Career
He was the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Nevada and a Western movie star. Bell made his film debut in Wild West Romance in 1928. He continued in a number of films, mostly Westerns, where he had the lead role.
He left films in 1936.
They lived in Searchlight, Nevada. Bell returned to the screen for two more films in 1942.
In 1944, Bell ran for the United States House of Representatives on the Republican ticket against Democrat Berkeley Bunker. The Nevada State Journal commented on November 1: "He has made friends where ever he appeared, but consensus is that the time is too short to overcome a handicap of not being so well known as his opponent".
The election was held November 7, and Bell got 19,096 votes against Bunker who received 36,648.
Bell was the leader of the Nevada Republican Party and in 1948 was an alternate to the Republican National Convention. He was also active in the Nevada Chamber of Commerce and Boy Scouts. He died in office in 1962.
His final film appearance was a brief cameo as a cowboy in John Huston"s film, which was shot on location in Nevada.
He appeared in the film with actress Marilyn Monroe, who died a month after Rex in the summer of 1962.