Movies - TV
Before Clint Eastwood And John Wayne, One Actor Dominated Westerns For Years
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
Decades before John Wayne and Clint Eastwood, and years before Gene Autry or Roy Rogers, there was already an actor who was deemed the Western king of the silent era: Tom Mix.
Mix debuted in the 1909 Western "The Cowboy Millionaire," which is a rarity in Mix's filmography in that it survives to this day. Sadly, only about 35 films of his have survived.
He was one of the most prolific American actors of his generation, appearing in multiple one-reel Westerns every year from 1909 to 1929. In 1916 alone, he appeared in 37 movies.
In 1914, he appeared in a mere 15 movies, directing 14 of them. He has done about 150 films in his career, usually playing the same type of paternal, friendly, heroic cowboy.
His ubiquity as a Western star in silent films cemented the genre and set the image of the American cowboy. His output only slowed after the influx of sound in films in the 1920s.
His legacy continued for years even after his death in 1940, with the authors of pulp novels and Western comic books using Mix's name and likeness to sell their wares.