Tom Mix
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Thomas Edwin Mix (born Thomas Hezikiah Mix; January 6, 1880 – October 12, 1940) was an American film actor and the star of many early
Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
films between 1909 and 1935. He appeared in 291 films, all but nine of which were
silent film A silent film is a film without synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...
s. He was one of Hollywood's first Western stars and helped define the genre as it emerged in the early days of the cinema.


Early years

Thomas Hezikiah Mix was born January 6, 1880, in Mix Run, Pennsylvania, approximately north of State College, to Edwin Elias Mix and Elizabeth Heistand. He grew up in nearby DuBois, where his father, a stable master for a wealthy lumber merchant, taught him to ride and love horses. He spent time working on a local farm owned by John DuBois, a lumber businessman. In April 1898, during the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
, Mix enlisted in the
Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
under the name Thomas E. (Edwin) Mix. His unit never went overseas, and Mix later failed to return for duty after an extended furlough when he married Grace I. Allin on July 18, 1902. Mix was listed as AWOL on November 4, 1902, but was never
court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...
ed. His marriage to Allin was annulled after one year. In 1905, Mix married Kitty Jewel Perinne, and this marriage also ended within a year. He next married Olive Stokes on January 10, 1909, in
Medora, North Dakota Medora (, ) is a city in Billings County, North Dakota, United States. The only incorporated place in Billings County, it is also the county seat. Much of the surrounding area is part of either Little Missouri National Grassland or Theodore Roo ...
. On July 13, 1912, Olive gave birth to their daughter Ruth. In 1905, Mix rode in President
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
's inaugural parade with a group of 50 horsemen led by
Seth Bullock Seth Bullock (July 23, 1849 – September 23, 1919) was a Canadian-American frontiersman, business proprietor, politician, sheriff, and U.S. Marshal. He was a prominent citizen in Deadwood, South Dakota, where he lived from 1876 until his death, ...
, which included several former
Rough Riders The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and diso ...
. Years later, Hollywood publicists muddled this event to imply that Mix had been a Rough Rider himself. Mix went to Oklahoma and lived in Guthrie, working as a bartender and other odd jobs. He was briefly night marshal of Dewey, in 1911. He worked at the Miller Brothers 101 Ranch, one of the largest ranching businesses in the United States, covering , hence its name. The ranch had its own touring Wild West show in which Mix appeared. He stood out as a skilled horseman and expert shot, winning national riding and roping contests at
Prescott, Arizona Prescott ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. As of 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, the city's population was 45,827. In 1864, Prescott was designated as the capital of the Arizona Territory, r ...
, in 1909, and Canon City, Colorado, in 1910. Mix was a Freemason.


Film career


Selig Polyscope

Mix began his film career as a supporting cast member with the
Selig Polyscope Company The Selig Polyscope Company was an American motion picture company that was founded in 1896 by William Selig in Chicago, Illinois. The company produced hundreds of early, widely distributed commercial moving pictures, including the first films ...
. His first appearance was in a short film, '' The Cowboy Millionaire'', released on October 21, 1909. In 1910, he appeared as himself in a short documentary film, ''Ranch Life in the Great Southwest'', in which he displayed his skills as a cattle wrangler. Shot in Dewey, Oklahoma with Selig studio cameramen, the film was a success, and Mix became an early motion picture star. Mix performed in more than 100 films for Selig, many of which were filmed in
Las Vegas, New Mexico Las Vegas, often known simply as Vegas, is a city in and the county seat of San Miguel County, New Mexico, United States. Once two separate municipalities (one a city and the other a town), both were named Las Vegas: West Las Vegas ("Old Town" ...
. While with Selig he co-starred in several films with Victoria Forde, and they fell in love. He divorced Olive Stokes in 1917. By then, Selig Polyscope had encountered severe financial difficulties, and Mix and Forde both subsequently signed with
Fox Film Corporation The Fox Film Corporation (also known as Fox Studios) was an American independent company that produced motion pictures and was formed in 1914 by the theater "chain" pioneer William Fox (producer), William Fox. It was the corporate successor to ...
, which had leased the Edendale studio. They married in 1918 and had a daughter, Thomasina (Tommie) Mix, in February 1922. As a result of Mix's schedule of making six to ten movies per year, and his refusal to let her visit him while he was working, they lived apart during much of their marriage. However, she would often promote his films.


