(Courtesy of Les Adams)

Inside THE PHANTOM EMPIRE pressbook was the ad on the left touting Mix's return to the screen in a Mascot serial.

Producer Nat Levine had a serial factory called Mascot Pictures, and several recent cliffhangers had proved to be popular and financially lucrative --- these were MYSTERY MOUNTAIN (Mascot, 1934) with Ken Maynard, and THE PHANTOM EMPIRE (Mascot, 1935) with new singin' cowboy Gene Autry.

Levine offered Mix a deal he couldn't refuse --- $40,000 ($10,000/week) for a total of four weeks work on a new chapterplay called THE MIRACLE RIDER.  Mix, who was now about 55 years old, needed the money.  Levine knew he could peddle the serial at a higher price tag.

To increase value and saleability, Levine/Mascot decided that episode 1, The Vanishing Indian, would be on five reels and about 45 minutes in length, and the entire serial would run for fifteen chapters.  The total running time of the serial was about 309 minutes, making it the lengthiest of the sound serials (DICK TRACY was Republic's longest, clocking in at a tad under 290 minutes).

Sci-fi elements were also included (shades of THE PHANTOM EMPIRE) such as the 'firebird' rocket, that goofy 'TV screen' that was used for messages, and a super explosive called X-94 which was only found on the Indian Reservation that was being safeguarded by Mix (as Ranger Tom Morgan).

Several production units worked simultaneously (but that was pretty standard practice) --- while Mix was doing scenes with baddies Charles 'Ming' Middleton, Jason Robards, Sr., and Bob Kortman, a second unit was filming fights and riding scenes using stuntman Cliff Lyons as Mix's double.

Levine's gamble paid off, and THE MIRACLE RIDER became his most successful cliffhanger.

Some western film critics rip apart Mix and THE MIRACLE RIDER.  The serial is not a great one, especially when compared to the assembly line perfection of Republic Pictures of the early 1940s.  And it probably would have been faster paced if Mascot hadn't stretched it to fifteen episodes (but Nat Levine probably made that decision based on the gain from additional rentals of the extra episodes).

Viewed from the perspective of the mid 1930s, THE MIRACLE RIDER is a good chapterplay, and represents Mascot at it's peak (and close to the end of it's existence before the merger into the new Republic Pictures company).  As a kid, I saw THE MIRACLE RIDER on early TV in Atlanta around 1950 ... and was thrilled.  When videotape arrived, RIDER was one of my first tape purchases.  And I still get a smile on my face watching the opening credits superimposed over Mix riding Tony Jr.

(Courtesy of Les Adams) Above, Tom Mix (and Tony Jr.) in his last appearance before the cameras, starring in THE MIRACLE RIDER (Mascot, 1935) chapterplay for producer Nat Levine.  Rumor has it that Tony Jr. was Gene Autry's first 'Champion', but that is incorrect --- take a look at the Gene Autry section in the 'Trusty Steeds' section where you will find info on 'Lindy', one of trainer Johnny Agee's horses which was used by Gene. Above from L-to-R are Charles Middleton as 'Zaroff', Jason Robards, Sr., and Tom Mix in a scene from Nat Levine's THE MIRACLE RIDER (Mascot, 1935).  Middleton's greatest role was as Emperor Ming in the Flash Gordon serials.

Mix went back to his circus, and was even joined by daughter Ruth Mix, who had done heroine roles in several chapterplays and some Rex Bell westerns.  The circus went bust in 1938 with Ruth running the show as her father was in Europe doing a tour and trying to drum up business.

(Courtesy of Donn & Nancy Moyer and the Jeannie Blair collection)		On the left is a 'route card' (postcard) covering stops during a two week period in the Spring of 1937. Below, safely parked under a tent next to one of the circus trucks, is the Mix 'death car', the 1937 Cord Phaeton convertible.  Bud Norris adds that the truck on the right is Mix's tour bus, a GMC. I asked Bud Norris about the current status of the Cord, and he said that the Imperial Palace Casino in Las Vegas had the car in their collection but they put it in a Kruse auto auction around 1998 and sold it to a wealthy Californian.
(Courtesy of Donn & Nancy Moyer and the Jeannie Blair collection)

Left, Mix on the white Tony II chatting with Gene Autry riding ??? during their 1939 Christmas Parade appearance in Hollywood.

