Mervyn Nelson ( – 17 August 1991) was a stage actor, writer, director and producer. At the age of five, he started acting in

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

theatre, and then performed in

Broadway theatre Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

shows during the 1940s and 1950s. His stage performances were well reviewed in ''Billboard''. In 1950, he wrote and produced an all-black revue called ''The Jazz Train'' which told the story of the history of

jazz music Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a maj ...

and featured musical accompaniment from a number of top jazz performers. He also wrote and directed the 1971 cult gay drama movie '' Some of My Best Friends Are...''. He died at the age of 76 on 17 August 1991.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Mervyn 1991 deaths American directors American male stage actors Year of birth uncertain