Editing Richard Dix

{{Short description|American actor (1893–1949)}}
{{about|the American actor|the English footballer|Richard Dix (footballer)}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Richard Dix
| image              = Film actor Richard Dix (SAYRE 23518).jpg
| caption            = Dix in 1923
| birth_name         = Ernst Carlton Brimmer
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1893|7|18}}
| birth_place        = [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]], U.S.
| death_date         = {{nowrap|{{Death date and age|1949|9|20|1893|07|18}}}}
| death_place        = [[Los Angeles, California]], U.S.
| resting_place      = [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)]]
| awards             = [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]]
| occupation         = Actor
| years_active       = 1914–1947
| spouse             = {{Plainlist|
* {{marriage|Winifred Coe|1931|1933|end=div}}
* {{marriage|Virginia Webster|1934<!--As marriage ended with his death, year is omitted per Template:Marriage instructions--->}}
}}
| children           = 4
}}

'''Richard Dix''' (born '''Ernst Carlton Brimmer''';<ref>{{cite book|last1=Stephens|first1=E. J.|last2=Wanamaker|first2=Marc|title=Early Poverty Row Studios|date=2014|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|isbn=9781439648292|page=88|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s0NoBQAAQBAJ&q=%22Ernst+Carlton+Brimmer%22&pg=PA88|access-date=28 May 2017|language=en}}</ref> July 18, 1893 – September 20, 1949) was an American [[motion picture]] [[actor]] who achieved popularity in both [[silent film|silent]] and [[sound film]].<ref>Obituary ''[[Variety Obituaries|Variety]]'', September 21, 1949.</ref> His standard on-screen image was that of the rugged and stalwart hero. He was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] for his lead role in the [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]-winning epic ''[[Cimarron (1931 film)|Cimarron]]'' (1931).<ref>{{cite web|title=("Richard Dix" search results)|url=http://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/search/results|website=Academy Awards Database|access-date=28 May 2017}}{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

Dix appeared in 101 film roles, credited from his first appearance.  Plagued by alcoholism, he died at 56, just two years after his film career had ended.

==Early life==
Dix was born Ernst Carlton Brimmer on July 18, 1893, in [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]].<ref name="sp">{{cite book |last1=Slide|first1=Anthony |title=Silent Players: A Biographical and Autobiographical Study of 100 Silent Film Actors and Actresses |date=2010 |publisher=University Press of Kentucky |isbn=978-0813127088 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=plpL_xdI6NoC&q=%22Richard+Dix%22&pg=PT92 |access-date=28 May 2017 |language=en}}</ref> He received his schooling there, intending to become a surgeon to please his father. Standing 6 feet and weighing 180 pounds, Dix excelled in sports, especially football and baseball. His obvious acting talent in his school dramatic club also led him to leading roles in most of the school plays. After a year at the [[University of Minnesota]], he took a position at a bank, and trained for the stage in the evening. His professional start was with a local stock company, and this led to similar work in New York City. He then went to Los Angeles and became leading man for the Morosco Stock Company.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Marsh |first1=Molly |title=Richard Dix---A Gentleman of the Soil |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/11303542/oakland_tribune/ |work=Oakland Tribune |date=December 16, 1934 |location=California, Oakland |page=62 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=May 26, 2017}} {{Open access}}</ref> His success there earned him a contract with [[Paramount Pictures]].

==Career==
[[File:The Wall Flower (1922) - 1.jpg|thumb|[[Gertrude Astor]], [[Colleen Moore]] and Dix filming ''[[The Wall Flower]]'' in 1922]]

Upon arrival at [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]] studios Brimmer changed his name to Richard Dix. He began his [[Cinema of the United States#Classical Hollywood cinema and the Golden Age of Hollywood|Hollywood]] film career in dramas and romantic comedies.  His first [[Western movie|Western]] was in 1923, ''[[To the Last Man (1923 film)|To the Last Man]]'', his seventeenth picture, immediately followed by his best-remembered early role in [[Cecil B. Demille]]'s silent version of ''[[The Ten Commandments (1923 film)|The Ten Commandments]]''.

