Regulars at Ricky Nelson parties should be known as the 'Cinderella Set'. The last guest has always left by midnight - a time when the average Hollywood shindig is just getting started. 'Sure I like parties,' says Ricky, 'But I also like my sIeep.' Rick, 21, recently moved into a home of his own which is opposite his parents' house. 'But that's no excuse to go wild,' points out the blue-eyed six footer. My idea of a swinging party is a bit out of tune with what is considered to be the typical Hollywood party. No one ever gets pushed into the swimming pool, we don't have one. 'And no one gets drunk. As soon as I see someone headed in that direction I call a cab and I say to the radio operator, 'make sure you send a big driver,' in case the guy gets out of hand. 'A swinging party doesn't have to be noisy in my opinion. I define swinging as having a qood time, and I've found out that the best times are the quiet times'.

Ricky thinks parties should be well organised. 'For example', he says. 'I always ask my guests to come along with a 'party piece'. 'The result? Well, some guy comes along with a guitar and we all sit around and sing folk-songs. A girl comes along with her ballet shoes and does a dance. 'One guy came along to my last party with one of those horns that 'Swiss shepherds use to call the sheep in the mountains. None of us could get a tune out of it. Ricky also believes in a varied party guest list. 'I've one criticism about parties in general,' he says. 'Too often the ages and the job levels of the guests are more or less the same. 'This is particularly the case here in Hollywood. I try to be different. At my last party the age of the guests ranged from 17 to a charming gentleman of 82. 'What do you get from such a mixed-up group? A wonderul time'. Ricky features 'food themes' at his parties. At one party he might serve all ltallian food, at the next all Japanese, and so on. After his tour of Australia about 18 months ago, he had a party where the theme was 'All Australian', even to the kangaroo tail soup. Ricky averages one or two parties a month. He dates about once a week. 'A date with me isn't very memorable' he laughed. 'I guess girls think I'm a cheapskate, but honestly, I just don't dig those flashy restaurants and nightclubs. I like the kind of place that doesn't demand white tie and tails. Drive-in movies are big on my list - and hamburger joints'. And what kind of a girl does he like to date? 'Not the career type', he says. 'You know you go out with her, everything is going happily then she bursts out singing. That's happened to me about twice. 'She hopes you'll go off, phone an influential friend and say you've made a discovery. 'No. I like quiet, wholesome girls, and girls who know what's going on in the word'.