Merlin Jay Olsen is an American football player, announcer and actor. He played his entire 15-year professional football career in the National Football League as a defensive player with the Los Angeles Rams. He was selected for the Pro Bowl with a record 14 consecutive times, missing only choice in the final year of his career. The 14-season record chosen to play in the Pro Bowl, consecutive or not, is shared with current Tampa Bay Buccaneers midfielder Tom Brady, former attacking midfielder Bruce Matthews, former full-back Tony Gonzalez and former full-back Peyton Manning. Receiving the Outland Trophy title in 1961 as the best striker in college football, Olsen is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame. As an actor, he played the role of farmer Jonathan Garvey in the Little House on the prairie. After leaving the series, he starred in his own NBC television series, Father Murphy.

Los Angeles Rams tackle who spent his whole 15-year career with the team. He was both a sportscaster and an actor, well known for his role as Jonathan Garvey on Little House on the Prairie.