Able to successfully bridge the transition from silent films to talkies and remain a [[leading man]], he was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] in 1931 for his performance as Yancey Cravat in [[RKO]]'s ''[[Cimarron (1931 film)|Cimarron]]''.  Based on the popular novel by [[Edna Ferber]], it took the [[Best Picture]] award. Another memorable starring role for Dix was in a followup RKO blockbuster, the adventure ''[[The Lost Squadron]].''

[[File:RedSkin2.jpg|thumb|''[[Redskin (film)|Redskin]]'' in 1929 was Dix's last silent film]]
[[File:The Ghost Ship (1943 poster).jpg|thumb|Dix was deep into [[B film]]s by 1943; the budget for ''[[The Ghost Ship]]'' was a mere $150,000.]]

Plagued by alcoholism, Dix was unable to maintain his [[feature film|A-list]] leading man status, and spiraled into [[B movie|B pictures]].  He starred in the 1935 British futuristic film ''[[The Tunnel (1935 film)|The Tunnel]]'', as well as ''The Great Jasper'' and ''[[Blind Alibi]]'' in the late 1930s. Dix also starred as the homicidal Captain Stone in the [[Val Lewton]] production of ''[[The Ghost Ship]]''.

[[File:Richard Dix (crop) The Kansan (1943).jpg|thumb|''[[The Kansan (film)|The Kansan]]'' in 1943 was another B picture, and Dix's last Western]]
In 1941, Dix played [[Wild Bill Hickok]] in ''Badlands of Dakota'' and portrayed [[Wyatt Earp]] the following year in ''[[Tombstone, the Town Too Tough to Die]]''.

In 1944, he starred in ''[[The Whistler (1944 film)|The Whistler]]'', a feature film produced by [[Columbia Pictures]] based on the popular radio program. The film adaptation was popular enough to become a series. In these offbeat, crime-related stories, Dix did ''not'' play "The Whistler" (who was an unseen narrator representing the central character's conscience). He appeared in a variety of characterizations, some sympathetic, others hard-boiled, but always victims of fate and circumstances conspiring against him. Dix retired from acting after the seventh of these films, ''[[The Thirteenth Hour (1947 film)|The Thirteenth Hour]]''. He suffered a heart attack in October 1948<ref>''Motion Picture Daily'', "Richard Dix Is Ill," October 27, 1948, p. 2.</ref> and continued to have heart trouble until his death within the year.

==Personal life==
{{moresources|section|date=April 2024}}
According to the July 1934 ''Movies'' magazine, Dix raised thousands of chickens and turkeys each year on his ranch near Hollywood, the location of which he kept a close secret. He also had a collection of thousands of smoking pipes, and at one time had 36 Scotties and English setters. He also read at least five books a week. 

Richard Dix married Winifred Coe on October 20, 1931. A daughter, Martha Mary Ellen, followed. They divorced in 1933. He married Virginia Webster, on June 29, 1934. They had twin boys, Richard Jr. and [[Robert Dix]] (1935–2018), and adopted a daughter, Sara Sue.

Dix supported [[Thomas Dewey]] in the [[1944 United States presidential election]].<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QfHXAAAAQBAJ&q=richard%20dix |title=When Hollywood Was Right: How Movie Stars, Studio Moguls, and Big Business Remade American Politics |isbn=9781107650282 |last1=Critchlow |first1=Donald T. |date=2013-10-21|publisher=Cambridge University Press }}</ref>

