Bixby, Bill

▪ 1994

      U.S. actor (b. Jan. 22, 1934, San Francisco, Calif.—d. Nov. 21, 1993, Los Angeles, Calif.), was best remembered for three starring television roles: as reporter Tim O'Hara on "My Favorite Martian" (1963-66); as the widowed father of a six-year-old boy on "The Courtship of Eddie's Father" (1969-72); and as a mild-mannered research scientist who (as a result of a laboratory accident) turned, when angered, into a raging, green-skinned monster (portrayed by bodybuilder Lou Ferrigno) on "The Incredible Hulk" (1978-82). The one-time hotel clerk and lifeguard with pleasing good looks launched a career in show business by serving as a model for automobile advertisements. After landing a bit role on a television episode of "The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis," the durable Bixby enjoyed a more than 30-year career on television and also starred on such short-lived series as "The Magician" (1973-74) and "Goodnight, Beantown" (1983-84). At the time of his death, Bixby, who also appeared in such films as Irma La Douce (1963) and Under the Yum Yum Tree (1963), was directing the television comedy series "Blossom."

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