Nancy Olson, the 97-year-old star of Billy Wilder's classic film 'Sunset Boulevard', has been spotted in Los Angeles, more than 75 years after the movie's release. Olson, who earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her role as script reader Betty Schaefer, is one of the oldest surviving Oscar nominees and one of the few remaining stars from Hollywood's studio system.
Following the success of 'Sunset Boulevard', Olson was frequently paired with her co-star William Holden, appearing with him in three more films: 'Union Station', 'Force of Arms', and 'Submarine Command'. She later starred in Disney's 'The Absent-Minded Professor' (1961) and its sequel 'Son of Flubber' (1963), making a cameo in the 1997 remake 'Flubber'. Her other notable roles include 'Airport 1975' (1974) and the cult classic TV series 'Paper Dolls' (1984).
Olson effectively retired from acting in the 1980s, though she made brief appearances in 'Flubber', an episode of 'Big Love' (2010), and the film 'Dumbbells' (2014), her last onscreen credit. In a 2025 interview with People, she explained her decision to leave Hollywood, citing the industry's treatment of stars like Gloria Swanson and Marilyn Monroe. 'I said to myself, "I do not want to be a movie star, a commodity to sell,"' she recalled. 'I want family. I want children. I want a life, and this is not a life.'
Olson was married to lyricist Alan Jay Lerner from 1950 to 1957, with whom she had two daughters, Liza (now 74) and Jennifer (now 72). In 1962, she married Capitol Records executive Alan W. Livingston, with whom she had a son, Christopher (now 61). They remained together until Livingston's death in 2009.
