Richard Travis was born William Benton Justice in Carlsbad, New Mexico on April 17, 1913. He started off unbilled in daredevil cliffhangers and proceeded to war-era Warner Bros. features. He changed his stage moniker from "William Justice" to "William Travis" before finally settling on
"Richard (or Dick) Travis" for the remainder of his career.
Lacking somewhat lacking the requisite star-power attraction, the tall (6'2"), lanky blond made his biggest impression early in the game
with the all-star
The Man Who Came to Dinner (1941).
As "Bert Jefferson", he played the love interest to
Bette Davis's "Maggie Cutler" character in
the screwball comedy classic. While he did earn a few prime Warner roles in
its aftermath, such as third-billing in
The Big Shot (1942), with
Humphrey Bogart, a lead in
Escape from Crime (1942) and a
featured part in the stalwart war picture
Mission to Moscow (1943)
starring
Walter Huston, Richard was eventually relegated to headlining such "Poverty Row" programmers as
The Postman Didn't Ring (1942),
Busses Roar (1942),
Spy Train (1943),
Truck Busters (1943) and
The Last Ride (1944).
In the post-war years, he maintained in films with such dubious titles as
Jewels of Brandenburg (1947),
Alaska Patrol (1949) and
Sky Liner (1949), among his lead
offerings. He did, however, play an unbilled role as
Lou Gehrig in the
The Babe Ruth Story (1948),
starring
William Bendix.
In the 1950s, Richard appeared in several films but also found steady work in rugged
TV westerns. He was the rugged star of the modern western detective TV series,
Code 3 (1957), which ran for one
season. He also appeared on
Cowboy G-Men (1952),
Fury (1955),
The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp (1955),
The Texan (1958) and
The Legend of Jesse James (1965),
one of his last TV roles.
Richard eventually retired and reverted to his original name of
"William Justice." Thereafter, he found a lucrative career as a real estate
entrepreneur in Southern California. Richard died at his Pacific
Palisades home in 1989 at age 76.
Cyborg 2087(1966)as General
Lassie(1954)as Bill Hoffman, Dispatcher, District Supervisor, Mr. Watson
The Legend of Jesse James(1965)as Al Hoyt
Thriller(1960)as Commissioner Putnam
Grand Jury(1959)as Bill Thompson, Thompson
Western Music Cowboy Song Billy the Kid the Terry Family(2018)as Sheriff Pat Garrett
