Who is bill bixby

Was a spokesperson for the Leukemia Society of America in the late s. Was raised in the same city as Barbara Eden. His The Incredible Hulk co-star, Lou Ferrigno , stated on his own website that Bixby was one of his acting teachers. Cruz played a teenage boy who happened to know a lot about planes before Dr. Banner landed the plane. Was a die-hard fan of the music of Elvis Presley , who co-starred in two of his movies, Clambake and Speedway She lived to be His parents were opposed to his decision to take acting classes at San Francisco City College.

As of , 30 years after the cancellation of The Incredible Hulk , and more than 20 years after The Death of the Incredible Hulk , he is still the only actor to have played Dr. Banner in more than one film. Even if Ruffalo plays the role a second time, Bixby has several years on the television series, and four television movies to his credit.

Was diagnosed with cancer at the same time as actor Michael Landon. Coincidentally, both Landon and Bixby were at the same hospital [5 April ].

Acting mentor and friend of Brandon Cruz and Lou Ferrigno. Was first choice for the lead role of Dr. David Banner of The Incredible Hulk At first, he was uneasy about the role, but after reading some comic books, he auditioned and won the role.

With the encouragement of his aunt Helen Schubert, Bixby entered into acting. Bob Newhart and Mike Connors attended his funeral. They used clips to feature his character. Had worked with ex-classmate Lee Meriwether on an episode of Barnaby Jones Had turned down the role of Marlo Thomas 's boyfriend in That Girl , though he later guest starred on the show. When Bixby was age 8, his father was enlisted in the U. Bill Bixby passed away on November 21, Almost 2 years before his death, he made his final guest appearance on the debut pilot episode of Diagnosis Murder with Dick Van Dyke.

Had guest-starred in episodes of both series that hailed his hometown of San Francisco: Ironside and The Streets of San Francisco Was a respected member of the Hollywood magic community, belonging to The Magic Castle, an exclusive club for magicians.

During the show's popular, although short-lived production, Bixby as always, invited a few old friends along to co-star such as Pamela Britton , Kristina Holland and Ralph O'Hara.

He also competed in high school speech tournaments regionally. When asked if he would want his son, Christopher, to become an actor, that he would support his son in anything he wanted to pursue. Sadly his son, Christopher, died of a rare throat infection in early Before he was a successful actor and director, he worked as a model and did commercial work for General Motors and Chrysler, in Detroit, Michigan.

Used to play golf with James Garner. Attended Mayim Bialik 's high school graduation party. Susan Sullivan was the primary guest star on the very first episode of The Incredible Hulk Through much of the s, Bill Bixby and Susan Sullivan were considered the king or queen, respectively, of quality television movies, series and mini-series of that period. Was forced to wear contact lenses for his role on The Incredible Hulk for the 'White Eyes' sequences.

He found them uncomfortable. While starring in The Incredible Hulk , Bixby was allergic to the makeup used for the scenes in which his character transformed into the Hulk. Location shoots and extensive special effects scenes meant that Bixby spent a lot of time on the set. Was in a relationship with Yvonne Craig.

His ex- The Courtship of Eddie's Father co-star Brandon Cruz said in an interview that he came from a broken home and Bixby took him in. When The Incredible Hulk was on the air, Bixby was very careful never to be photographed with his co-star, Lou Ferrigno in his Hulk makeup because he felt for photos to get out of the two of them together would destroy the illusion to children and fans of the show that they were not the same person.

The tabloids of that era were always trying to get a picture of David Banner and the Hulk creature together but were unable to do so. Despite being one of the biggest names in television history, he never got a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame.

David Banner took his stage name from the character's name in The Incredible Hulk He directed the final episode of Mannix Bill Bixby was one of the busiest leading men on American TV from the early 60s till the beginning of the 90s.

There were plans to make a further "Incredible Hulk" TV movie, this time with the She-Hulk character included in the story. Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno had agreed to reprise their respective roles. Sadly, none of this bore fruition as Bixby had been diagnosed with prostrate cancer. Best remembered for having taken Brandon Cruz under his wing, when he was only 7 years old.

Their friendship had lasted 25 years, until Bixby's own death, late in Bill Bixby and Michael Landon only met once: during a competition for a game show in the s. On opposing teams, both were very competitive and both wanted to win but, whereas Bill understood that it was a friendly game, Landon took it extremely seriously, to the point he ignored Bixby's congenial disposition and completely snubbed him.

The two never worked together in any scripted show. I have learned that there is no way to succeed in anything unless you are willing to try--and trying means you run the risk of failure. I wanted to make fun of it because of its name. I told my agent, "You've got to be kidding! He said, "Read it! Right away I knew this could be done in the style of the monster pictures or the creature films of the s. But one advantage we enjoy over the previous monster pictures is that the Hulk is not evil. I'm a loner as a person, but then I always was, even as a child.

I wanted that series to go on to the point when it came to the teenage stage and we could deal with these problems in an honest contemporary way. But our time slot was changed so often we weren't given a fighting chance.

You can't expect people to find you at home when you change your address so often. I don't know that you come back. You go on, you endure. See full bio ». Filmography by Job Trailers and Videos. Hollywood Icons, Then and Now. Share this page:. The Rise of Will Smith. Around The Web Provided by Taboola. Create a list ». My Favorites. Deaths: November Travels with My Aunt premiere. See all related lists ». Do you have a demo reel? Add it to your IMDb page. Find out more at IMDbPro ».

How Much Have You Seen? How much of Bill Bixby's work have you seen? Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. See more awards ». Known For. The Incredible Hulk Dr.

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My Favorite Martian. Diagnosis Murder. Goodnight, Beantown. The Incredible Hulk. Charlie's Angels. The Love Boat. The Streets of San Francisco. Rich Man, Poor Man. The Magician. Love, American Style. Night Gallery. The Courtship of Eddie's Father. It Takes a Thief. Make Room for Daddy. The Twilight Zone. The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Doctor, You've Got to Be Kidding!

Irma La Douce. Ride Beyond Vengeance. Black Market Baby.