After years of fighting alcoholism, Dix suffered a serious [[myocardial infarction|heart attack]] at 56 on September 12, 1949, either on a train from New York to Los Angeles<ref>''The Advertiser (Adelaide)'', "Richard Dix Ill", September 14, 1949, pg. 1.</ref><ref name=sp/>) or while on board a ship returning from France.<ref name=biodic>{{cite book |last1=Katchmer |first1=George A. |title=A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses |date=2009 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=9781476609058 |page=96 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VnGeCQAAQBAJ&q=%22Richard+Dix%22&pg=PA96 |access-date=28 May 2017 |language=en}}</ref> He died eight days later at  the Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital,<ref name=biodic/> and is interred in [[Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)|Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery]] in [[Glendale, California]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FOHgDAAAQBAJ&q=Richard+Dix+burial+site+scott+wilson&pg=PA199 |title=Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons, 3d ed. |first=Scott |last=Wilson |date=August 19, 2016 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=9781476625997 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

==Legacy==
Dix has a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]] in the Motion Pictures section at 1610 Vine Street. It was dedicated February 8, 1960.<ref>{{cite web |title=Richard Dix |url=http://www.walkoffame.com/richard-dix |website=Hollywood Walk of Fame |access-date=28 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170528031706/http://www.walkoffame.com/richard-dix |archive-date=28 May 2017}}</ref>

Dix is mentioned in the film ''[[Blazing Saddles]]'', when Olson Johnson tries to rouse the townspeople: "Our fathers came across the prairies, fought Indians, fought drought, fought locusts, fought Dix... Remember when Richard Dix came in here and tried to take over this town?"

==Filmography==
===Silent Films===
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%;"
! width=10 | Year
! width=180 | Title
! width=180 | Role
! width=290 | Notes
|-
| 1917
| ''One of Many''
| James Lowery
| '''Lost''' film
|-
| rowspan="4"|1921
| ''[[Not Guilty (1921 film)|Not Guilty]]'' 
| Paul Ellison / Arthur Ellison
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[All's Fair in Love]]''
|Bobby Cameron
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Dangerous Curve Ahead]]''
|Harley Jones
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Poverty of Riches]]''
|John Colby
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|rowspan="6"|1922
|''Yellow Men and Gold''
|Parrish
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Fools First]]''
|Tommy Frazer
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Wall Flower]]''
|Walt Breen
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Bonded Woman]]''
|Lee Marvin
| A copy is held at Gosfilmofond
|-
|''[[The Sin Flood (1922 film)|The Sin Flood]]''
|Bill Bear
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Glorious Fool]]''
|Billy Grant
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|rowspan="8"|1923
|''[[The Christian (1923 film)|The Christian]]''
|John Storm
|A copy is held at the George Eastman House
|-
|''[[Quicksands (1923 film)|Quicksands]]''
|Lieutenant Bill
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Souls for Sale]]''
|Frank Claymore
|
|-
|''[[The Woman With Four Faces|The Woman with Four Faces]]''
|Richard Templar
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Racing Hearts]]''
|Robby Smith
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[To the Last Man (1923 film)|To the Last Man]]''
|Jean Isbel
|A copy is held at Gosfilmofond
|-
|''[[The Ten Commandments (1923 film)|The Ten Commandments]]''
|John McTavish
| Copies are held at George Eastman and the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[The Call of the Canyon (film)|The Call of the Canyon]]''
|Glenn Kilbourne
|Copies are held at Gosfilmofond and the Library of Congress
|-
|rowspan="5"|1924
|''[[The Stranger (1924 film)|The Stranger]]''
|Larry Darrant
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Icebound (1924 film)|Icebound]]''
|Ben Jordan
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Unguarded Women]]''
|Douglas Albright
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Sinners In Heaven (1924 film)|Sinners In Heaven]]''
|Alan Croft
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Manhattan (1924 film)|Manhattan]]''
|Peter Minuit
|
|-
|rowspan="7"|1925
|''[[Too Many Kisses]]''
|Richard Gaylord Jr
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[A Man Must Live]]''
|Geoffrey Farnell
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Shock Punch]]''
|Randall Lee Savage
|A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[Men and Women (1925 film)|Men and Women]]''
|Will Prescott
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Lucky Devil]]''
|Randy Farnum
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[The Vanishing American (1925 film)|The Vanishing American]]''
|Nophaie
|A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[Womanhandled]]''
|Bill Dana
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|rowspan="4"|1926 
|''[[Let's Get Married (1926 film)|Let's Get Married]]''
|Billy Dexter
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|''[[Fascinating Youth]]''
|Himself (cameo)
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Say It Again (film)|Say It Again]]''
|Bob Howard
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Quarterback (1926 film)|The Quarterback]]''
|Jack Stone
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress
|-
|rowspan="5"|1927
|''[[Paradise for Two (1927 film)|Paradise for Two]]''
|Steve Porter
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Knockout Reilly]]''
|Dundee "Knockout" Reilly
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Man Power (film)|Man Power]]''
|Tom Roberts
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Shanghai Bound]]''
|Jim Bucklin
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[The Gay Defender]]''
|[[Joaquin Murrieta]]
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|rowspan="4"|1928
|''[[Sporting Goods]]''
|Richard Shelby
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Easy Come, Easy Go (1928 film)|Easy Come, Easy Go]]''
|Robert Parker
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|''[[Warming Up (1928 film)|Warming Up]]''
|Bert Tulliver
| '''Lost''' film <br /> filmed in silent and [[Movietone sound system|Movietone]] sound version with music and sound effects only
|-
|''[[Moran of the Marines]]''
|Michael Moran
| '''Lost''' film
|-
|rowspan="1"|1929
|''[[Redskin (film)|Redskin]]''
|Wingfoot
| A copy is held at the Library of Congress; partly filmed in [[Technicolor#Process 3|Technicolor]]
|}

