Nelson Eddy and the Hollywood Star Walk of Fame in the Los Angeles Times:
The Times is working on adding more biographical information about Nelson Eddy. Do you think Nelson Eddy should be a top priority for a more complete page? If so, leave a comment letting us know why.
As The Times continues to work on the Hollywood Star Walk database, readers are asked to help identify other stars on the Walk of Fame whom Nelson Eddy should be connected to, as well as locations in the world that were meaningful.
If you’d like to help with this project and give your comments, here is the link.
Nelson Eddy starred on the “Kraft Music Hall” radio series for three summers, 1947-49. For the first time, the complete series has been released on CD.
In 1947, his co-star was Nadine Conner. For the 1948 and 1949 seasons, Dorothy Kirsten took over. For one show in 1948 Kirsten fell ill and was replaced by Jeanette MacDonald.
The “Kraft Music Hall” was a popular radio show from 1933 until Nelson Eddy‘s final show in 1949. Other hosts during the years included Paul Whiteman, Bing Crosby and Al Jolson. But by the fall of 1949, television had replaced radio in popularity.
Nelson Eddy…43 years ago today he died at age 65, too young and too soon. While he brought pleasure to millions with his voice, his personal life wasn’t particularly blissful. There’s no doubt that stress and unhappiness helped lead him to an early death.
In the midst of this Oscar weekend in which Hollywood and the film industry is celebrated, this is one sad note for the many Nelson Eddy fans who still remember.
It is always a sore point that Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald never had one of their great films acknowledged by the Academy with a Best Picture Oscar. Their movie Maytime, the highest grossing movie worldwide of 1937, wasn’t even nominated! In fact, it only received a single nomination for the score by Herbert Stothart.
I attended an Oscar party once and I held a real Oscar in my hands. It was heavy and yes, there was something special about it.
But all the awards in the world don’t replace undying loyalty and caring of filmgoers or fans that endures for half a century and even more. Or a movie that is entertaining, timeless and enjoyable as well as excellent – even decades after its first release. Being able to watch a film over and over – 20 or 50 or 100 times – and still love it and find something new to see or hear – now that is a Best Picture!
Thank you, Nelson, for the musical legacy you left us.
