Bill Bixby Biography, Life, Interesting Facts

Wilfred Bailey Bixby was born on January 22, 1934, in San Francisco, California, USA. He later went by Bill.

Education

Bill Bixby attended Lowell High School. After graduating from the school, he enrolled in the University of California at Berkeley. He attended the college for four years, but never graduated, as he dropped out with only four credits to go.

Military Career

After college, Bill Bixby was drafted into the United States Military for a short time. He did not continue his career with the military once his mandatory service time was completed.

Acting Career

Bill Bixby kicked off his acting career in the early 1960’s. One of this earliest roles was as a bit character in the TV series, Hennesey. He did much of the same acting, appearing in small TV roles throughout the 1960’s. However, he did have recurring roles on several TV shows including The Joey Bishop Show, Valentine’s Day, and My Favorite Martian.

In the 1970’s, Bill Bixby continued to work on TV shows, but he was now working on made for TV movies as well. One of his first made for TV movies was Big Fish, Little Fish. Some of the other made for TV movies he appeared in were The Great Houdini, Murder is Easy, and the Sin of Innocence. He continued to do this type of work until his career ended in the early 1990’s.

Even though he worked mostly for TV shows, he still had a memorable role or two. One of his most famous roles was as the Hulk/David Banner in the made of TV Hulk movies. These include the Trial of the Incredible Hulk, the Incredible Hulk Returns, and the Death of the Incredible Hulk.

Directing And Producing Career

In the 1970’s Bill Bixby began to not only focus on acting, but also in directing. From 1970 to 1994, he directed dozens of television shows and movies. Some of the features he directed are listed below.

Room 222

Rich Man, Poor Man Book II

Mr. Merlin

Wizards and Warriors

Better Days

Murphy's Law

The Woman Who Loved Elvis

In the early 1980’s he also became a producer. Bill Bixby only produced four things in his career, all of which are listed below.

Dreams (TV show)

The Incredible Hulk Returns

The Trial of the Incredible Hulk

The Death of the Incredible Hulk

Awards And Accomplishments

Throughout his film and television career, Bill Bixby only won one acting award: The TV Land Award for the Character You REALLY Don’t Want to Make Angry (The Incredible Hulk). He was also nominated for several awards, which are listed below.

Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor for a Single Appearance in a Drama or Comedy Series (The Streets of San Francisco)

Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Children’s Programming - Performers (Once Upon a Classic)

Laurel Awards for Male New Face

Family Life

Bill Bixby was married three times. He was first married to Brenda Benet in 1971. The couple had one child together, Christopher. Sadly, he died in childhood. The couple later divorced in 1979. Bixby remarried in 1991 to Laura Jane Michaels. The marriage only lasted a year before ending in divorce. Bixby married for the last time in 1993 to Judith Kliban. The couple stayed married until Bixby’s death.

Cancer And Death

Bill Bixby was diagnosed with prostate cancer in the 1990’s. The cancer was the cause of his death. He died on November 21, 1993, in Century City, California, USA. He was 59 years old when he passed away.