Carol Nugent is an American actress who began her career as a child. Nugent appeared in over 20 feature films and 11 television programs during the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Her 1959 marriage to actor Nick Adams ended with his death in 1968, before their divorce had been finalized.
Contents
Biography
Early life
Nugent is the elder daughter of Lucille Redd Nugent and Carl L. Nugent. Her father was a property master for MGM. She had a younger sister, Judy Nugent.
Hollywood career
Nugent was a child actor, first appearing on screen at age seven in Secret Command (1944). She played small parts in four more movies over the next three years and in one of these, she and her sister Judy portrayed the same character at different ages. They were featured on the television program The Ruggles. She was in a few popular hits, including Cheaper by the Dozen (1950) and Belles on Their Toes (1952) but as a child actor never quite made the transition from bit player to larger roles. However, as a teen Nugent grew into ingenue parts on television and in B-films. She was a supporting actress throughout her career, which tapered off sharply after she married and had children.
In 1955 Nugent, her sister, their father, and Harvey Waldman formed Nugent Productions for the production of Growing Up in Hollywood, a TV series to depict the two sisters growing up in a motion-picture atmosphere.
Personal life
Nugent married actor Nick Adams on May 10, 1959, in Las Vegas, Nevada. They had two children; she sued for divorce in November 1966.
In a 1961 interview Adams said, "Carol is my good-luck charm. My first real success, the turn of the tide, came right after I fell in love with her. Then I formed my own production company and we sold The Rebel." However, in the same interview Nugent said, "Let's not overdo the sweetness and light. Naturally, Nick and I had our problems at the start". Gossip columnist Rona Barrett later wrote that Nugent "was one of the most refreshing wives in the entire community."
Nugent married John G. Stephens in 2002; Stephens died in 2018.
Television credits
The Gene Autry Show: "Return of Maverick Dan" (1951) as Barbara "Bobbie" Blake
TV Reader's Digest: "If I Were Rich" (1955)
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp: "Shootin' Woman" (1957) as Young Woman
The 20th Century-Fox Hour: "Threat to a Happy Ending" (1957) as Anne
Death Valley Days: "The Calico Dog" (1957) as Nancy Drake
The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok: "Town Without Law" (1958) as Sue Lightfoot
Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer: "That Schoolgirl Complex" (1958) as Claudia
Perry Mason: "The Case of the Fraudulent Foto" (1959) as Helen Preston
The Millionaire: "Millionaire Charles Bradwell" (1959) as sister
The Rebel: "Yellow Hair" (1959) as Indian Girl
Family Affair: "A Matter of Tonsils" (1968) as Miss Jones
