Christine Nelson (original) (raw)

Christine Nelson was born to Jacquie andJerry Nelson in New York in 1960. Throughout her short life, Christine battled cystic fibrosis, a disease of the exocrine glands which caused numerous lung infections and other illnesses. Her mother, Jacquie, made a career in the fashion world. Her father, Jerry, is known for his work withJim Henson andThe Muppets, and passed his performer's passion on to Christine, who aspired to become an actress after completing high school. After going to many public schools in New York and Connecticut, she attended Rye Country Day School, a prestigious private school with a strong focus on stage and drama, and briefly attended college at Emerson College in Boston, MA but was forced to withdraw because of her illness. She met and became friends withJim Henson andThe Muppets as well as many cast members ofSaturday Night Live (1975), such as Gilda Radner,John Belushi andChevy Chase. In 1981, she won a small speaking part inThe Great Muppet Caper (1981), as the girl who said, "Look Dad, there's a bear!", to which her companion, played by real-life dad, Jerry, replied, "No Christine, that's a frog...bears wear hats!" Christine, after fighting her illness, valiantly, for over two decades, passed away in September, 1982.
- IMDb mini biography by: Mari 36

At the time of her passing, the life expectancy of a person with cystic fibrosis was 15; Christine lived to be 21.
Rye Country Day School, where she had attended, has an award named in her memory.
While in high school she was a member of a band called "The Pids". She was a singer referred to as "Peach Pid".
The incredible story of this amazing young woman is immortalized in a biography called "Give Me One Wish", written by her mother Jacquie Gordon.
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