Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Girl-next-door actress, discovered while in college at UCLA, who briefly played leads in Hollywood in the early 1950s and returned as supportive wives in Disney's family films of the 60s. Although she had no acting experience, Olson played a role in CANADIAN PACIFIC (1949) and attracted attention as the second female lead in Billy Wilder's brilliant black comedy, SUNSET BLVD. (1950). Although she was outshone by Gloria Swanson, William Holden and Erich von Stroheim, Olson was on hand to sound the film's one note of normality as a young woman romantically involved with a cynical gigolo writer, and she received a supporting Oscar nomination for her work. Holden was in his troubled Everyman stage and Paramount was eager to build up a co-starring team using the earnest-looking Olson as a loving-wife screen rival to June Allyson. The pair made four films together in 1950-51, but stardom eluded Olson. Olson played romantic leads in several other films, but neither the mild THE BOY FROM OKLAHOMA (1954) nor the dreadful and paranoid actioner BIG JIM MCLAIN (1952) got much attention. By then married to songwriter Alan Jay Lerner, Olson, after playing several second leads (SO BIG, 1953; a TV version of "The Women", 1955, with Olson as the gentle Peggy), retired from acting. After divorcing Lerner in 1957, she returned with POLLYANNA (1960) the first of five films for Disney over the next dozen years, and was back to helpful homemaker parts for THE ABSENT MINDED PROFESSOR (1961), SON OF FLUBBER (1963) and SMITH! (1969). Olson has subsequently played a handful of film roles, in the timid, gay-themed love triangle, MAKING LOVE (1982) and the all-star AIRPORT 1975 (1974) (as Linda Blair's mother). Occasional TV work came along too: "Kingston: Confidential" (1977), starring Raymond Burr, found Olson atypically cast as the head of a company, while "The Paper Dolls" (1982) saw her back in form as the wife of a ruthless CEO (Lloyd Bridges). In 1962, Olson married Alan W. Livingston, former Chairman of the Board of Capitol Records. Their son is HIT AND RUNWAY (1999) writer-producer-director Christopher Livingston (b. 1964).  Nominated for Supporting Actress 1950: SUNSET BLVD. 1 nomination