Richard Dix

Acting

Born Jul 18, 1893

From Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA

Died Sep 20, 1949

Richard Dix was a major leading man at RKO Radio Pictures from 1929 through 1943. He was born Ernest Carlton Brimmer July 18, 1893, in St. Paul, Minnesota. There he was educated, and at the desires of his father, studied to be a surgeon. His obvious acting talent in his school dramatic club led him to leading roles in most of the school plays. At 6' 0" and 180 pounds, Dix excelled in sports, especially football and baseball. These skills would serve him well in the vigorous film roles he would go on to play. After a year at the University of Minnesota he took a position at a bank, spending his evenings training for the stage. His professional start was with a local stock company, and this led to similar work in New York. The death of his father left him with a mother and sister to support. He went to Los Angeles, became leading man for the Morosco Stock Company and his success there got him a contract with Paramount Pictures. His rugged good looks and dark features made him a popular player in westerns. His athletic ability led to his starring role in Paramount's Warming Up (1928), a baseball story and also the studio's first feature with synchronized score and sound effects. His deep voice and commanding presence were perfectly suited for the talkies, and he was signed by RKO Radio Pictures in 1929, scoring an early triumph in the all-talking mystery drama, Seven Keys to Baldpate (1929). In 1931 he was nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for his masterful performance in Cimarron (1931), winner of the Best Picture Oscar that year. Throughout the 1930s Dix would be a big box-office draw at RKO, appearing in mystery thrillers, potboilers, westerns and programmers. He appeared in the "Whistler" series of mystery films at Columbia in the mid-40s. He retired from films in 1947. He first married Winifred Coe on October 20, 1931, had a daughter, Martha Mary Ellen, then divorced in 1933. He then married Virginia Webster on June 29, 1934. They had twin boys, Richard Jr. and Robert Dix and an adopted daughter, Sara Sue. Richard Dix the actor, died at age 56 on September 20, 1949.

Richard Dix

Known For

Cimarron

The Ten Commandments

The Ghost Ship

The Stolen Jools

The Tunnel

Redskin

The Whistler

Reno

The Power of the Whistler

Stingaree

Filmography — Acting

Cimarron

The Ten Commandments

The Ghost Ship

The Stolen Jools

The Tunnel

Redskin

The Whistler

Reno

The Power of the Whistler

Stingaree

Icebound

American Empire

The Kansan

No Marriage Ties

Tombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die

The Mark of the Whistler

Voice of the Whistler

Roar of the Dragon

Yellow Dust

Seven Keys to Baldpate

Top Man

Devil's Playground

Cherokee Strip

The Secret of the Whistler

The Lost Squadron

Fascinating Youth

Ace of Aces

Mysterious Intruder

Badlands of Dakota

Quicksands

The Arizonian

The Conquerors

Devil's Squadron

Men Against the Sky

Twelve Crowded Hours

His Greatest Gamble

Special Investigator

Hell's Highway

The Thirteenth Hour

Knockout Reilly

Souls for Sale

Day of Reckoning

The Marines Fly High

Buckskin Frontier

Man of Conquest

Sky Giant

The Christian

West of the Pecos

Fools First

Manhattan

Eyes of the Underworld

The Quarterback

Here I Am a Stranger

Blind Alibi

Easy Come, Easy Go

The Roundup

The Stranger

The Public Defender

The Gay Defender

Too Many Kisses

Secret Service

The Woman with Four Faces

Sporting Goods

The Great Jasper

The Wheel of Life

Nothing but the Truth

Lovin' the Ladies