---
name: "Portia Nelson"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/portia-nelson"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "27 May 1920"
died: "6 March 2001"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 2
average_fi1m_score: 68
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 2
updated: "2026-09-20T04:52:20.589422+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Portia Nelson

Actor. Born 27 May 1920 in Brigham City, Utah, USA. Died 6 March 2001.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 27 May 1920, Brigham City, Utah, USA
- **Died:** 6 March 2001
- **Active:** 1965–1967
- **Average Fi1m score:** 68, as actor, over 2 titles
- **Elsewhere:** https://www.themoviedb.org/person/198948

## Biography

Portia Nelson (born Betty Mae Nelson) was an American actress, singer and songwriter. Born on 27 May 1920 in Brigham City, Utah, she began her career as a cabaret performer in the 1950s and appeared in the original Broadway cast of the musical *The Golden Apple* (1954). She died in New York City on 6 March 2001.

Nelson made her screen debut as Sister Berthe in *The Sound of Music* (1965). She played Sarah Dolittle in *Doctor Dolittle* (1967), Sister Elizabeth in *The Trouble with Angels* (1966) and Mrs Rowe in *The Other* (1972). She also appeared in *Can't Stop the Music* (1980) and had a recurring role as Mrs Gurney on the soap opera *All My Children*.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (2)

- *Doctor Dolittle* (1967), Fi1m 50, as Sarah Dolittle — [page](https://film.one/film/doctor-dolittle.md)
- *The Sound of Music* (1965), Fi1m 86, as Sister Berthe — [page](https://film.one/film/the-sound-of-music.md)

## Complete filmography (8)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Rage of Angels* (1983), series, as Receptionist
- *Can't Stop the Music* (1980), as Law Office Receptionist
- *The Other* (1972), as Mrs. Rowe
- *Doctor Dolittle* (1967), as Sarah Dolittle — Fi1m 50, [page](https://film.one/film/doctor-dolittle.md)
- *The Hardy Boys: The Mystery of the Chinese Junk* (1967), as Aunt Gertrude Hardy
- *The Second Hundred Years* (1967), series, as Mrs. Hildebrand
- *The Trouble with Angels* (1966), as Sister Elizabeth
- *The Sound of Music* (1965), as Sister Berthe — Fi1m 86, [page](https://film.one/film/the-sound-of-music.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/portia-nelson