer Men 
1957 Rock All Night 
1957 Attack of the Crab Monsters
1957 Carnival Rock 
1957 Men of Annapolis
1956 Swamp Women 
1955 New Orleans Uncensored 
1952 The Steel Trap