Leif Garrett facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Leif Garrett
Garrett in 2017
Background information
Birth name	Leif Per Nervik
Born	(1961-11-08) November 8, 1961 (age 63)
Origin	Hollywood, California, U.S.
Genres	Bubblegum teen pop
Occupation(s)	Actor singer television personality
Instruments	Vocals, guitar
Years active	1966–present
Labels	20th Century, Atlantic, Scotti Brothers, Tongue and Groove, Cleopatra, Golden Lane

Leif Garrett (born Leif Per Nervik; November 8, 1961) is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He started acting as a child. In the 1970s, he became a very popular teen idol in music.

Early Life and Career Start

Leif Garrett was born in Hollywood, California, on November 8, 1961. His mother, Carolyn Stellar, was an actress. Leif began his career in entertainment when he was just five years old. He finished high school at the age of 15.

Acting Career Highlights

Leif and his sister, Dawn Lyn, worked together on many acting projects. They appeared in the horror movie Devil Times Five. They also guest-starred in TV shows like Gunsmoke and Wonder Woman.

Leif had important roles in several films and TV shows. He played Jimmy Henderson in Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969). He was also Mike Pusser in the Walking Tall movies. On TV, he played Zack Russell in the ABC series Family. He also played Leonard Unger, the son of Felix Unger, in The Odd Couple.

In 1975, Leif appeared in the CBS drama Three for the Road. This show made him very popular with teenage girls. He started appearing in teen magazines like Tiger Beat. Leif also acted with Lee Van Cleef in two Western movies. He played the main character in the TV movie Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion and starred in the film Skateboard.

In the 1980s, Leif continued acting. He had a small role in the 1983 film The Outsiders, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. In 1985, he starred in Thunder Alley as the lead singer of a band. He also appeared in Shaker Run and the horror film Cheerleader Camp.

Music Career Journey

Garrett in 1978

In late 1976, Leif Garrett signed a five-album music deal with Atlantic Records. In 1977, he released his first single, "Come Back When You Grow Up". His first album, Leif Garrett, came out in July 1977. His early songs were often covers of older hits, like "Runaround Sue" and "The Wanderer".

In 1978, he signed with Scotti Brothers Records. He then recorded his second album, Feel the Need. The first song from this album, "I Was Made for Dancin'", became a huge hit. It reached number 10 in the US and number 4 in the UK in early 1979. This was his biggest hit song.

After "I Was Made for Dancin'", his other songs did not reach the Top 20 as often. However, he kept recording music. He released albums like Same Goes for You (1979), Can't Explain (1980), and My Movie of You (1981). In May 1979, he hosted his own TV special called Leif. Famous guests like Brooke Shields and Bob Hope appeared on the show.

In 1981, Leif recorded "I Am a Rebel". This song was used as the theme for an Italian TV show. He mostly stopped recording music in the early 1980s to focus on acting. He later said that producers did not want him to make music for adults when he got older.

Later Career and Projects

In the mid-1990s, Leif Garrett returned to acting and singing. He appeared in the horror film Dominion (1995). He also toured with the band Melvins and sang on their cover of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" in 2000. In 1998, a collection of his greatest hits was released.

In the late 1990s, Leif hosted a show called 8-Track Flashback on the music channel VH-1. He also appeared in a 1999 episode of VH-1's Behind the Music series.

In 1999, he started a band called Godspeed. They released a three-song album and performed on The Rosie O'Donnell Show.

Leif also performed on stage. He played the main role in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. In 2000, he appeared in a play called A Child's Christmas in Wales. In 2001, he voiced himself in an episode of the animated TV series Family Guy.

In 2003, Leif appeared as himself in the film Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star. He also helped write and sing a song for the movie's soundtrack. In 2005, he appeared with Aaron Carter in the film Popstar.

Recent Activities

In September 2006, Leif Garrett was on the celebrity version of Fear Factor. He won the top prize of $50,000. On New Year's Eve 2006, he began performing in Las Vegas with a group called Original Idols Live!

In November 2007, Leif released an album called Three Sides of.... This album included songs he recorded with his band F8 and his earlier band Godspeed.

From 2008 to 2013, Leif was part of the cast of The Smoking Gun Presents: World's Dumbest... on TruTV. He often made fun of his past experiences on the show.

Garrett performing in 2016

Leif toured South Korea in 2010 and 2013. In the early 2010s, he worked with musician Craig Else. They released two songs online, "Everything" (2010) and "Help You, Make You" (2012). They also covered Neil Young's song "Old Man".

In 2019, Leif published his autobiography called Idol Truth. In the book, he shared that another singer, Jim Haas, sometimes sang on his albums and even for him during live concerts.

Personal Life

Leif Garrett dated actress Nicollette Sheridan for about five years until 1985. He also dated other celebrities like Kristy McNichol, Tatum O'Neal, and Justine Bateman. In the 1990s, he was in a long relationship with actress Elaine Bilstad, who passed away in 1999.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Other Recordings

Leif Garrett has also sung on albums by the Melvins (The Crybaby), the Crush Ups ("Betty Ford for X-Mas"), and Liberty n' Justice ("Sight Unseen").

Filmography

• Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
• Walking Tall (1973)
• Peopletoys (Devil Times Five) (1974)
• Macon County Line (1974)
• Walking Tall Part 2 (1975)
• God's Gun (1976)
• Paper Tigers (1977)
• Kid Vengeance (1977)
• Walking Tall: Final Chapter (1977)
• Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion (1977)
• Skateboard (1978)
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)
• Longshot (1981)
• The Outsiders (1983)
• Shaker Run (1985)
• Thunder Alley (1985)
• Delta Fever (1987)
• Cheerleader Camp (1987)
• Party Line (1988)
• The Banker (1989)
• The Spirit of '76 (1990)
• Dominion (1995)
• The Whispering (1996)
• The Next Tenant (1998)
• I Woke Up Early the Day I Died (1998)
• The Art of a Bullet (1999)
• Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star (2003)
• Popstar (2005)
• Circumstances of Fate (2006)
• Fish Mich (2009)

Television Work

• Nanny and the Professor ("The Human Element") (1970)
• Black Noon (1971)
• Cannon ("Death Is a Double-Cross") (1971)
• Family Affair ("Heroes Are Born") (1971)
• The F.B.I. ("The Deadly Species") (1972 season 7 episode 24)
• Circle of Fear (1973)
• Strange Homecoming (1974)
• The Odd Couple ("The Frog") (1974)
• The Last Survivors (1975)
• Three for the Road (1975)
• Flood! (1976)
• Peter Lundy and the Medicine Hat Stallion (1977)
• The Hanna-Barbera Happy Hour (1978)
• Family (1978)
• Wonder Woman ("My Teenage Idol is Missing") (1978 season 3 episode 1)
• CHiPs (two-part episode "Roller Disco") (1979)
• Superboy ("Bringing Down The House") (1988)
• VH1's 8-Track Flashback (1995–1996)
• Family Guy ("The Thin White Line") (2001)
• The Weakest Link (2001)
• American Black Beauty (2005)
• Celebrity Fear Factor (2005)
• Ty Murray's Celebrity Bull Riding Challenge (2007)
• truTV Presents: World's Dumbest... (2008–2013)
• Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew (2010)

See also

In Spanish: Leif Garrett para niños