Nancy Olson Livingston

Actress / Author

Nancy Olson was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the daughter of a prominent physician, Henry Olson, and his wife Evelyn Olson. Nancy was educated at the University of Wisconsin before transferring to California’s UCLA, where she was discovered by Paramount Studios and signed to a contract in 1948.

Olson’s first starring role was opposite Randolph Scott in the feature film, “Canadian Pacific” (1949), which created instant stardom for the aspiring actress and catapulted her into a world of iconic personalities which included developing a relationship with John F. Kennedy (future US president) and sharing experiences with legendary screen idols Marilyn Monroe, Joan Crawford, Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis & Dean Martin, and directors, William Wyler, Cecil B. Demille, and George Stevens.

Soon after her film debut, Olson was cast as aspiring screenwriter, Betty Schaffer, in Billy Wilder’s iconic, classic film, “Sunset Boulevard” (1950) with William Holden and Gloria Swanson. The success of the film pushed her career over the top, garnering her an Oscar nomination for best supporting actress.

Soon after making “Sunset Boulevard”, Olson met celebrated librettist, Alan Jay Lerner (Lerner & Lowe) during the time he was writing the screenplay for “An American in Paris”, for which he received an Academy Award. Lerner began a courtship with Olson while she continued her movie career, starring in “Mr. Music” (1950) with Bing Crosby, and “Union Station” (1950) with William Holden.

In the spring of 1950, Nancy Olson married Alan Jay Lerner and the two settled in together while Olson was working on films “Submarine Command” (1951) and “Force of Arms” (1951), both with Holden, and while Alan Jay Lerner was creating the musical “Paint Your Wagon” (1951) with Fedrick Lowe.

Although Olson began to focus more on her family life than her movie career, she continued to make pictures, including starring with John Wayne in “Big Jim McLaine” (1952) with Steve Forrest in “So Big” (1953), and with Will Rogers in “The Boy from Oklahoma” (1954). She also starred in the blockbuster movie, “Battle Cry” (1955) where she played the ingénue to Aldo Ray.

After Olson divorced Lerner, she turned to the theater to revitalize her career. She starred in a series of Broadway plays including, “Tunnel of Love” with Tom Ewell, “Send Me No Flowers” with David Wayne, and Jean Kerr’s “Mary Mary” where Olson replaced Barbara Bel Geddes in the lead role.

Olson made several appearances in films for the Walt Disney studio. “The Absent-Minded Professor” (1961) and “Son of Flubber” (1963) paired her with Fred MacMurray and were popular with movie- goers. She also appeared alongside Hayley Mills in “Pollyanna” (1960) “Smith!” (1969) with Glenn Ford, and “Snowball Express” (1972) with Dean Jones. Olson then moved to New York City where she appeared on Broadway.

During the later half of Olson’s career, she married her second husband, Alan Wendell Livingston, who at the time was president of Capitol Records. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, she did guest roles on television shows such as “Gun Smoke”, “Barnaby Jones”, “The Streets of San Francisco”, “Kingston Confidential”, “Big Love”, and a starring role opposite Lloyd Bridges in the television series, “Paper Dolls” (1984). Olson also continued making movies, starring in the hit disaster movie “Airport 75” (1974) opposite Charlton Heston, playing a role in the movie “Making Love” (1982), and making a guest appearance in Disney’s remake of “Flubber” (1997) starring Robin Williams.

In her new memoir, “A Front Row Seat: An Intimate Look at Broadway, Hollywood, and the Age of Glamour”, Livingston treats readers to an intimate look into her life as a woman, wife, mother, and actress working and building a life in the last gleaming years of Hollywood’s Golden Age.