Bill Bixby

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Bill Bixby (January 22, 1934 – November 21, 1993) was an American film and television actor, director and frequent game show panelist whose career spanned over three decades, starring in five TV series. For the course of his long career, he was best known for his portrayal of Tim O'Hara in My Favorite Martian (1963–1966) on CBS, Tom Corbett, in The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1969–1972) on ABC; and as Dr. David Banner in The Incredible Hulk (1978-1982), with Lou Ferrigno on CBS. He also starred in The Magician (1973) and Goodnight Beantown (1984).

Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Career as an actor 2.1 My Favorite Martian 2.2 The Courtship of Eddie's Father 2.3 1973 to 1977 2.4 The Incredible Hulk 2.5 Later work 3 Personal life 4 External links

[edit] Early life and career

An only child, he was born as Wilfred Bailey Bixby, a fourth-generation Californian, in San Francisco, California. His father, Wilfred Everett Bixby, was a store clerk and his mother, Jane Bixby, was a department store owner. When Bixby was 8, his father enlisted in the U.S. Navy during World War II and traveled to the South Pacific. He attended Lowell High School where he perfected his oratory and dramatic skills as a member of the Lowell Forensic Society. Though he received average grades, he also competed in high school speech tournaments regionally. After graduation from high school in 1952, against his parents' wishes, he majored in drama at San Francisco City College, where he was a classmate of Lee Meriwether. Later, he attended the University of California, Berkeley, his parents' alma mater. Just four credits short of earning a degree, Bixby dropped out of college and was drafted into the United States Marine Corps.

He then moved to Hollywood where he had a string of odd jobs that included bellhop and lifeguard. He organized shows at a resort in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. In 1959, he was hired to work as a model and to do commercial work for General Motors and Chrysler.

[edit] Career as an actor

In 1961, Bixby was in the musical The Boyfriend at the Detroit Civic Theater, returning to Hollywood to make his television debut on an episode of The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Bixby became a highly regarded character actor and guest-starred in many 1960s TV series including Ben Casey, The Twilight Zone, The Andy Griffith Show, Dr. Kildare and Hennessey. He also joined the cast of The Joey Bishop Show in 1962. During the 1970s, he made guest-appearances on TV series such as Ironside, Insight, Barbary Coast, The Love Boat, Medical Center, four episodes of Love, American Style, Fantasy Island and two episodes of The Streets of San Francisco. His appearance on The Streets of San Francisco earned him an Emmy Award nomination in 1976 for Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in Drama or Comedy.

[edit] My Favorite Martian

Bixby took the role of young reporter Tim O'Hara in the 1963 CBS sitcom, My Favorite Martian. The show was a ratings winner in its first year, earning tenth place among all primetime shows.^{[citation needed]} But by 1966, bad scripts and high production costs forced the series to come to an end after 107 episodes.

After the cancellation of Martian, Bixby starred in four box-office movies: Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966), You've Got to Be Kidding (1967), and two of Elvis Presley's movies, Clambake (1967), and Speedway (1968).

He turned down the role as Marlo Thomas's boyfriend in That Girl and starred in two failed pilots.

[edit] The Courtship of Eddie's Father

In 1969 Bixby starred in his second high profile television role, as Tom Corbett in the successful dramedy show, The Courtship of Eddie's Father for ABC. The series concerned a widowed father raising a young son while trying to re-establish himself on the dating scene. Bixby's co-star on the show was unknown child actor Brandon Cruz; the pair developed a close chemistry that translated to an off-camera friendship as well. The cast was rounded out by Academy Award winning actress Miyoshi Umeki who played the role of Tom's maid, Mrs. Livingston, and James Komack (one of the series' producers) as Norman Tinker.

One episode of the show co-starred Bixby's future wife Brenda Benet as one of Tom's girlfriends.

Bixby was nominated for an Emmy Award for Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 1971, but did not win. The following year, he won the Parents Without Partners Exemplary Service Award for 1972. He also made his directorial debut on the show in 1970.

By its final season, Courtship's ratings had slumped, the scripts focused more on Komack's as well as Bixby's character and this led to friction between star and producer.^{[citation needed]} ABC pulled the plug on the sitcom in 1972 after 73 episodes.

Brandon Cruz said of his costar that Bixby was always looking after him, giving him great advice and in many ways being a "second father" to the young actor. Years after the show ended, their relationship remained strong. Shortly after Bixby's death, Cruz named his own son, Lincoln Bixby Cruz.

[edit] 1973 to 1977

In 1973, Bixby starred in The Magician but the series only lasted one season.

