| Victor Adamson | |
|---|---|
| Born | Albert Victor Adamson January 4, 1890 Kansas City, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | November 9, 1972 (aged 82) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Other names | Denver Dixon, A. V. Anderson, Robert Charles, Al James, Van Johnson, Art Mix |
| Occupation | Screenwriter, film director, film producer, and actor |
| Years active | 1910 – 1970 |
| Spouse | Dolores Booth (? – 1959) |
Victor Adamson (January 4, 1890 – November 9, 1972) was an American director, producer, screenwriter, and actor most famous for directing and starring in B and Z grade westerns in the early days of motion pictures. Adamson often used pseudonyms to credit himself, most often using the name Denver Dixon. His son, Al Adamson, would later follow his father in producing B movies during the 1960s and 1970s.[1]
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Victor Adamson was born in Kansas City, Missouri. His family moved early in his life to Auckland, New Zealand, where he spent most of his youth. In the late 1910s, Adamson returned to the United States with a home produced movie and managed to find a distributor. Adamson decided to continue making his own movies despite a lack of early success with his films.[2]
Adamson began producing films around 1920. He called his production company Art Mix Productions and named himself the star. Adamson, however, found himself increasingly drawn to work behind the camera. He hired actor George Kesterson to act in his films using the Art Mix moniker, a name that Kesterson used for the rest of his career.[1][2]
With the advent of talking pictures, Adamson produced a series of Z grade westerns featuring actors from the silent age in the decline of their career, including Buffalo Bill, Jr., Wally Wales and Buddy Roosevelt, many of which were released by Superior Talking Pictures. Adamson's productions were of such low quality that the opening credits were often not proofread, leading to typographical errors, as in the case of the Buffalo Bill, Jr. film Lightning Bill, which was spelled Lighting Billon the title card.[1][2]
In 1936, Adamson attempted to turn a young stuntman, Wally West, into a star using the name Tom Wynn. Adamson himself costarred in the resulting film, Desert Mesa, using the pseudonym Art James. He was not able to find many companies willing to buy the film due its quality. Adamson would star in one additional film after Desert Mesa, the 1938 film Mormon Conquest.[2]
Following Mormon Conquest, Adams would appear in numerous films, mostly in bit parts, though the late 1930s and 1940s, often credited using the moniker "Denver Dixon." During this stage of his career, Adamson appeared in 130 films.[1] After a hiatus in his career, he briefly returned to film making when he produced two horror films with his son, Al Adamson, Half Way to Hell in 1961 and Two Tickets to Terror in 1963. These films would inspire the younger Adamson to produce B movies of his own during the 1960s through the early 1980s.[1][2]
Adamson died of a heart attack on November 9, 1972 in Los Angeles.[2]