Alison Arngrim

Actress • Writer

Birth Name: Alison Margaret Arngrim

Birth Date: January 18, 1962

Age: 63 years old

Birth Place: New York, New York

Alison Arngrim began as a prominent child TV actress who was best known for her role as "bad girl" Nellie Oleson on "Little House on the Prairie" (NBC, 1974-1983). Born into a show business family (her father was a talent manager, while her mother worked as a prominent voice over actress), Arngrim began acting at a very young age.

She landed her most lasting role on the hit family drama, "Little House on the Prairie." Arngrim played the part of bratty Nellie Oleson for eight years on the show, and became a household name during the show's 1970s heyday.

When the show ended its run in 1983, however, Arngrim had trouble landing substantial roles. In addition to nabbing guest spots on shows like "Fantasy Island" (ABC, 1977-1984) and "The Love Boat" (ABC, 1977-1987), she also starred in the made-for-TV movie "I Married Wyatt Earp" (ABC, 1983).

Arngrim took a break from acting in the 1990s to focus her attention on doing charitable work, after her friend and former co-star, Steve Tracy, died of complications from AIDS in 1986. She returned to acting in the 2000s, landing roles in a number of independent features, among them "The Last Place on Earth" (2002), "Le deal" (2007) and "Make the Yuletide Gay" (2009).

Despite her diminishing number of acting credits, however, Arngrim continued to focus her attention on her various charitable activities, most notably raising awareness of AIDS prevention. In 2011, she published a memoir about her life and her most famous role, Confessions of a Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned To Love Being Hated.