Paul Fix


Peter Paul Fix was an American film and television character actor who was best known for his work in Westerns. Fix appeared in more than 100 movies and dozens of television shows over a 56-year career between 1925 and 1981. Fix portrayed Marshal Micah Torrance, opposite Chuck Connors's character in The Rifleman from 1958 to 1963. He later appeared with Connors in the 1966 Western film Ride Beyond Vengeance.

Early life

Fix born to Wilhelm Fix and Louise Walz on March 13, 1901 in Dobbs Ferry, New York. His father was a brewer from Germany.
Following the United States' entry into World War I in April 1917, Fix joined the National Guard, initially serving in Peekskill, New York. After three months of duty there, he deserted and enlisted in the U.S. Army. After serving at Fort Slocum for three months, he again deserted and then enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in Providence, Rhode Island. While serving in the Navy, Fix was recruited to perform on stage in a Navy Relief Organization production of the comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore. Later, he served as a hospital corpsman aboard ships transporting American troops to and from Europe, and continued that assignment until he was officially discharged from military service on September 5, 1919.

Stage and films

Following the war, Fix became a busy character actor, starting in local productions in New York. By the 1920s, he had moved to Hollywood, and in the 1930s, he became John Wayne's friend. He was Wayne's acting coach and eventually appeared as a featured player in many of Wayne's films.
Fix worked in early films such as Lucky Star with Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell and Ladies Love Brutes, and became a regular performer for the film's director, Frank Borzage, eight more times. Fix later appeared as Richard Bravo in The Bad Seed, The Sea Chase and Giant, portraying Elizabeth Taylor's father.
Fix appeared as the presiding judge in To Kill a Mockingbird, as the sheriff in The Sons of Katie Elder and with Wayne in El Dorado. In 1972, he was cast in the film Night of the Lepus, and the following year, he portrayed Pete Maxwell in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid with James Coburn. In 1979, he appeared in Wanda Nevada. Fix cowrote the screenplay for Wayne's film Tall in the Saddle.

Television

Fix had a recurring role as Marshal Micah Torrance on ABC's Western series The Rifleman, which was broadcast from 1958 to 1963.
On Christmas Day 1958, Fix appeared in the episode "Medal for Valor" on CBS's Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theatre. Fix plays a businessman who hires a desperate man to substitute for his son in the draft, later to interfere with the man's homesteading rights when it threatens his son's political aspirations.
Fix guest-starred on the short-lived detective series Meet McGraw, on Rory Calhoun's Western series The Texan on CBS and on John Payne's Western series The Restless Gun on NBC.
In 1957, Fix appeared as General Phil Sheridan in an episode of Tales of Wells Fargo with actor Dale Robertson, star of the series. Fix played the historical role of U.S. President Zachary Taylor in the 1960 episode "That Taylor Affair" of the NBC Western series, Riverboat, with Darren McGavin. Arlene Dahl was cast in this episode as Lucy Belle.
In 1961, Fix appeared as Ramsey Collins in the series finale, "Around the Dark Corner", of the NBC crime drama Dante. That same year, he played Dr. Abel in the episode "The Haven" on The DuPont Show with June Allyson. His other television credits include Adventures of Superman and the adventure series, Northwest Passage.
Fix played Dr. Mark Piper in the second pilot episode of Star Trek, "Where No Man Has Gone Before". When the first season was filmed, his character was replaced by Leonard McCoy, played by DeForest Kelley.
Fix made five appearances as District Attorney Hale on Perry Mason, showing great skill as an examiner who did not ask objectionable questions unlike Hamilton Burger, who often experienced a judge's ire for asking leading questions. He guest-starred on such television series as Rawhide, Wagon Train, The Twilight Zone, The F.B.I., Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Time Tunnel, The Wild Wild West, Gunsmoke, Daniel Boone, Owen Marshall: Counselor at Law, The Rockford Files episode "The House on Willis Avenue", and two episodes of The Streets of San Francisco, one in 1973 and again in 1975, each a different character/storyline. He appeared on the NBC series Kentucky Jones as Judge Perkins in the episode "Spare the Rod". He played an aging suicidal novelist named Maxwell Hart on the Emergency! fourth-season episode "Kidding", where paramedic John Gage, played by Randolph Mantooth, was in charge of a small group of intellectual 10- and 11-year-old school children on a tour of Rampart General Hospital. In 1974, he made an appearance as an old friend of Steve Austin's in the TV series The Six Million Dollar Man in the episode "Population Zero". He also appeared as Kronus, a retired fleet commander on the original Battlestar Galactica.
Fix played the hardy pioneer James Briton "Brit" Bailey in the 1969 episode "Here Stands Bailey" of Death Valley Days.

