July 18: Harriet Nelson best known for "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" was born on this date in 1909...

She was 85 when she died of congestive heart failure on October 2, 1994. 

Harriett was born Peggy Lou Snyder in Des Moines, Iowa. By 1932, she was performing in vaudeville when she met the saxophone-playing bandleader Ozzie Nelson. Nelson hired her to sing with the band, under the name Harriet Hilliard. They married three years later.

RKO Radio Pictures signed her to a one-year contract in 1936, and she appeared in three feature films, the most famous being the Fred Astaire-Ginger Rogers musical Follow the Fleet. She was very much in demand during the World War II years for leading roles in escapist musicals, comedies, and mysteries.

In Ozzie Nelson's book, he wrote that Harriet was quite popular during the short time at RKO and they wanted her to continue her solo film career, but decided that it was more important for her to continue with the band and subsequent radio show.

Although the couple occasionally appeared together in movies, either as a duo (in Honeymoon Lodge) or as separate characters (in Hi, Good Lookin'), they are best known for their radio performances.

 In 1944, the Nelsons began a comedy series for radio, "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet." It was highly popular and made a successful transition to television. It was one of the stalwarts of the ABC-TV schedule through 1966. The Nelsons' two sons, Ricky and David, were featured continuously on the show.

In 1973, Ozzie and Harriet also appeared in the short-lived sitcom, Ozzie's Girls.

 

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