Transfer to Fox and Mixville

Soon after his departure from Selig in 1917, Mix opted to work for the Fox Film Corporation. Fox head William Fox, who liked that Mix did his own stunts, would quickly sign him. Initially paid $350 a week by Fox, Mix's transition to the studio soon proved successful, with the studio's solid financial footing playing to a much wider audience than his Selig movies could get. According the
Dewey, Oklahoma Dewey is a city in Washington County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,179 at the 2000 census and 3,432 at the 2010 census, an increase of 8 percent. It is located near the north side of Bartlesville. History In 1899, Jacob B ...
-based ''Tom Mix Museum'', "The wider exposure afforded by Fox undoubtedly contributed to Tom's move from a simply prolific actor to genuine world famous movie star." Mix made more than 160 cowboy films throughout the 1920s. These featured action-oriented scripts contrasted with the documentary style of his work with Selig.
Hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. The original hero type of classical epics did such thin ...
es and
villain A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.126 "baddy (also baddie) noun (pl. -ies) ''informal'' a villain or criminal in a book, film, etc.". the feminine form is villai ...
s were sharply defined and a clean-cut cowboy always saved the day. Millions of American children grew up watching his films on Saturday afternoons. His horse, " Tony the Wonder Horse", also became a celebrity. Mix did his own stunts and was frequently injured. In 1913, Mix moved his family to a ranch he purchased in Prescott named Bar Circle A Ranch. Some of his movies were filmed in his Prescott home. During this time, Mix had success in the local Prescott Frontier Days rodeo, which claims to be the "world's oldest rodeo". In 1920, he took first prize in a bull-riding contest. The Bar Circle A Ranch has been developed into a planned community called Yavapai Hills, where there is a street named Bar Circle A Road. Mix's salary at Fox reached $7,500 a week. Gossip columnist
Louella Parsons Louella Rose Oettinger, (August 6, 1881 – December 9, 1972) known by the pen name Louella Parsons, was an American gossip columnist and a screenwriter. At her peak, her columns were read by 20 million people in 700 newspapers worldwide. She ...
wrote that he had his initials in electric lights on the top of his house. Eventually, his salary at Fox would reach $17,500 a week. His performances were realistic with action stunts, horseback riding, attention-grabbing cowboy costumes, and showmanship. At the Edendale lot, Mix built a shooting set called Mixville. Loaded with western props and furnishings, it has been described as a "complete frontier town, with a dusty street, hitching rails, a saloon, jail, bank, doctor's office, surveyor's office, and the simple frame houses typical of the early Western era". Near the back of the lot an Indian village of lodges was ringed by miniature plaster mountains. The set also included a simulated desert, a large corral, and (to facilitate interior shots) a ranch house with no roof. Despite his successful film career, Mix opted to return to performing for the 101 Wild West Show by the mid-1920 when he wasn't making films for Fox. By 1927, low budget imitations of Mix's film spread, which led to Fox further losing interest in keeping him. In addition, Fox grew weary of using high budgets for Mix's films and paying him high salaries and wanted to instead focus more on transitioning to
sound film A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...
s. Mix would part ways with Fox in 1928. Following his departure from Fox, Mix did a vaudeville tour with the
Keith-Albee-Orpheum The Keith-Albee-Orpheum Corporation was the owner of a chain of vaudeville and motion picture theatres. It was formed by the merger of the holdings of Benjamin Franklin Keith and Edward Franklin Albee II and Martin Beck (vaudeville), Martin Beck's ...
circuit. Mix threatened to move to
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
to make films or to join the circus, but agreed to return to Hollywood in July 1928 and signed with FBO. However, he only made five films with FBO and soon left after salary disputes with FBO studio head Joseph P. Kennedy. He called Kennedy, who had also acquired a controlling stake in Keith-Albee-Orpheum shortly before Mix joined FBO, a "tight-assed, money-crazy son of a bitch"; Kennedy would only pay Mix just over half of what he made at while at Fox. Mix became friends with
Wyatt Earp Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was an American lawman in the American West, including Dodge City, Kansas, Dodge City, Wichita, Kansas, Wichita, and Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone. Earp was involved in the gunfight ...
, who lived in Los Angeles and occasionally visited Hollywood western movie sets. He was a pallbearer at Earp's funeral in January 1929. The newspapers reported that Mix cried during his friend's service. By 1929, Mix was past his prime and undergoing marital difficulties. His fourth wife Victoria was already spending his money heavily, taking their daughter Thomasina for an extended European vacation. Victoria kept spending money as though Tom were bringing it in as fast as ever, which was not the case. Shortly after signing with the Sells Floto Circus, Mix was charged with tax evasion for the year 1925–1927. Despite the fact that there was never any evidence to indicate that Mix was the instigator, or even aware, of the faulty filings, Mix nevertheless signed the forms, which had been prepared by his accountant, and eventually paid a hefty fine. This incident would tarnish his good guy image. By the end of 1929, Mix, whose big salaries as an entertainer also led to him being one of the biggest spenders in the entertainment industry, would lose not only the great majority of his fortune, but also his Arizona ranch and his Hollywood mansion in the aftermath of the 1929 stock market crash.