Personal life and death

In 1922 Fix married Frances Harvey, and the couple had one daughter. They divorced in 1945. He married his second wife, Beverly Pratt, on August 20, 1949. She died on November 13, 1979.
His daughter Marilyn married actor Harry Carey Jr., in 1944, and they had four children.
Fix died of kidney failure in Los Angeles at the age of 82. He is buried beside his second wife at Woodlawn Cemetery, Santa Monica.

Selected filmography

The Perfect Clown as Bellhop Hoodoo Ranch The First Kiss as Ezra TalbotLucky Star as JoeLadies Love Brutes as SlipMan Trouble as The Kid - A Gunman The Good Bad Girl as RoachThe Fighting Sheriff as Jack CameronDoctors' Wives as Interne The Avenger as Juan Marietta Sob Sister as Minor Role Bad Girl Young as You Feel as Desk Clerk Three Girls Lost as Tony Halcomb South of the Rio Grande as Juan OlivarezThe Racing Strain as King KellyLife Begins as Anxious Expectant Father The Last Mile as Eddie Werner - Cell 8Scarface as Hood with Gaffney Dancers in the Dark as BennyThe Night of June 13 as Reporter Somewhere in Sonora as Bart LeadlyThe Important Witness as TonyFargo Express as Mort ClarkThe Mad Game as LouDevil's Mate as MalonyThe Avenger as VickersThe Important Witness as TonyThe Sphinx as Dave WernerEmergency Call as Dr. Mason Zoo in Budapest as HeinieThe Woman Who Dared as RacketeerGun Law as Tony AdamsThe Westerner as Rustler Who Confesses The World Accuses as John WeymouthRocky Rhodes as Joe HiltonThe Count of Monte Cristo as Angry Citizen The Crosby Case as Engineer Little Man, What Now? as LauderbockReckless as Man on Mechanical Horse The Crimson Trail as Paul- Bellair Ranch HandMutiny Ahead as Teeter SmithHis Fighting Blood as Phil ElliottDon't Bet on Blondes as Betting Man Men Without Names as The KidLet 'Em Have It as SamMillions in the Air as Hank - the DrunkBar 20 Rides Again as GilaThe Eagle's Brood as Henchman SteveValley of Wanted Men as Mike MastersThe Throwback as Spike TravisBulldog Courage as BaileyThe Desert Trail as Jim WhitmonleeMariners of the Sky aka Navy Born as Joe VezieThe Road to Glory as Second VolunteerThe Ex-Mrs. Bradford as Lou Pender The Bridge of Sighs as Harrison Courtney Jr. aka Harry WestPhantom Patrol as Henchman Jo-Jo ReganYellowstone a DynomiteStraight from the Shoulder as Trigger BensonCharlie Chan at the Race Track as Lefty 36 Hours to Kill as Gangster The Prisoner of Shark Island as David HeroldAfter the Thin Man as Phil BrynesWanted! Jane Turner as Crowley's HenchmanThe Accusing Finger as John 'Twitchy' Burke15 Maiden Lane as Agitator Two in a Crowd as Bonelli's HenchmanWinterset as JoeThe Plot Thickens as JoeBorder Cafe as 'Doley' DolsonArmored Car as SlimHer Husband Lies as Lefty Harker Woman in Distress as Joe EmoryThe Game That Kills as Dick AdamsBig City as Comet Night Watchman On Such a Night as Maxie BarnesSouls at Sea as ViolinestKing of Gamblers as CharlieIt Can't Last Forever as Mikey Paid to Dance as NiftyDaughter of Shanghai as Miles Mannequin as Smooch Hanrahan Conquest as Dumb Soldier Hot Water as Homer The Saint of New York as Phil Farrell - Doorman at the Silverclub Mr. Moto's Gamble as Gangster Smashing the Rackets as MaxieThe Crowd Roars as Joe - Bodyguard on Plane Crime Ring as Slim Penitentiary as Bunch King of Alcatraz as 'Nails' MillerThe Night Hawk as SpiderMr. Moto's Gamble as Gangster Crime Takes a Holiday as LouieSecrets of a Nurse as Smiley, Largo's Gunman When G-Men Step In as Clip Phillips - Fred's HenchmanWalking Down Broadway as Man in Baccarat Club Bar The Buccaneer as Dying PirateBehind Prison Gates as Convict Petey RyanThey All Come Out as Vonnie News Is Made at Night as Joe LuddyHeritage of the Desert as Henchman Chick ChanceStar Reporter as ClipperTwo Thoroughbreds as StablemasterHeroes in Blue as Henchman Those High Grey Walls as NightengaleMutiny on the Blackhawk as Jock - the SailorThe Girl and the Gambler as CharlieUndercover Doctor as Monk JacksonCode of the Streets as Tommy ShayAlmost a Gentleman as Kidnapper Disbarred as Stone The Ghost Breakers as