Tom Mix: Prescott’s First “Junior Bonner”

Was Steve McQueen channeling Tom Mix when he filmed Junior Bonner in Prescott in 1971? We’ll never know, but we do know this: Tom Mix was the real “Junior Bonner.” Not yet a leading man, Mix had competed in the Prescott’s Frontier Days Rodeo in 1909, and would use his riding, roping and rodeo skills throughout his film career. In his first Prescott Western for Selig Polyscope in 1913, Mix was the villain “Apache Frank” in The Sheriff of Yavapai County. Soon, he was ready for the spot