By DONNA THORNTON, Editor
It’s been almost 40 years since Rick Nelson died in a tragic New Year’s Eve plane crash, and the City of Guntersville became entwined with the memory of the musician/TV star.
Nelson’s chartered DC-3 left Guntersville Dec. 31, 1985, headed to a New Year’s Eve appearance in Dallas, according to History.com. Before reaching Dallas, the plane filled with smoke and an emergency landing was attempted; the two pilots survived. Seven passengers, including Nelson, were killed.
Nelson played two shows in Guntersville, at PJ’s Alley, before leaving from the Guntersville airport. They turned out to be the last performances of his life.
A new documentary examines those days Nelson spent in Guntersville, and it will debut Sunday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. at the location of those performances, the former PJ’s Alley, now Pizza Ed., at 373 Gunter Avenue, Guntersville. The show is free and open to the public. It will include photo opportunities, a red carpet, and a time for questions for the filmmakers after the screening.
“Rick Nelson: Guntersville” is directed by Kenny Scott Guffey, of CK Films and Entertainment. He is a true admirer of Nelson despite the performer having died before Guffey was born.
“I discovered Rick in the pages of a magazine,” Guffey said, while he was a teen. “I was really captivated by how it described his time on ‘The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet’ as sort of reality TV before reality TV.
“You had Rick, his brother David, and their parents (Ozzie and Harriet) playing these fictionalized versions of themselves,” Guffey said. “And this went on for over a decade! Fourteen seasons in total!
“I sought out the show for the uniqueness of it,” he explained,” and of course once I started watching Ozzie & Harriet, it’s hard not to become a fan of Rick’s music pretty quickly.”
Rick Nelson went from child TV star to successful musician, from his early hit “I’m Walkin’” to his last, “Garden Party.” Even after the hits stopped coming, Nelson continued to tour. He was inducted into the Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
The documentary looks at Nelson’s life, with its focus on those last days in Guntersville, visiting the site of his shows, the hotel where he spent his last night, and more, along with interviews with people who encountered Nelson during that visit, including people who attended the final shows.
Guffey said the film company has a distribution deal with Bayview Entertainment, which will be releasing the documentary on streaming services such as Amazon Prime, Tubi, etc.
“We also plan to have an Extended Cut version exclusive to our Youtube channel later this year,” he said.
A trailer and a “behind the scenes” short film can be found on Youtube now.
“Rick Nelson: Guntersville” is directed by Kenny Scott Guffey, of CK Films and Entertainment, pictured here. SPECIAL TO THE LEADER
