Brian Kelly perfectly fit the definition of :tall, dark, and handsome. His good looks were a genetic component of a Valentine's Day gift to his parents when he was born in 1931. After serving in the Marines during the Korean war, Brian enter law school intending to go into the family business (his father was former Republican Governor of Michigan Harry F. Kelly.) But he started to get modeling offers and dropped out of law school after one year.

Brian then started doing radio and TV commercials in Detroit. A talent agent spotted him and convinced him to try acting. So Brian moved to Hollywood where he broke into TV by acting in small parts on such series as " Adventures in Paradise"  and "The Beverly Hillbillies,  He  then appeared regularly on two TV short-lived series -- 21 Beacon Street  and Straightaway .

In 1964, Brian  landed his memorable role as  Porter Ricks, in the family-oriented adventure TV series program Flipper (1964-67) about a tame dolphin.  Brian played the widowed father of two young boys, Sandy and Bud, in scripts that continuously emphasized wholesome family values   In interviews at the time, Brian  said he treasured the role because it portrayed “a parent who gives his kids principles and talks to them about the real values in life.”

The success of Flipper, led to a brief movie career, including Thunder Island (1963) and Around the World Under the Sea (1966). and a few spaghetti westerns. In 1970,  Brian decided to change his family-values image by playing the lead role of The Love Machine. The days after he started filing,  a motorcycle he borrowed blew up leaving him with a speech impediment and partially paralyzed on the right side of his body which ended his acting career. Brian won a legal settlement in the case and used the money in the settlement to build homes and then to produce films. He served as executive producer of Blade Runner (1982) and associate producer of Cities of the Wild (1996).

With his iconic role in Flipper, there is only one dish that is appropriate to serve on e Brian’s birthday, the classic Newfoundland treat Flipper Pie. If you have seen The Shipping News (2001) which was filmed on location in Newfoundland, Flipper Pie was served in one of the memorable scenes. Flipper Pie which was a specialty of the Hotel Newfoundland  in St. John that used to serve a weekly dinner buffet of local specialties  one evening a week, and Flipper Pie often appeared on the menu along with Fish and Brewis. This is an approximation of their recipe. Please note that no dolphins are used in this recipe, just clubbed teenaged seals which may be against seal family values.