Craig Theodore Nelson (born Craig Richard Nelson; April 4, 1944) is an American actor. He is probably best known for his Emmy-winning role as Hayden Fox on the TV series Coach. He also starred in The Incredibles in 2004 as Mr. Incredible.

Career

Because Craig Richard Nelson was already registered with the Screen Actors Guild, he registered as Craig Theodore Nelson.

He has appeared in numerous motion pictures (most notably the Poltergeist series) and had featured roles in five television shows (Coach, Call to Glory, The District, My Name Is Earl, and Parenthood). Coach ran from 1989 to 1997, with Nelson starring as college football coach Hayden Fox.

He voiced Mr. Incredible in the 2004 animated film The Incredibles.

During the early 1990s, he made a guest appearance in the music video for country singer Garth Brooks’s song “We Shall Be Free”. Nelson made a three-episode guest appearance on CSI: NY as a “nemesis” to Gary Sinise’s Taylor.

His most recent films include 2009′s The Proposal as Ryan Reynolds skeptical father and 2010′s The Company Men as a greedy CEO. He currently stars in the 2010 television show Parenthood as Zeek Braverman, the family patriarch.

Personal life

Nelson was born in Spokane, Washington, the son of Vera Margaret (née Spindler), a dancer, and Armand Gilbert Nelson, a businessman who was once a drummer in Bing Crosby’s high school band. Nelson has a brown belt in karate and attended the University of Arizona and Central Washington University.

Nelson is a motorsports fan and an avid racer. He first participated in the 1991 Toyota Celebrity Long Beach Grand Prix and finished third. He founded Screaming Eagles Racing in 1994 with John Christie and entered and drove a Toyota-engined Spice SE90 in the IMSA WSC in 1994, a Lexus-engined Spice SE90 in 1995 and a Ford-engined Riley & Scott MkIII in 1996 and 1997.

In May 2009, Nelson appeared on Glenn Beck, where he spoke about his dislike of the current state of government. He also announced he would no longer pay taxes, and went on to state: “I’ve been on food stamps and welfare, did anybody help me out? No. No.”

Craig is also a golf enthusiast and is a member at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, CA.

Nelson’s son, Noah, was married to actress Ashley Jones in 2003. They divorced in 2009.

1) Craig debuted on Broadway in 1998 in Eugene O’Neill’s “Ah, Wilderness!”
2) Craig T. Nelson, whose most popular role was arguably as the title character on the sitcom, Coach, appeared in the 2007 Will Ferrell comedy, Blades of Glory as a figure skating coach known only as (and thus credited only as) “Coach”.
3) He had to add the “T” as a middle initial to avoid confusion with the actor, Craig Richard Nelson, who had registered his name first with the Screen Actors Guild.
4) Wanted to be a Hydroplane racer before he became an actor. His dad doubted this and said it would be an impossible feat, like becoming an actor.
5) Attended University of Arizona
6) Attended Central Washington University
7) Craig is one of the few survivors of the Poltergeist curse.
8 ) Craig has been an avid racing fan for quite some, even owning his own racing team, The Screaming Eagles Racing Enterprise. He has competed in IMSA World Sports Car Events and also raced in the 1994 Porsche Super Cup Series in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
9) He will play Kelly Stone in The Family Stone.
10) His height is 6′ 3 1/2″.

Craig T. Nelson: Lance Armstrong is the guy that I would put up there as one of my heroes. He’s done something that no one else has done and when you put into it what he overcame, it’s absolutely unbelievable.
Craig T. Nelson: When there’s that forgiveness present and compassion, it just helps you live so much easier.
Craig T. Nelson: I’m working on a project with my son, Noah, who’s my youngest. He’s 29. He was a writer on The District. And we’re writing a miniseries.
Craig T. Nelson: I lost my parents when I was fairly young. I’m so lucky to be a father and a grandfather and actually see them growing up and having children, it’s quite amazing.