Bill Bixby Movies
Prior to his first TV appearance on a 1961 episode of Dobie Gillis, Bill Bixby had been a college student (he dropped out of UC Berkeley in his senior year), a lifeguard, a male model, and a regional stock-company actor. Bixby went on to play small roles in films like Lonely Are the Brave and Irma La Douce, and was featured in the Broadway comedy Under the Yum Yum Tree. In 1963, he graduated to TV stardom with the role of Tim O'Hara on the popular sci-fi sitcom My Favorite Martian. Anxious to change his "wholesome" image after Martian ended its three-year run in 1966, Bixby accepted a small but flashy role as a cowardly villain in the big-screen Western Ride Beyond Vengeance (1966). Like it or not, however, Bixby's future lay in sympathetic parts on episodic television. In each of his subsequent starring series -- The Courtship of Eddie's Father (1969-1972), The Magician (1973), The Incredible Hulk (1978-1982), True Confessions (1984), and Goodnight Beantown (1983) -- Bixby frequently did double-duty as actor and director. He also directed such made-for-TV movies as Barbary Coast (1974), Another Pair of Aces: Three of a Kind (1991), and the Roseanne/Tom Arnold vehicle The Woman Who Loved Elvis (1993). Long one of Hollywood's most eligible bachelors, Bixby finally took the marital plunge with actress Brenda Benet; the union ended tragically when Benet, distraught over the death of her son, Christopher, committed suicide. Bixby's second wife was Judith Kliban, daughter of magazine cartoonist B. Kliban. At the time of his death from prostate cancer, Bill Bixby was principal director of the TV series Blossom. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide- 1977
In this fantasy, based on the popular comic book hero, mild-mannered scientist David Banner is dismayed to discover that his new boss has been drugging her crippled stepdaughter. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1976
Bill Bixby earned an Emmy nomination for his chilling yet pathetic performance as Eric Doyle, a mild-mannered loser who is fascinated by police procedure. Rejected when he tries to join the San Francisco police force, Doyle vows to prove his worth by turning vigilante. Donning an authentic-looking cop's uniform, Doyle sets about to methodically--and savagely--wipe out all criminals who have managed to slip through the fingers of the legal system. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1974
Bill Bixby guest stars as Charles Pine, a former government agent turned professional assassin. Hired by a group of fanatical right-wingers, Pine prepares to kill a Chinese diplomat visiting the U.S.--all the while keeping the woman in his life (Linda Marsh) from interfering with his sinister mission. Cast respectively as a retired military officer and a nurse are Andrew Duggan and Peggy McCay, who twelve years earlier had costarred in the ABC sitcom Room for One More. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1989
Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno return to their mutual TV role in The Trial of the Incredible Hulk. Bixby is Dr. David Banner, who, after being pelted by gamma rays, occasionally turns into the green, gruesome, uncontrollable Hulk (Lou Ferrigno). This time, Banner/Hulk cross swords with an evil zillionaire gangster (John Rhys-Davies). Joining in the good clean chaos is another Marvel Comics hero, the visually challenged Daredevil (Rex Smith). Made for television, Trial of the Incredible Hulk debuted May 7, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Written by Rod Serling, this 60-minute Twilight Zone episode gets under way when a U.S. Navy destroyer begins picking up unusual sounds on its sonar. Investigating, a frogman finds the remains of a sunken submarine -- and hears the sound of clanking from within. This information has a profound effect on the destroyer's chief petty officer Bell (Mike Kellin), and Captain Beecham (Simon Oakland) wants to find out why. Future TV leading man Bill Bixby appears in a supporting role. "The Thirty-Fathom Grave" was first telecast January 10, 1963. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mike Kellin, Simon Oakland, (more)
- 1993
- PG13
In this drama, the life of a social worker undergoes dramatic changes after she is assigned to oversee the case of a welfare mother who is almost unnaturally obsessed with Elvis Presley. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Roseanne, Tom Arnold, (more)
- 1978
In this comedy, four couples go on a dating game show and end up winning a fabulous Hawaiian vacation. Unfortunately, they are accompanied by a stern chaperone. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1963
Jack Lemmon stars as Hogan, who lives a bachelor's dream as the manager of an apartment building that caters only to single women. Hogan likes to romance his tenants, and he sets his sights on a newcomer named Robin (Carol Lynley). Robin and her boyfriend David (Dean Jones) have moved in together, intending to see how compatible they are while maintaining a platonic relationship. This arrangement is the result of a suggestion from Irene (Edie Adams), a marriage counselor who is subletting her apartment to Robin while living with her own boyfriend, Charles (Robert Lansing). Irene thinks that Robin and David need to discover whether they are suitable as marriage partners without letting sex cloud their judgment. Hogan finds out about the arrangement and schemes to get David away so he can seduce Robin. The film is based on a hit stage play by Lawrence Roman. ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Lemmon, Carol Lynley, (more)