Frenchy DuvalGlamour for Sale as Louis ManellQueen of the Mob as Gang Leader in Garage The Fargo Kid as Deuce MalloryThe Great Plane Robbery as Nick HarmonTrail of the Vigilantes as LeftyTriple Justice as Fred ClearyBlack Diamonds as MatthewsThe Crooked Road as Nick RomeroDr. Cyclops as Dr. MendozaVirginia City as Murrell's Henchman Outside the Three-Mile Limit as Bill SwansonStrange Cargo as BenetBlack Friday as William KaneDown Mexico Way as Henchman DavisA Missouri Outlaw as Mark RobertsPublic Enemies as ScatMob Town as Monk Bangor Unfinished Business as Reporter Hold That Ghost as Lefty Citadel of Crime as Nick GarroRoar of the Press as 'Sparrow' McGraunPittsburgh as Mine OperatorEscape from Crime as Dude MevillHitler – Dead or Alive as Joe 'The Book' ConwayYouth on Parade as Nick Cramer Highways by Night as GabbyMug Town as MarcoThat Other Woman as Tough GuyDr. Gillespie's New Assistant as Husband Kid Glove Killer as Allison Stacy Alias Boston Blackie as Steve CavereniSleepytime Gal as Johnny GattoSouth of Santa Fe as Joe Keenan aka HarmonJail House Blues as DannyCaptive Wild Woman as GruenSherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon as Mueller In Old Oklahoma as Cherokee KidPetticoat Larceny as Louie Bombardier as Big Guy - Spy The Unknown Guest as FainThe Fighting Seabees as DingTall in the Saddle as Bob Clews Back to Bataan as Bindle JacksonGrissly's Millions as Lewis BentleyFlame of Barbary Coast as Calico JimDakota as CarpTycoon as JoeAngel and the Badman as Mouse Marr Force of Evil as Bill FiccoThe Plunderers as CalicoAngel in Exile as Carl SpitzRed River as Teeler YacesWake of the Red Witch as Antonio "Ripper" ArrezoThe Fighting Kentuckian as Beau MerrittShe Wore a Yellow Ribbon as Gunrunner Fighting Man of the Plains as YancyHellfire as Dusty StonerCalifornia Passage as WhalenSurrender as Deputy WilliamsBullfighter and the Lady as Joseph Jamison Warpath as Pvt. FioreThe Great Missouri Raid as Sgt. BrillRide the Man Down as Ray CavanaughWhat Price Glory as Gowdy Denver and Rio Grande as Engineer MoynihanBig Jim Mclain as Voice of Chauncey Fair Wind to Java as WilsonIsland in the Sky as Wally MillerHondo as Major SherryDevil's Canyon as Gatling GuardStar of Texas as Luke AndrewsThe High and the Mighty as Frank BriscoeJohnny Guitar as EddieBlood Alley as Mr. TsoThe Sea Chase as Max HeinzTop of the World as Maj. George FrenchSantiago as TraskerStar in the Dust as Mike MacNamaraStagecoach to Fury as Tim O'ConnorsGiant as Dr. Horace LynntonToward the Unknown as Lt. Gen. Bryan ShelbyThe Bad Seed as Richard BravoMan in the Vault as HerbieMan in the Shadow as Herb ParkerThe Devil's Hairpin as Doc AddamsNight Passage as Mr. FeeneyJet Pilot as Major RexfordNight Passage as Clarence FeeneyLafayette Escadrille as U. S. GeneralThe Notorious Mr. Monks as Benjamin MonksGuns Girls and Gangsters as Lon LargoWagon Train : The Amos Billings Story as Amos BillingsTo Kill A Mockingbird as Judge TaylorThe Outrage as IndianMail Order Bride as Sheriff Jess LinleyThe Sons of Katie Elder as Sheriff Billy WatsonShenandoah as Dr. Tom WitherspoonBaby the Rain Must Fall as Judge EwingEl Dorado as Dr. MillerIncident at Phantom Hill as General HoodRide Beyond Vengeance as HanleyAn Eye for an Eye as Brien QuinceNevada Smith as Sheriff BonnellWelcome to Hard Times as Major Munn C.S.A.The Ballad of Josie as Alpheus MiniskDay of the Evil Gun as Sheriff KelsoHellfighters as Dusty StonerThe Undefeated as General Joe MastersYoung Billy Young as CharlieDirty Dingus Magee as Chief Crazy BlanketZabriskie Point as Roadhouse OwnerShoot Out as Brakeman FrenatoreSomething Big as Chief Yellow SunNight of the Lepus as Sheriff CodyPat Garrett and Billy The Kid as MaxwellCahill U.S. Marshal as Old ManGrayeagle as Running WolfWanda Nevada as Texas Curly

Film writer

Tall in the Saddle

Television

The Lone Ranger – episode – Million Dollar Wallpaper – Silk Adventures of Superman – Episode Season 1 Episode 22 – Czar of the Underworld Adventures of Superman – Episode Season 2 Episode 18 – Semi-Private Eye