Dan Blocker 1928 – 1972

Biography

Dan Blocker was born in De Kalb, Texas, and was, at fourteen pounds, the largest baby ever born in Bowie County. He served in the Korean War, where he was wounded and earned a Purple Heart, before studying drama and working as a teacher. He became a television icon as Hoss Cartwright, the gentle giant of Bonanza, which he played for thirteen years from 1959, making Hoss one of the most beloved characters in western television. At six feet four inches and nearly three hundred pounds, he brought warmth and humor to the role, and he also appeared in films and owned businesses, including a chain of restaurants. He died in Los Angeles, California, in 1972, at the age of forty-three, following gall bladder surgery. Bonanza ran for fourteen seasons, and Hoss Cartwright remains one of the most affectionately remembered characters in westerns.