Early Years
Nelson was born Jerry L. Nelson in Tulsa, Oklahoma and raised in Washington, D.C. He began puppeteering for Bil Baird. His first job with the Muppets was The Jimmy Dean Show in 1965. Frank Oz was going to take some time off from puppeteering, so Nelson was hired to perform Rowlf the Dog's right hand in his stead.
After The Jimmy Dean Show ended, Nelson continued to perform Rowlf's right hand with the Dean show on its live tour. At the conclusion of the tour, Frank Oz rejoined the company. Jerry continued working with The Muppets, performing in variety shows and commercials up until 1966. The amount of work was somewhat reduced, so Jim Henson had to release Nelson. Following this, Nelson puppeteered in a number of projects in the late 1960s.
Read more about this topic: Jerry Nelson
Famous quotes containing the words early and/or years:
“Quintilian [educational writer in Rome around A.D. 100] thought that the earliest years of the child’s life were crucial. Education should start earlier than age seven, within the family. It should not be so hard as to give the child an aversion to learning. Rather, these early lessons would take the form of play—that embryonic notion of kindergarten.”
—C. John Sommerville (20th century)
“Now, at the end of three years struggle the nation’s condition is not what either party, or any man devised, or expected. God alone can claim it.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)