1930s

Mix appeared with the Sells-Floto Circus in 1929, 1930, and 1931 at a reported weekly salary of $20,000 (). Meanwhile, the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
(along with the actor's continuous free-spending ways and
alimony Alimony, also called aliment (Scotland), maintenance (England, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Canada, New Zealand), spousal support (U.S., Canada) and spouse maintenance (Australia), is a legal obligation on a person to provide ...
payments to his many wives) reportedly wiped out most of his savings. Mix and Forde divorced in 1931, and in 1932, he married his fifth wife, Mabel Hubbell Ward.
Carl Laemmle Carl Laemmle (; born Karl Lämmle ; January 17, 1867 – September 24, 1939) was a German-American film producer and the co-founder and, until 1934, owner of Universal Pictures. He produced or worked on over 400 films. Regarded as one of the ...
of
Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
approached him in 1932 with an offer to perform in a series of sound features, with the contract including script and cast approval. He acted in nine films for Universal, but he called a halt to the series because of injuries he received while filming. Mix also made guest appearances in
Paramount Paramount (from the word ''paramount'' meaning "above all others") may refer to: Entertainment and music companies * Paramount Global, also known simply as Paramount, an American mass media company formerly known as ViacomCBS. **Paramount Picture ...
's '' Hollywood on Parade'' short subjects in 1932 and 1933; the all-star series was a charity venture to benefit the Motion Picture Relief Fund. Around 1933, Mix appeared with the Sam B. Dill circus, which he reportedly bought two years later (in 1935). Mix's last screen appearance was a 15-episode sound Mascot Pictures serial, '' The Miracle Rider'' (1935), in which he played a Texas Ranger. For the four weeks of filming he received $40,000 (which he needed to support his new circus venture) and the film earned more than one million dollars -- exceptionally successful for a serial. Outdoor action sequences for the production were filmed primarily on the
Iverson Movie Ranch A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate. Movi ...
in Chatsworth, California, on the outskirts of Los Angeles. The site was known for its huge sandstone boulders, and one of them later became known as "Tom Mix Rock" when it was discovered it had been used in ''The Miracle Rider''. In one episode, Mix was filmed descending from the top of the rock, with boot holes carved into it to assist him in making the descent. The rock and the boot holes, although unmarked, is in the Garden of the Gods park in Chatsworth. Also in 1935, Texas governor James V. Allred named Mix an honorary Texas Ranger. Mix returned to circus performing, working with his eldest daughter Ruth Jane Mix, who had also appeared in some of his films. In 1938, he went to Europe on a promotional trip, leaving Ruth behind to manage the circus. Without him, however, the circus soon failed, and he later excluded her from his will. Mix had reportedly made over $6 million (equivalent to $ million in ) during his 26-year film career, but nevertheless would have much of this fortune vanish due to, in large part, the 1929 stock market crash and the excessive amount of spending undertaken by him and his fourth wife.


Radio

In 1933,
Ralston Purina Ralston Purina Company was a St. Louis, Missouri,–based American conglomerate with substantial holdings in animal feed, food, pet food, consumer products, and entertainment. On December 12, 2001, it merged with Swiss food-giant Nestlé's ...
obtained his permission to produce the radio series ''Tom Mix Ralston Straight Shooters'', which, but for one year during World War II, was popular throughout most of the 1930s through the early 1950s, well after Mix's death. Mix never appeared on these broadcasts (his voice, damaged by a bullet to the throat and repeated broken noses, was not fit for radio) and was instead played by radio actors: Artells Dickson (early 1930s), Jack Holden (from 1937), Russell Thorsen (early 1940s) and Joe "Curley" Bradley (from 1944). Others in the supporting cast included George Gobel, Harold Peary and
Willard Waterman Willard Lewis Waterman (August 29, 1914 – February 2, 1995)Cox, Jim (2008). ''This Day in Network Radio: A Daily Calendar of Births, Debuts, Cancellations and Other Events in Broadcasting History''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . was an American ...
. The Ralston company offered ads during the radio program for listeners to send in for a series of 12 special Ralston–Tom Mix
comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
available only by writing the Ralston Company by mail. Most of Mix's radio work has been lost over the years; recordings of only approximately 30 scattered episodes, and no complete story arcs, survive.


