Producer, actress, stand-up and AIDS activist Alison Arngrim has moved light years away from bad girl Nellie Oleson, the character she portrayed for seven years on NBC's "Little House on the Prairie" (1974). Arngrim has been seen on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" (1992), "Extra" (1994), "Entertainment Tonight" (1981), and "Today" (1952). Arngrim also became a member of the independent film world and starred in _Last Place On Earth, The (2002)_ , with Tisha Campbell and Billy Dee Williams, and For the Love of May (2000), co-starring Patricia Neal, Michael Learned, Alexandra Paul, and 'Ru Paul' .Recently, Arngrim was seen in Celebration Theatre's "Sirena Queen Of The Tango". "It is time for me to renew my creative juices and get back to the theater, the root of all of our craft," stated Arngrim. Other television credits include "Fantasy Island" (1978), "The Love Boat" (1977), and the television movie of the week, I Married Wyatt Earp (1983) (TV). Arngrim's stage credits include "Butterflies are Free", "In One Bed and Out the Other", "The Wool Gatherers" and "Hidden in the Laughter".In her spare time, Arngrim devotes her energies to helping people with AIDS. When co-star Steve Tracy died of AIDS in 1986, Alison opted to volunteer at AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA). From 1989 through 1993, she served as Program Manager at Tuesday's Child, and is currently on their Board of Directors. Since 1990, Alison has served as both MC and Producer for the Comedy Stage at the APLA Annual Summer Party. For these outstanding efforts, Alison became the first woman to receive the "Friend in Deed" award at APLA, she also received the "Celebration of Life" award from South Bay Friends of Aid for AIDS. In 1992, Joel Wachs presented Arngrim with a resolution by the Los Angeles City Council commending her on her work on behalf of people living with HIV and AIDS. Alison also received the George Moscone award from Christopher Street West of Los Angeles.Although she may be best remembered as Little House on the Prairie's resident spoiled brat, Alison's career has blossomed to encompass many areas of the entertainment industry. Pretty good for a bad girl!
|