One of the most interesting characters in Nevada’s political history, Rex Bell made the transition from cowboy actor to elected official, paving the way, perhaps, for Ronald Reagan to do the same in neighboring California a generation later.

Bell, born in Chicago in 1903 as George Beldam, moved west with his family as a youngster, eventually settling in Hollywood. He was good with horses and found work as a movie extra. Soon, producers signed the young man to a contract with the Fox movie studio. He took the name Rex Bell.

Appearing in several Westerns for Fox in the late 1920s, Bell became a minor star.  In 1930, he met Hollywood’s “It” girl, Clara Bow, and the two began a relationship, getting married in Las Vegas the following year.

Bell and Bow settled at the Walking Box Ranch near Searchlight after their marriage, and played host to many of Hollywood’s hottest stars.

Shortly afterward, Bell’s movie career decelerated, as he devoted more time to running the ranch. He found being a real-life cattleman more rewarding than playing one for the cameras.

Yet Bell couldn’t give up public life, running unsuccessfully for Congress in 1944. Ten years later, he was elected lieutenant governor as a Republican, and in 1958 he retained his office, despite a Democratic sweep that saw Grant Sawyer take the governorship.

Bell was considered a strong candidate to oppose Sawyer in 1962, and was in Las Vegas to attend a meeting in support of his gubernatorial campaign when, on July 4, he donned his cowboy boots and Western apparel to speak to a Republican party picnic. Hours later, he suffered a coronary occlusion and died at Sunrise Hospital.

During a decade when Nevada was taking an unprecedented step on the national stage, Bell was a popular figure and an ambassador for the state. He was a natural showman whose warm charisma made him a perfect fit for a rugged, independent state.

SOURCE: Las Vegas News Bureau Collection, UNLV Special Collections

David G. Schwartz (www.dieiscast.com), is the Director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He is the author of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.

By David Schwartz

David G. Schwartz an Atlantic City native and the director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. He is the author of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling. His web site can be viewed at www.dieiscast.com.