On October 12, 1940, Tom was driving his '37 Cord Phaeton convertible when it left the road near Florence, Arizona.  The Hollywood legend was dead.  There wasn't much left in Mix's estate (after five wives, losses due to the stock market crash, the Depression and circus, as well as his free spending lifestyle).

Mix had two daughters --- Ruth was born July 13, 1912 to Olive Stokes, and Thomasina (Tommie) was born February 12, 1922 to Victoria Forde.  (Victoria Forde was a frequent heroine/leading lady for Tom during his Selig work.)

Bobby Copeland provides some info on Mix's will:

Tom left his lawyer of 25 years, Ivan D. Parker, his horse Tony and all his riding equipment, guns, and western clothing used in his motion picture work, and all his trophies. The rest of the estate was divided equally between the actor's widow, Mabel Hubbell Mix, and one of his daughters, Thomasina Mix Mathews, 19, for whom the will provided a monthly income of $500 until she reaches the age of 25, when she is to receive her share of the principal. Mix disinherited his four former wives and his other daughter, Ruth Mix Knight. "I declare I have been previously married", the will stated. "I do not desire any of my former wives or my said daughter, Ruth Mix, now known as Ruth Knight Mix, in any wise participate in this will. "

The Tom Mix Ralston radio program and comics continued for another decade.

Mix did ten sound films, and most fans have seen THE MIRACLE RIDER, as it was shown on early TV and was one of the first serials available on videotape.  However, to properly evaluate Mix in the talkies, you also need to view one or several of his better Universal talkies --- try DESTRY (JUSTICE) RIDES AGAIN, THE FOURTH HORSEMAN or hopefully, THE RIDER OF DEATH VALLEY.  You might be pleasantly surprised!

The Motion Picture Herald and Boxoffice polls were conducted from about the mid 1930s through the mid 1950s.  With a few exceptions, the annual results would list the 'Top Ten' (or 'Top Five') cowboy film stars.  In most cases, the winners were what you would expect --- Autry, Rogers, Holt, Starrett, Hoppy, etc.  Tom Mix had one year where he was ranked.  However, it should be noted that the polls did not begin until 1936.

The 'Tom Mix Ralston Straight Shooters' radio program offered a bunch of premiums over the years.  One of the most prized (and valuable) is a series of comic books available in the early 1940s. Les Adams provides details about Tom Mix Comics numbers 1-12 (late 1941 - mid 1942), which were issued as premiums by Ralston:

These came from Checkerboard Square in St. Louis and were not sold at newstands. By far the best rendition of Mix I've seen (story by Stan Schendel and Ray Bouvet and art by Fred Meagher with an assist by Bill Allison). Charles Biro of Crime Does Not Pay fame did some back-up features. All of the radio characters, including Wash, were on hand here. Issues 10-11-12 had a title change to Tom Mix Commandos Comics. Story titles included 'Tom Mix and The Lost Trail of Tony', 'Tom Mix and The Were-Wolf of the Range' and 'Tom Mix and the Cobra's Lair'. The Commando issues saw such as 'Tom Mix and the West Coast Bombardments' and 'Tom Mix and The Terrible Talons of Toyko'. The first issue also had the lyrics to all hundred verses of the Ralston Song to the tune of When It's Roundup Time in Texas (and the bloom is on the sage ...).

You can read about the Tom Mix Ralston Straight Shooters radio program at:
http://www.old-time.com/mix.html
http://www.richsamuels.com/nbcmm/slobb/floor.html

The official Ralston website has info on Tom Mix at: http://www.hotralston.com/tommix.htm. They even have the words to the radio show theme song. Remember that the Mix/Ralston jingle is sung to "When The Bloom Is On The Sage (When It's Round-up Time In Texas)", a tune written circa 1930 by Fred Howard and Nat Vincent: http://www.hotralston.com/themesong.htm

Tom Mason at the Nostalgia League website has authored an article on Curley Bradley and the Tom Mix radio show: http://thenostalgialeague.com/olmag/tommix.htm

(Courtesy of J. Cooper)

In the early 1980s, there was a brief reincarnation of the Tom Mix Ralston Straight Shooters, and some new premiums were issued ... such as the membership ID on the left.

(Courtesy of Minard Coons)

Info to follow on the comic career of Tom Mix