Craig T. Nelson is a very recognizable  American actor who got famous for his Emmy awarded role in a TV series named  “Coach”. After that he starred in a lot of movies and TV series, becoming a very likeable star.

One of his more noted roles was the voice role in a hit animated film “The Incredibles”.

Early years

He was born as Craig Theodor Nelson on April 4, 1944 in Spokane, Washington in United States to his parents Vera and Armand.

His mother Vera Margaret was a dancer and a very artistic and creative person who supported him all her life until she died in 1971.

His father was a businessman named Armand Gilbert Nelson but he was also a very big fan of showbusiness. He played drums in high school as a nember of Bing Crosby’s band.

Craig was always extremely interested in sports and during his high school years he was a member of school’s football team and also their baseball team.

After finishing high school he decided to enroll the Central Washington University where he began studying criminology. He chose this line of studies because he was  highly interested in working in some government institution and he was impressed with CIA.

After a few months, he has realized it isn’t what he was hoping for so he decided to enroll the Yakima Valley Community College where he started studying English literature.

Nevertheless, he was disappointed with this college too so he soon dropped out.

His father indulged him and let him go study abroad. He ended up in Switzerland, and began studying communications at Northfielde Universität Herisau.

After some while spent there he enrolled the University of Arizona and started studying drama.

He finally finished his education by receiving a diploma from the same University.

After finishing college, he relocated to the west of the country where he gained job as a security guard.

He worked by day and joined an acting class which he took in the evenings. By that time he was really into acting and cinematography.

Career development

He began working in the media by starting as a comedian and a member of a comedy troupe named “The Groundlings”

The Comedy Store became a regular place where he would perform, gain experience and see what the public wants to hear from him.

At the end of the 60’s Nelson had changed his middle name from Richard to Theodore because he found out that there was already an actor with the same name.

After working in the soap factory he started working as a writer and received a job offer from famous radio Al Lohman and Roger Barkley who wanted him to write the material for their show.

His first role was in 1971 when he played a role of vampire in a horror movie named “The Return of Count Yorga”.

In 1973, Nelson got fed up of standup comedy and decided to relocate to Mount Shasta.

This was a big decision for him because it was a place with no electricity and other modern infrastructure.

At that period he was changing jobs very quickly, working as a  janitor, plumber, and even a teacher.

It took him five years to realize that this was very unsatisfying for him so he finally decided to return to acting.

In this period, life was very hard for the Nelsons: they had trouble paying bills so he had to find a better paid job. That is when he moved to Mount Shasta.

In 1977,  life was getting harder for them and they ended up on welfare. One year later Nelson divorced from Robin and returned to Hollywood.

In 1979 he managed to get a role in a movie starred by Al Pacino. It was called “…And Justice for All”.

After the role in Al Pacino’s movie he got famous for his role in Poltergeist, a horror movie from 1982. It was produced by Steven Spielberg and became a huge hit.

In 1983., he gained a role in a movie named “Silkwood” with famous Meryl Streep in the leading role. He also starred as a football coach in the drama movie called “All the Right Moves” with Tom Cruise.

“The Osterman Weekend” was the last  movie made by Sam Peckinpah and he was one of the main characters in it.

The Poltergeist series gave him a lot of media attention, as well as the roles in TV shows such as “Coach”, “My Name Is Earl” and “Parenthood.”

“Parenthood” was also very well received series which won him the Prism Award.

“Coach” was one of the serirs that made him a star and it ran for eight years.

From 1992 to 1995, four years in a row, he was nominated for the Golden Globe Award but never received one.

Engaging into a different kind of work, he accepted to give the voice to Mr. Incredible in “The Incredibles”, an extremely popular superhero animated movie.

He gave his voice in the sequel, Incredibles 2, as well. He also had roles in video games, including in a video game for “The Incredibles”

He appeared in a music video by a known American singer Garth Brooks, for his hit single “We Shall Be Free”.

In 1992, he was invited to guest on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson” where he shared some personal informations with the viewers.

It was the same year he received his Emmy Award for an outstanding lead actor in a comedy series. He guest appeared on CSI:NY in three episodes.

In 2009 he starred in “The Proposal” and one year later he was acting in “The Company Men”. In 2010 he joined the cast of a TV series “Parenthood” which aired until 2015.

Personal life

Nelson was married to Robin McCarthy and they have three kids together. Their names are Noah, Tiffany and Christopher and he loves them all very much.

After the divorce, he had found a soulmate in a writer Doria Cook-Nelson.

She is also a karate instructor and the two of them clicked instantly. They got married in 1987 and were never separated.

Roy is a big fan of motorsports and any kind of races. He is a racer himself and ownsxa couple of racing cars.

In 1991 he was 9th in his Toyota at  Celebrity Long Beach Grand Prix. He is also the owner of a racing team called “Screaming Eagles”.

He is known for his hard political opinion about the national government. He stated more than once that the taxes in the stare are too high and that the state has become a hedge fund.

In 2010, on Jay Leno Show, he called people out to join him in tax revolt. He often shocks by his open attitude about government and politics.

Nelson is an avid golf player and a member of a golf club in Thousand Oaks, in California. He often goes there because he misses sports and he is too old to play any demanding sports.

His son married a popular actress Ashley Jones in 2003 but they got divorced six years later. Noah is also a big fan of racing and wanted to become a professional racer.

Quick summary

Full name: Craig Richard Nelson

Date of birth: April 4, 1944

Birthplace: Spokane, Washington, United States

Age: 74

Profession: actor, comedian, racer

Height: 1,92 m

Weight: NA

Net Worth: $20 million