LOS ANGELES, Dec. 17, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — For the first time, Gunnar and Matthew Nelson are telling the real story behind their family’s all-American entertainment dynasty in their new memoir, What Happened to Your Hair? (Permuted Press) released December 16th.
From The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, —Ozzie and Harriet Nelson’s record-breaking 435-episode television empire—to heartthrob Ricky Nelson’s chart-topping music career and tragic death, and later to Gunnar and Matthew Nelson’s double-platinum success in the 1990s, the Nelsons remain the only family in history to achieve No. 1 records across three successive generations.
“For decades, the Nelson story has been told about us, but not by us, until now,” says Gunnar Nelson. “Writing What Happened to Your Hair? is our way of finally setting the record straight—about our family, our father, and what it really takes to survive a lifetime in the spotlight with your integrity intact.”
In this revelatory, deeply personal book, the multiplatinum artists pull back the curtain on a life lived entirely in the spotlight—one that is equal parts hilarious, heartbreaking, and utterly unbelievable. The memoir marks the first and only time the twins directly address decades of rumors, long-standing misconceptions, and industry myths—including the truth surrounding their father Ricky Nelson’s fatal plane crash.
The memoir reveals:
- Countering decades of misinformation, the truth behind Ricky Nelson’s death
- From Mama Cass babysitting to complicated parents, the truth about their upbringing
- How the music industry attempted to control their ‘Nelson’ image while diverting millions they generated
- Their shocking financial journey, including grossing $23 million on a single album, only to end up in debt
Readers will discover a story that defies Hollywood clichés. Against overwhelming odds, the Nelson brothers avoided becoming cautionary tales and instead cemented their family’s legacy in the Guinness Book of World Records, as the only family to reach number one record status in three successive generations, proving that reinvention, integrity, and resilience can outlast fame itself.
“This book isn’t about nostalgia or celebrity—it’s about truth,” says Matthew Nelson. “Our childhood wasn’t all Ozzie and Harriet. We wanted to share the full, unfiltered reality of growing up inside America’s first entertainment dynasty, including the losses, the resilience, and the reinvention that allowed us to keep moving forward against all odds.”
Nearly four decades after their own rise to fame—including a historic Saturday Night Live appearance as an unsigned band and double-platinum success with “Love and Affection”—the twins’ full story is finally being told.
What Happened to Your Hair? is available nationwide in hardcover on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, BAM! Books a Million, Bookshop, Hudson Booksellers, Target, Walmart and through eBook at Amazon Kindle, Nook and iBooks. For more information, please visit www.nelsontwins.com.
What Happened to Your Hair?
By Matthew Nelson & Gunnar Nelson
Publisher: Permuted Press
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Release date: December 16, 2025
Length: 400 pages
ISBN13: 9798888451021
Retail: $35.00 hardcover/$16.99 eBook (price may vary by retailer)
Contact:
Daphne Ortiz
DVMCPR
323.864.9890
[email protected]
SOURCE Nelson Brothers