Death

On October 12, 1940, after visiting Pima County Sheriff Ed Echols in
Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...
, Arizona, Mix was killed when his car overturned while he was taking a detour south of
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
,
Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...
. He was 60 years old. His funeral took place at the Little Church of the Flowers in
Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...
, on October 16, 1940, and was attended by thousands of people. He is buried in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery. A small stone memorial marks the site of his death on State Route 79, and the nearby gully is known as " Tom Mix Wash". The marker bears the inscription: "In memory of Tom Mix, whose spirit left his body on this spot and whose characterization and portrayals in life served to better fix memories of the old West in the minds of living men." With his death, a judge gave away many of Mix's personal belongings to a neighbor.


Legacy

Tom Mix was the acknowledged "King of Cowboys" when
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
and
John Wayne Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became a Pop icon, popular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced during Hollywood' ...
were young, and the influence of his screen persona can be seen in their approach to portraying cowboys. When an injury caused football player Marion Morrison (later known as John Wayne) to drop out of the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
, Mix helped him find work moving props in the back lot of Fox Studios. That was the beginning of Wayne's Hollywood career. Mix made 292 movies throughout his career. As of 2001, only about 10% of these were known to be available for viewing, though it is unclear how many are now considered
lost film A lost film is a feature film, feature or short film in which the original negative or copies are not known to exist in any studio archive, private collection, or public archive. Films can be wholly or partially lost for a number of reasons. ...
s. The
1937 Fox vault fire A major fire occurred in a 20th Century-Fox film-storage facility in Little Ferry, New Jersey, United States on July 9, 1937. Flammable nitrate film had previously contributed to several fires in film-industry laboratories, studios and vaults ...
lost most of the archive of his films made with Fox. For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Mix has a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
at 1708 Vine Street. His cowboy boot prints, palm prints and the hoof prints of his horse, Tony, are at
Grauman's Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre, known as the Chinese colloquially and officially billed as TCL Chinese Theatre for sponsorship reasons, is a movie palace on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, Unite ...
, at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard. In 1958 Mix was inducted posthumously into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, with more than 28,000 Western and Native American art works and artifacts. The facility also has the world's most extensive collection of Amer ...
in
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...
. In 1959, a "Monument to the Stars" was erected on Beverly Drive (where it intersects Olympic Boulevard and becomes Beverwil) in
Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...
. The memorial consists of a bronze-green spiral of sprocketed "camera film" above a multi-sided tower, embossed with full-length likenesses of early stars who appeared in famous silent movies. Those memorialized include
Douglas Fairbanks Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor and filmmaker best known for being the first actor to play the masked Vigilante Zorro and other swashbuckler film, swashbu ...
,
Mary Pickford Gladys Louise Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American film actress and producer. A Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, pioneer in the American film industry with a Hollywood care ...
,
Will Rogers William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...
,
Conrad Nagel John Conrad Nagel (March 16, 1897 – February 24, 1970) was an American film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an Honorary Academy Award in 1940, a ...
,
Rudolph Valentino Rodolfo Pietro Filiberto Raffaello Guglielmi di Valentina d'Antonguella (May 6, 1895 – August 23, 1926), known professionally as Rudolph Valentino and nicknamed The Latin Lover, was an Italian actor who starred in several well-known sile ...
,
Fred Niblo Fred Niblo (born Frederick Liedtke; January 6, 1874 – November 11, 1948) was an American pioneer film actor, director and producer. Biography He was born Frederick Liedtke (several sources give "Frederico Nobile", apparently erroneously) in Yo ...
,
Harold Lloyd Harold Clayton Lloyd Sr. (April 20, 1893 – March 8, 1971) was an American actor, comedian, and stunt performer who appeared in many Silent film, silent comedy films.Obituary ''Variety'', March 10, 1971, page 55. One of the most influent ...
, and Mix. There is also a Tom Mix museum in
Dewey, Oklahoma Dewey is a city in Washington County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 3,179 at the 2000 census and 3,432 at the 2010 census, an increase of 8 percent. It is located near the north side of Bartlesville. History In 1899, Jacob B ...
. Opening in 1965, and still operational as of 2025, the Tom Mix museum in Dewey- which was also where his third wife Olive was raised and the birthplace of his eldest daughter Ruth- managed to obtain many of Mix's personal items. Additionally, from 1986 to 2002 there existed another museum in his birthplace of Mix Run, Pennsylvania. Between 1980 and 2004, 21 Tom Mix festivals were held during the month of September, most of them in DuBois, Pennsylvania.