He became a popular game show panelist, appearing mostly on Password and The Hollywood Squares. He was also a panelist on the 1974 revival of Masquerade Party hosted by Richard Dawson. He had also appeared with Dawson on Cop-Out.

He co-starred with Tim Conway and Don Knotts in The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975). Unlike the previous movies that Bixby starred in, this one received mediocre reviews.

Returning to television, he worked with Susan Blakely on Rich Man, Poor Man (1976). An accomplished amateur magician himself, he hosted several TV specials in the mid-1970s which featured other amateur magicians.

[edit] The Incredible Hulk

In 1977 Bixby starred in a two-hour pilot movie called The Incredible Hulk, based loosely on the Stan Lee-created Marvel comic of the same name. Its success (coupled with some theatrical releases of the film in Europe) convinced CBS to turn it into a weekly science-fiction series which began airing in early 1978. The series was a hit and was seen in over 70 countries. Bixby felt that the make-up requirements for his part were onerous. The show made Bixby into a pop icon of the 1980s.

Lou Ferrigno, who was a bodybuilder, played "The Hulk," as both Bixby & Ferrigno even had a wonderful chemistry together. At times, Bixby gave Ferrigno that nervous look on his face as his character would try to be angry at times.

During the show's run, he invited two of his long-time friends, Ray Walston and Brandon Cruz to guest star with him in different episodes of the series. He also worked on the show with Mariette Hartley, who would later star with Bixby in his final series, Goodnight Beantown, and Loni Anderson would also guest star with Bixby, during the second season, as well. Bixby directed an episode of Hulk in 1981; the series was cancelled soon after. Bixby was disappointed that his character was not cured of his condition in the final episode.

[edit] Later work

After finishing Hulk, Bixby left acting after 24 years, as he turned towards directing, from his own short-lived comedy, Goodnight, Beantown with Mariette Hartley to the successful satirical police sitcom Sledge Hammer! In addition Bixby directed two of the three Hulk TV revivals in the late '80s and early '90s. He was also lead director on the TV sitcom Blossom. He hosted two Is Elvis Alive? specials in August 1991 and January 1992 [1]. Additionally, in 1992, Bixby became an outspoken advocate for prostate cancer research, a disease which would ultimately take his life.

[edit] Personal life

Bixby lost his father to a heart attack in 1971, a month before his first wedding. Bixby scattered his ashes in the Pacific off the island of Maui.

Bixby was married three times. His first marriage was to actress and former Miss USA contestant Brenda Benet in 1971. She gave birth to their son Christopher on September 25, 1974. In addition to their earlier appearance together on Courtship, Benet guest-starred with him on The Incredible Hulk in 1980 just before they divorced. On March 1, 1981, Bixby's six-year-old son Christopher died suddenly of a rare throat infection. His ashes were scattered in the Pacific off the island of Maui like his grandfather's. Benet committed suicide in April 1982.

In 1989 he met Laura Michaels, who had worked on the set of one of his Hulk movies. The couple married a year later in Hawaii. In early 1991, Bixby was diagnosed with prostate cancer and underwent treatment for the disease. He was divorced in the same year. In late 1992, friends introduced him to the artist Judith Kliban, widow of B. Kliban, a cartoonist who had died of cancer. Bixby married Judith in late 1993, just six weeks before he collapsed on the set of Blossom.

In early 1993, after rumours began circulating about his health, Bixby decided to go public with his illness, discussing his disease and the energy needed to keep him alive. As a result, he made several guest appearances on shows such as Entertainment Tonight, The Today Show, and Good Morning America among many others.

Unfortunately Bixby's cancer recurred and was diagnosed as inoperable. On November 21, 1993, six days after his final assignment on Blossom, Bill Bixby died of complications from cancer in Century City, California. His wife and another longtime friend of Bixby's, Dick Martin, were by his side. After his death, Bixby's ashes were scattered in the Pacific off the island of Maui, just as his father's and son's were. A week after Bixby's death, Judith and Bill's family were joined by many mourners at a private memorial. Martin, Loni Anderson, Bob Newhart, Mike Connors, Lou Ferrigno, Kenneth Johnson, Paul Williams, Mariette Hartley, Harry Nilsson, Ray Walston, Richard Crenna, Brandon Cruz, and Miyoshi Umeki were present. The entire cast of Blossom attended with the exception of Mayim Bialik.

[edit] External links

• Bill Bixby at the Internet Movie Database
• Bill Bixby at the Notable Names Database