Dan Blocker
Born:
December 10, 1928, DeKalb, Texas
Died: May 13, 1972 (age 43), Los Angeles, California
Dan Blocker was an American actor best remembered for his role as
Eric 'Hoss' Cartwright in the TV western blockbuster Bonanza.
Blocker was born in De Kalb in East Texas, the son of Ora Shack
Blocker & Mary Davis Blocker. His family moved to O'Donnell located
in both Lynn and Dawson counties near Lubbock in west Texas soon after
his birth.
What do you know about Dan Blocker? Try this quick quiz.
1. He attended Texas Military Institute and later graduated from Sul
Ross State Teacher's College in Alpine, where he earned a degree in the
dramatic arts. What degree did he earn in dramatic arts?
2. Despite playing the "middle son" on "Bonanza",
he and the actor who played his elder TV brother were born the same
year. Who was the actor?
3. Blocker was drafted and served in the Korean War. True or False?
4. Blocker so opposed the Vietnam War that he uprooted his family in
1970. Where did he move his family to?
5. What was the steakhouse he received partial ownership in exchange
for serving (in character as Hoss) as their commercial spokesman and
making personal appearances at franchises. Though not as widespread as
they once were, a few of the restaurants still remain.
6. In 1972, Blocker died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism following
routine gall bladder surgery in Los Angeles. The cast and crew of Bonanza
were shaken by his death, and the writers took the then-unusual step of
referencing a major character's death in the show's storyline that
autumn. Bonanza lasted another season, but the final season in
which Blocker did not appear is the least-requested in reruns.
Where
Dan Blocker is buried Trivia
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