Comic book appearances

Tom Mix was often portrayed in
comic books A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...
, primarily during the heyday of Western-themed comics, the 1940s and 1950s. He was first featured in 11 issues of
Dell Comics Dell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1973. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium.Evanier, Mark"Wh ...
' ''The Comics'' from 1937 to 1938. The Ralston Purina Company, a sponsor of the radio series, produced nine issues of ''Tom Mix Comics'' in 1940–1941, and three issues of ''Tom Mix Commandos Comics'' in 1942. The 36-page comics were available by mail order, for two boxtops of any Ralston cereal.
Fawcett Comics Fawcett Comics, a division of Fawcett Publications, was one of several successful comic book publishers during the Golden Age of Comic Books in the 1940s. Its most popular character was Captain Marvel, the alter ego of radio reporter Billy Bats ...
published 61 issues of ''Tom Mix Western'' from 1948 to 1953. Comics featuring Tom Mix were also published in Sweden, Germany, Canada, Australia, and Great Britain, including L. Miller & Son's ''Tom Mix Western Comics'', which ran 85 issues from 1948 to 1951.


Cultural references

*
Bruce Cockburn Bruce Douglas Cockburn ( ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to folk- and jazz-influenced rock to soundscapes accompanying spoken stories. His lyrics reflect interests in spirit ...
in his song
Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...
refers to
Augusto César Sandino Augusto César Sandino (; 18 May 1895 21 February 1934), full name Augusto Nicolás Calderón Sandino, was a Nicaraguan revolutionary, founder of the militant group EDSN, and leader of a rebellion between 1927 and 1933 against the United Sta ...
wearing a Tom Mix hat. * "Lynching in Mixville" is a short story by L.J. Washburn where Mix is almost arrested for the murder of a cowboy extra. The story appears in ''American Pulp,'' by Edward Gorman (Editor), Bill Pronzini (Editor), Martin Harry Greenberg (Editor) (1997) . *
Bruce Willis Walter Bruce Willis (born March 19, 1955) is a retired American actor. He achieved fame with a leading role on the comedy-drama series ''Moonlighting (TV series), Moonlighting'' (1985–1989) and has appeared in over one hundred films, gaining ...
played Tom Mix in the 1988
Blake Edwards Blake Edwards (born William Blake Crump; July 26, 1922 – December 15, 2010) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Edwards began his career in the 1940s as an actor, but he soon began writing screenplays and radio scripts ...
film ''
Sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...
'', with
James Garner James Scott Garner (né Bumgarner; April 7, 1928 – July 19, 2014) was an American actor. He played leading roles in more than 50 theatrical films, which included ''The Great Escape (film), The Great Escape'' (1963) with Steve McQueen; Paddy Ch ...
as
Wyatt Earp Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (March 19, 1848 – January 13, 1929) was an American lawman in the American West, including Dodge City, Kansas, Dodge City, Wichita, Kansas, Wichita, and Tombstone, Arizona, Tombstone. Earp was involved in the gunfight ...
. The film was very loosely based on the fact that Earp and Mix knew each other when Earp was serving as a consultant during the silent film era. * Daryl Ponicsan's novel ''Tom Mix Died for Your Sins'' (1975) evokes Mix's life and personality. * Clifford Irving offered a pseudo-autobiographical version of Mix's early adulthood, drawing him as a brash young gringo who befriends and then joins up with the Mexican revolutionary
Pancho Villa Francisco "Pancho" Villa ( , , ; born José Doroteo Arango Arámbula; 5 June 1878 – 20 July 1923) was a Mexican revolutionary and prominent figure in the Mexican Revolution. He was a key figure in the revolutionary movement that forced ...
in the novel ''Tom Mix and Pancho Villa'' (1982). * The protagonist of Philip K. Dick's science fiction novel ''The Penultimate Truth'' (1964) lives in a subterranean shelter named after Tom Mix. * In the 1998 film '' Smoke Signals'', the Native protagonists Victor and Thomas have their seats taken by two white men. They then discuss how the cowboys always win. They discuss Tom Mix and John Wayne, and wind up singing a song about John Wayne's teeth, and how they are never visible in his movies. * A resurrected Mix appeared in two of
Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...
's ''
Riverworld The Riverworld series consists of five science fiction novels (1971–1983) by American author Philip José Farmer (1918–2009). The Riverworld is an artificial, or heavily terraformed, planet where all humans (and pre-humans) who ever lived t ...
'' novels, '' The Dark Design'' (1977) and '' The Magic Labyrinth'' (1980), as a traveling companion of
