Acting · Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA · Born July 18, 1893
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.
MovieThe Thirteenth Hour
1947
as Steve Reynolds
MovieThe Secret of the Whistler
1946
as Ralph Harrison
MovieMysterious Intruder
1946
as Don Gale
MovieVoice of the Whistler
1945
as John Sinclair / John Carter
MovieThe Power of the Whistler
1945
as William Everest
MovieThe Mark of the Whistler
1944
as Lee Selfridge Nugent
MovieThe Whistler
1944
as Earl C. Conrad
MovieThe Ghost Ship
1943
as Capt. Will Stone
MovieTop Man
1943
as Tom Warren
MovieThe Kansan
1943
as John Bonniwell
MovieBuckskin Frontier
1943
as Stephen Brent
MovieAmerican Empire
1942
as Dan Taylor
MovieEyes of the Underworld
1942
as Police Chief Richard Bryan
MovieTombstone: The Town Too Tough to Die
1942
as Wyatt Earp
MovieBadlands of Dakota
1941
as James Butler "Wild Bill" Hickok
MovieThe Roundup
1941
as Steve Payson
MovieCherokee Strip
1940
as Marshal Dave Lovell
MovieMen Against the Sky
1940
as Phil Mercedes
MovieThe Marines Fly High
1940
as Lt. Danny Darrick
MovieReno
1939
as William Shayne
MovieHere I Am a Stranger
1939
as Duke Allen
MovieMan of Conquest
1939
as Sam Houston
MovieTwelve Crowded Hours
1939
as Nick Green
MovieSky Giant
1938
as Capt. W.R. 'Stag' Cahill
MovieBlind Alibi
1938
as Paul Dover
MovieIt Happened in Hollywood
1937
as Tim Bart
MovieThe Devil Is Driving
1937
as Paul Driscoll
MovieDevil's Playground
1937
as Jack Dorgan
MovieSpecial Investigator
1936
as Bill Fenwick
MovieDevil's Squadron
1936
as Paul Redmond
MovieYellow Dust
1936
as Bob Culpepper
MovieThe Tunnel
1935
as Richard 'Mack' McAllan
MovieThe Arizonian
1935
as Clay Tallant
MovieWest of the Pecos
1934
as Pecos Smith
MovieHis Greatest Gamble
1934
as Phillip
MovieStingaree
1934
as Stingaree
MovieDay of Reckoning
1933
as John Day
MovieAce of Aces
1933
as Rex 'Rocky' Thorne
MovieNo Marriage Ties
1933
as Bruce Foster
MovieThe Great Jasper
1933
as Jasper Horn
MovieThe Conquerors
1932
as Roger Standish / Roger Lennox
MovieHell's Highway
1932
as Frank 'Duke' Ellis
MovieRoar of the Dragon
1932
as Carson
MovieThe Lost Squadron
1932
as Capt. 'Gibby' Gibson
MovieSecret Service
1931
as Lewis Dumont
MovieThe Public Defender
1931
as Pike Winslow
MovieYoung Donovan's Kid
1931
as Jim Donovan
MovieThe Stolen Jools
1931
as Richard Dix
MovieCimarron
1931
as Yancey Cravat
MovieShooting Straight
1930
as Larry Sheldon / Ted Walters
MovieLovin' the Ladies
1930
as Peter
MovieSeven Keys to Baldpate
1929
as William Magee
MovieRedskin
1929
as Wing Foot
MovieThe Wheel of Life
1929
as Capt. Leslie Yeullet
MovieA Ziegfeld Midnight Frolic
1929
as Self
MovieNothing but the Truth
1929
as Robert Bennett
MovieThe Love Doctor
1929
as Dr. Gerald Summer
MovieMoran of the Marines
1928
as Michael Moran
MovieWarming Up
1928
as Bert Tulliver
MovieEasy Come, Easy Go
1928
as Robert Parker
MovieSporting Goods
1928
as Richard Shelby
MovieThe Gay Defender
1927
as Joaquin Murrieta
MovieShanghai Bound
1927
as Jim Bucklin
MovieMan Power
1927
as Tom Roberts
MovieKnockout Reilly
1927
as Dundee 'Knockout' Reilly
MovieParadise for Two
1927
as Steve Porter
MovieThe Quarterback
1926
as Jack Stone
MovieSay It Again
1926
as Bob Howard
MovieFascinating Youth
1926
as Richard Dix
MovieLet's Get Married
1926
as Billy Dexter
MovieWomanhandled
1925
as Bill Dana
MovieThe Vanishing American
1925
as Nophaie
MovieThe Lucky Devil
1925
as Randy Farnum
MovieMen and Women
1925
as Will Prescott
MovieThe Shock Punch
1925
as Randall Lee Savage
MovieA Man Must Live
1925
as Geoffrey Farnell
MovieToo Many Kisses
1925
as Richard Gaylord, Jr.
MovieManhattan
1924
as Peter Minuit
MovieSinners in Heaven
1924
as Alan Croft
MovieUnguarded Women
1924
as Douglas Albright
MovieIcebound
1924
as Ben Jordan
MovieThe Stranger
1924
as Larry Darrant
MovieThe Call of the Canyon
1923
as Glenn Kilbourne
MovieThe Ten Commandments
1923
as John McTavish
MovieTo the Last Man
1923
as Jean Isbel
MovieRacing Hearts
1923
as Robby Smith
MovieThe Woman with Four Faces
1923
as Richard Templar
MovieSouls for Sale
1923
as Frank Claymore
MovieQuicksands
1923
as Lt. Bill
MovieThe Christian
1923
as John Storm
MovieThe Sin Flood
1922
as Bill Bear
MovieThe Bonded Woman
1922
as Lee Marvin
MovieFools First
1922
as Tommy Frazer
MovieYellow Men and Gold
1922
as Parrish
MovieThe Wall Flower
1922
as Walt Breen
MovieThe Glorious Fool
1922
as Billy Grant
MovieThe Poverty of Riches
1921
as John Colby
MovieDangerous Curve Ahead
1921
as Harley Jones
MovieAll's Fair in Love
1921
as Bobby Cameron
MovieNot Guilty
1921
as Paul / Arthur Ellison (twins)
MovieOne of Many
1917
as James Lowery - Butler
