Bill Bixby

The Friendly Face of 1960s Television

Bill Bixby never wanted to be an action star. In 1961, he arrived in Hollywood with a contract in hand for the series The Joey Bishop Show and a solid theater background that clashed with what the industry expected from a friendly face. His San Francisco roots gave him a cosmopolitan edge that suited sitcoms better than the period dramas that dominated the studios at the time.

In 1963, he landed the role that would change his career on television. He played Tim O’Hara in My Favorite Martian and for three years he learned the mechanics of comedic timing alongside Ray Walston. The show was not only a ratings hit but also taught him how the rudimentary special effects of the era worked.

Bill Bixby was the man everyone wanted as a neighbor.

But his real ambition lay in creative control over his projects. In 1969, he starred in The Courtship of Eddie’s Father and there he began to get involved in the scripts and staging. The series dealt with widowhood and single fatherhood with a candor rarely seen on American television up to that point. Bixby earned three consecutive Emmy nominations for this work and won the respect of ABC executives.

Science Fiction and the Weight of Fame

In the mid-1970s, his public image was that of a reliable actor who was typecast in good-guy roles. In 1973, he tried to break that image with The Magician, in which he played an illusionist who solved crimes. The show was expensive to produce because Bixby insisted on performing all the magic tricks without camera cuts or editing tricks. That technical stubbornness led to the series being canceled after just one season due to the high production costs per episode.

In 1977, he accepted the role of David Banner in The Incredible Hulk after turning it down several times. He had no interest in the world of comic books and feared the show would be a ridiculous parody. But producer Kenneth Johnson won him over by pitching the story as a psychological drama inspired by Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. Bixby agreed on the condition that his character would be the emotional center of the story while Lou Ferrigno handled the monster's physical look.

Real-life drama outdid fiction.

While the series was filming in 1981, his personal life fell apart. His son Christopher died of a sudden infection at the age of six, and shortly afterward his ex-wife died by suicide. Bixby did not halt production and threw himself into work to cope with his grief. In 1982, the series was abruptly canceled after five seasons, despite still drawing competitive ratings in several international markets.

A Obsessive Director Behind the Camera

In the last stage of his life, he decided that acting was no longer his absolute priority. In 1983, he threw himself into television directing and showed an unusual ability to shoot quickly and on tight budgets. He directed episodes of series such as Sledge Hammer! and became the lead director of the sitcom Blossom in the early 1990s. His style was straightforward and avoided unnecessary flourishes so the focus stayed on the actors' performances.

And the gamble paid off.

In 1991, he was diagnosed with an aggressive prostate cancer, which he tried to keep from the press for months. He kept working on the set of Blossom until physical pain made it impossible for him to stand through the shooting days. In 1993, he directed his last episode from a wheelchair and supervised the final cut by phone. Bixby directed 30 episodes of the series while undergoing experimental chemotherapy.

He died on November 21, 1993 at his home in Century City, six days after finishing his work contract. His last credited television appearance was an uncredited cameo in a TV movie that he technically supervised during post-production.