===Sound films===
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%;"
! Year
! Title
! Role
! Notes
|-
|rowspan="4"|1929
|''[[Nothing But the Truth (1929 film)|Nothing But the Truth]]''
|Robert Bennett
|
|-
|''[[The Wheel of Life (film)|The Wheel of Life]]''
|Captain Leslie Yeullet
|
|-
|''[[The Love Doctor (film)|The Love Doctor]]''
|Dr. Gerald Summer
|
|-
|''[[Seven Keys to Baldpate (1929 film)|Seven Keys to Baldpate]]''
|William Halliwell Magee
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1930
|''[[Lovin' the Ladies]]''
|Peter Darby
|
|-
|''[[Shooting Straight]]''
|Larry Sheldon
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1931
|''[[Cimarron (1931 film)|Cimarron]]''
|[[Temple Lea Houston#Representation in other media|Yancey Cravat]]
|Nominated—[[Academy Award for Best Actor]]
|-
|''[[Young Donovan's Kid]]''
|Jim Donovan
|
|-
|''[[The Public Defender]]''
|Pike Winslow
|
|-
|''[[Secret Service (1931 film)|Secret Service]]''
|Captain Lewis Dumont
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1932
|''[[The Lost Squadron]]''
|Capt. "Gibby" Gibson
|
|-
|''[[Roar of the Dragon]]''
|Captain Chauncey Carson
|
|-
|''[[Hell's Highway (1932 film)|Hell's Highway]]''
|Frank 'Duke' Ellis
|
|-
|''[[The Conquerors (1932 film)|The Conquerors]]''
|Roger Standish / Roger Standish Lennox
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1933
|''[[The Great Jasper]]''
|Jasper Horn
|
|-
|''[[No Marriage Ties]]''
|Bruce Foster
|
|-
|''[[Ace of Aces (1933 film)|Ace of Aces]]''
|2nd Lt. Rex "Rocky" Thorne
|
|-
|''[[Day of Reckoning (1933 film)|Day of Reckoning]]''
|John Day
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|1934
|''[[Stingaree (1934 film)|Stingaree]]''
|Stingaree
|
|-
|''[[His Greatest Gamble]]''
|Phillip Eden
|
|-
|''[[West of the Pecos (1934 film)|West of the Pecos]]''
|Pecos Smith
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1935
|''[[The Arizonian]]''
|Clay Tallant
|
|-
|''[[The Tunnel (1935 film)|The Tunnel]]''
|Richard 'Mack" McAllan
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|1936
|''[[Yellow Dust (film)|Yellow Dust]]''
|Bob Culpepper
|
|-
|''[[Special Investigator (film)|Special Investigator]]''
|William "Bill" Fenwick
|
|-
|''[[Devil's Squadron]]''
|Paul Redmond
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|1937
|''[[The Devil's Playground (1937 film)|The Devil's Playground]]''
|Jack Dorgan
|
|-
|''[[The Devil Is Driving (1937 film)|The Devil is Driving]]''
|Paul Driscoll
|
|-
|''[[It Happened in Hollywood]]''
|Tim Bart
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1938
|''[[Blind Alibi]]''
|Paul Dover
|
|-
|''[[Sky Giant]]''
|Capt. W.R. "Stag" Cahill
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1939
|''[[Twelve Crowded Hours]]''
|Nick Green
|
|-
|''[[Man of Conquest]]''
