Richard Travis, born William Benton Justice on April 17, 1913, in Carlsbad, New Mexico, began his acting career in daredevil cliffhangers, transitioning to war-era Warner Bros. features.
Early in his career, he changed his stage name from William Justice to William Travis and eventually settled on Richard (or Dick) Travis.
Lacking the requisite star power, the 6'2" tall, lanky blond made his biggest impression early in the game with the all-star film "The Man Who Came to Dinner" (1941),playing the love interest to Bette Davis's character.
He earned a few prime Warner roles, including third-billing in "The Big Shot" (1942) with Humphrey Bogart, a lead in "Escape from Crime" (1942),and a featured part in the war picture "Mission to Moscow" (1943) starring Walter Huston.
However, Richard was eventually relegated to headlining "Poverty Row" programmers such 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 dubious titles such as "Jewels of Brandenburg" (1947),"Alaska Patrol" (1949),and "Sky Liner" (1949),among his lead offerings.
He also played an unbilled role as Lou Gehrig in the film "The Babe Ruth Story" (1948) starring William Bendix.
In the 1950s, Richard appeared in several films and found steady work in rugged TV westerns, starring in the modern western detective TV series "Code 3" (1957) and appearing on shows such as "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, finding a lucrative career as a real estate entrepreneur in Southern California.
He died at his Pacific Palisades home in 1989 at the age of 76.
