Dan Blaker Net Worth | celebrity net worth

What was Dan Blocker’s net worth?

Dan Blocker was an American actor who had a net worth of $5 million upon his death in 1972. This equates to approximately $25 million in today’s dollars. Dan Blocker is best known for his role as Eric “Hoss” Cartwright on the popular NBC Western television series “Bonanza”. From 1958 to 1959 he starred as Tiny Budinger in the television series Cimarron City. Blocker has also appeared in episodes of the TV series Colt .45, Wagon Train, Have Gun – Will Travel, The Thin Man, Gunsmoke, Zorro, Maverick, The Restless Gun, The Bob Newhart Show, The Red Skelton Hour, and more. He won the Western Heritage Award for Fantasy TV Drama for Bonanza in 1970.

Dan has also appeared in a few films, including “Come Blow Your Horn”, “Lady in Cement” and “The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County”. Among his other credits, Blocker has guest appeared on TV series such as “The Rifleman”, “Gunsmoke” and “The Rebel”.

Dan Blocker died on May 13, 1972 at the age of 43 due to a pulmonary embolism.

Early life and education

Dan Blocker was born as Bobby Dan Davis Blocker on December 10, 1928 in De Caleb, Texas to Ora and Mary. As a young man, he attended the Texas Military Institute, a preparatory school for Episcopal College in San Antonio. For his higher education, Blocker first attended Southern Baptist University Hardin-Simmons, where he played on the soccer team. He eventually transferred to Sol Ross State University, and went on to play college football. Blocker graduated in 1950, then served two years in the military during the Korean War. Because of his wounds in combat, he was given a purple heart. After his return, Blocker earned a master’s degree in drama.

career beginnings

Blocker began his career as a teacher, teaching English and Drama at High Schools in Sonora, Texas for a year. After that, he trained and taught sixth grade at Eddy Elementary School in Carlsbad, New Mexico. Blocker was then taught in California.

After moving to Los Angeles, Blocker originally intended to do postgraduate work at the University of California. However, he soon began to get roles in television and films. In 1957, he appeared in small parts in three films: “The Girl in Black Stockings”, “Black Patch” and “Gunsight Ridge”. Also that year, Blocker was in the Three Stooges short film “Outer Space Jitters”, and appeared in episodes of the Western TV series “Cheyenne” and “The Restless Gun”. He continued to appear on the last show in 1958. Blocker went on to appear in many other Western series over subsequent years, including “Have Gun – Will Travel”, “The Rifleman”, “Gunsmoke” and “The Rebel”. “

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Bonanza

Blocker landed his biggest and most famous role in 1959: Eric “House” Cartwright on NBC’s Western series Bonanza. He was the middle son of the Cartwright family, known for his large size and gentle spirit. His two brothers Adam and Joseph played Pernell Roberts and Michael Landon respectively, while his father Ben played Lorne Green. A huge success with audiences, “Bonanza” ran for 14 seasons until the beginning of 1973, making it one of the longest-running live-action series in American television history. Blocker appeared in 415 of the 431 episodes before his death.

More career work

Blocker acted in a number of films while he was still in “Bonanza”. In 1963, he appeared alongside Frank Sinatra, Lee J. Cobb, Molly Bacon, and others in the comedy “Come Blow Your Horn”, based on the play by Neil Simon. Blocker reunited with Sinatra in 1968 in the crime comedy Lady in Cement, an adaptation of Marvin H. Albert’s novel of the same name and a sequel to Tony Roma. In the same year, Blocker starred as blacksmith John Killibrew in the NBC television movie “Something for a Lonely Man.” He went on to star as another blacksmith, named Charlie, in the 1970 comedy Western “The Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County.” This title was Blocker’s last film; Although he was cast in Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye, he passed away before production began.

Bonanza Steakhouse

Besides television and movies, Blocker has launched and part-ownership of Bonanza Steakhouse restaurant chain. The first location opened in Westport, Connecticut in 1963; A few years after that, the series was bought by brothers Sam and Charles Wylie.

personal life

In 1952, Blocker married Dolphin Parker, whom he first met while attending Sol Ross State University. Together, they had four children: twin daughters Debra Lee and Dana Lin and sons Dirk and David. The last two children are a Hollywood actor and producer, respectively.

the death

After undergoing gallbladder surgery in May of 1972, Blocker died of a pulmonary embolism at the age of 43. As “Bonanza” continues, the show acknowledged the death of his character Hoss during his final season on the air. Notably, this made the show the first on TV to mention the death of one of its stars.

Real estate

Dan Blocker owned several mansions at the time of his death, including a 5,000-square-foot home in the Hancock Park section of Los Angeles that is today occupied by rock star Rob Zombie. He also had a home in Englewood.

There is a notable beach, “Dan Blocker Beach”, in Malibu, California. The beachfront property was jointly owned by actors Michael Landon and Lorne Green in the 1970s. Landon and Green donated the land to the state of California in 1979 and named the beach in honor of their late friend Dan Blocker. In 1995, the state of California donated the land and several other parcels to Los Angeles County.



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