How Ricky Nelson Saved His Twin Sons Before the Plane Accident That Took His Life

Carrying Their Father’s Music Forward

Matthew and Gunnar eventually followed the path their father had taken decades earlier.

They became professional musicians.

Performing as Nelson, the twins achieved major success around the beginning of the 1990s and later devoted considerable attention to preserving and celebrating their father’s musical legacy.

For them, Rick Nelson was not simply the television star or teenage idol remembered by millions.

He was their father.

Their performances honoring his music have therefore carried a deeply personal meaning.

Rick Nelson’s own place in music history also endured.

He was inducted posthumously into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, two years after his death.

His recordings remain reminders of an unusual career that connected several eras of American entertainment.

He began as a child on a family radio program.

He grew up on television in front of millions of viewers.

Then, while still a teenager, he transformed himself into one of early rock and roll’s most recognizable performers.

But the final chapter of his story contains a much quieter detail.

It is not a chart position.

It is not an episode of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.

And it is not one of the rumors that circulated after the accident.

It is a simple change of travel plans.

Matthew and Gunnar had expected to board their father’s airplane.

Rick told them to meet him in Dallas instead.

They never got the chance to meet him there.

But because of that decision, they were still alive to carry part of his story forward.