|[[Sam Houston]]
|
|-
|''[[Here I Am a Stranger]]''
|Duke Allen
|
|-
|''[[Reno (1939 film)|Reno]]''
|William Shayne aka Bill Shear
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|1940
|''[[The Marines Fly High]]''
|Lt. Danny Darrick
|
|-
|''[[Men Against the Sky]]''
|Phil Mercedes
|
|-
|''[[Cherokee Strip (film)|Cherokee Strip]]''
|Marshal Dave Lovell
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1941
|''[[The Round Up (1941 film)|The Round Up]]''
|Steve Payson
|
|-
|''[[Badlands of Dakota]]''
|[[Wild Bill Hickok]]
|
|-
|rowspan="3"|1942
|''[[Tombstone, the Town Too Tough to Die]]''
|[[Wyatt Earp]]
|
|-
|''[[Eyes of the Underworld (1942 film)|Eyes of the Underworld]]''
|Police Chief Richard Bryan
|
|-
|''[[American Empire (film)|American Empire]]''
|Dan Taylor
|
|-
|rowspan="4"|1943
|''[[Buckskin Frontier]]''
|Stephen Bent
|
|-
|''[[The Kansan (film)|The Kansan]]''
|John Bonniwell
|
|-
|''[[Top Man (film)|Top Man]]''
|Tom Warren
|
|-
|''[[The Ghost Ship]]''
|Captain Will Stone
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1944
|''[[The Whistler (1944 film)|The Whistler]]''
|Earl C. Conrad
|
|-
|''[[The Mark of the Whistler]]''
|Lee Selfridge Nugent
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1945
|''[[The Power of the Whistler]]''
|William Everest
|
|-
|''[[Voice of the Whistler]]''
|John Sinclair (John Carter)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"|1946
|''[[Mysterious Intruder]]''
|Don Gale
|
|-
|''[[The Secret of the Whistler]]''
|Ralph Harrison
|
|-
|1947
|''[[The Thirteenth Hour (1947 film)|The Thirteenth Hour]]''
|Steve Reynolds
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Bibliography===
* Dix, Robert. ''Out of Hollywood: Two Generations of Actors''. Ernest Publishing, 2009. {{ISBN|978-0-9822436-0-2}}
* Van Neste, Dan.  "''The Whistler: Stepping Into the Shadows''". Albany, GA: BearManor Media, 2011.  {{ISBN|978-1-59393-402-6}}

==External links==
{{Portal|Biography}}
{{commons category}}
* {{IMDb name|0228715}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* [http://www.richarddix.org/ Richard Dix tribute site]
* [http://film.virtual-history.com/person.php?personid=806 Photographs of Richard Dix]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dix, Richard}}
[[Category:American male stage actors]]
[[Category:University of Minnesota alumni]]
[[Category:American male silent film actors]]
[[Category:American male film actors]]
[[Category:Male Western (genre) film actors]]
[[Category:Male actors from Saint Paul, Minnesota]]
[[Category:1893 births]]
[[Category:1949 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American male actors]]
[[Category:Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale)]]
[[Category:Paramount Pictures contract players]]
[[Category:RKO Pictures contract players]]