Tom Mix, King of the Cowboys

Name: Tom Mix

Years: 1909 - 1935

Genre: Western

Special Move: Trick Shot

Tom Mix performing a Trick Shot, shooting the end off a 

cigarette from a man's mouth. 

Career Kills: unknown

Tom Mix is the archetype.  The archetype cowboy, the archetype Action star, and the archetype movie star.  There have been many who have followed where there were none before Mix blazed the path.

A real-life marksman and expert horserider, Western films (popular since cinema's inception) were a perfect match.  Mix was known for his steely stare and dangerous stunts, making almost 300 films during his career.  Only nine of which had synchronized sound.

Known as "The King Of The Cowboys", Tom Mix is credited with creating the tough gunman hero of Western films.  He was also known for his horse, Tony, with whom he starred in many motion pictures.

Eventually, the hectic life of a Hollywood star and the accumulated injuries received over a long career in which Mix  performed most of his own dangerous stunts forced him out of the business.  Mix's retirement was shortlived, however, as he died in an automobile accident in 1940.

From the 1923 film Three Jumps Ahead