Jack London John Griffith London (; January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors t ...
, along with a short story featured in the anthology ''Riverworld and Other Stories'' (1979). * The ghost of Tom Mix haunted a Hollywood couple in the supernatural thriller '' The Ghosts of Edendale'' (2004). * The
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
has commemorated Mix on a first-class mail postage stamp. * There is a street named Tom Mix Trail in Prescott, Arizona and many streets in the Yavapai Hills neighborhood are named after Tom Mix's movies. *There is a street in Westfield, North Carolina named Tom Mix Rd Westfield, NC 27053 https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=575100546&sxsrf=AM9HkKl_528JRfImXt0MwGKNgk_QUpy35A:1697783116737&q=Tom+Mix+Rd&ludocid=8125066696975223743&lsig=AB86z5WBs2z7s1J-MBWC_EI3MkNA&kgs=4efcb684f733aca4&shndl=-1&shem=lbsc,lsp&source=sh/x/kp/local/m1/2 * In the 2008 Clint Eastwood film ''
Changeling A changeling, also historically referred to as an auf or oaf, is a human-like creature found throughout much of European folklore. According to folklore, a changeling was a substitute left by a supernatural being when kidnapping a human being. ...
'', the "imposter" son of
Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie ( ; born Angelina Jolie Voight, , June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Angelina Jolie, numerous accolades, including two Academy Awards ...
's character cites meeting Tom Mix and riding his horse as his motive for concocting his false story. * In the 2010 ''
Boardwalk Empire ''Boardwalk Empire'' is an American period crime drama television series created by Terence Winter for the premium cable channel HBO. The series is set chiefly in Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition era of the 1920s. The series sta ...
'' episode " The Emerald City", Nucky Thompson's servant Eddie Kessler offers to frisk someone who's come to see him. Nucky chides him: "You're Tom Mix all of a sudden?" * In the third episode of the second season of the 2014 Netflix show ''
Peaky Blinders The Peaky Blinders were a street gang based in Birmingham, England, which operated from the 1880s until the 1920s. The group consisted largely of young criminals from lower- to working-class backgrounds. They engaged in robbery, violence, racke ...
'', Tommy Shelby interviews a prospective fall guy for his gang who is partial to homemade western garb and asks "Spend a lotta time at the pictures eh? Cowboy pictures, Tom Mix, Yeah?" * The American artist Robert Ecker has incorporated Mix's trademark ten-gallon hat and his image in several works, including ''End of an Era'' (mezzotint, 1982) and ''Persistence of Imagery #25'' (painting, 2013). * In the season five episode entitled "Mulcahy's War" of the television series ''
M*A*S*H ''M*A*S*H'' (an acronym for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American media franchise consisting of a series of novels, a film, several television series, plays, and other properties, and based on the semi-autobiographical fiction of Richa ...
'', Father Mulcahy performs an emergency tracheotomy on an injured soldier with his Tom Mix pocketknife. * An image of Mix appears prominently on the cover of the Beatles' 1967 album ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...
''. * In the film ''
Tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...
'', starring Kurt Russell and Val Kilmer, during the closing credits reference is made to the fact that "Tom Mix wept" at Wyatt Earp's funeral. * A passing reference is made about Mix in Season 3, Episode 2 of ''
Downton Abbey ''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...
''. * In the first episode of ''
The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor backwoods family ...
'', Jed Clampett mentions that he likes Tom Mix. * Tom Mix is
rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...
- especially in British bingo - for the number 6. * A passing reference is made by the Doctor about his companions dressing as Tom Mix in the 1966 serial ' The Gunfighters', Season 3 of
Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...
. *


Filmography


References


Further reading

* * * * *


External links

* *
B-Westerns

Tom Mix photographs


* *
Tom Mix Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mix, Tom 1880 births 1940 deaths People from Cameron County, Pennsylvania American children's radio programs American Freemasons American male film actors American male silent film actors Male actors from Pennsylvania Road incident deaths in Arizona United States Army soldiers Male Western (genre) film actors Wild West show performers 20th-century American male actors Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) 20th Century Studios contract players Deserters