'Kiss of Death' Actor Widmark Dies at 93
By STEPHEN SINGER AND BOB THOMAS, AP
Posted: 2008-03-26 18:29:44
HARTFORD, Conn. (March 26) - Richard Widmark, who made a sensational
film debut as the giggling killer in "Kiss of Death" and became a
leading man in "Broken Lance," "Two Rode Together" and 40 other
films, died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93.
Tinseltown's
Recently Departed
Hazel Court, April 15: The '50s and '60s scream queen who became famous for her roles in classic horror films like 'The Raven' and 'The Masque of the Red Death' passed away from a heart attack at the age of 82.
Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday. She would
not provide details of his illness and said funeral arrangements
are private.
"It was a big shock, but he was 93," Blanchard said.
Widmark earned an Academy Award nomination for best supporting
actor for his role in the 1947 thriller "Kiss of Death." He
played Tommy Udo, who delighted in pushing an old lady in a
wheelchair down a flight of stairs to her death. It was his only
Oscar nomination.
"That damned laugh of mine!" he told a reporter in 1961. "For
two years after that picture, you couldn't get me to smile. I
played the part the way I did because the script struck me as funny
and the part I played made me laugh. The guy was such a ridiculous
beast."
Actress Shirley Jones, who appeared with Widmark and James
Stewart in "Two Rode Together" and became a good friend, said she
was devastated about Widmark's death.
"He was a down-to-earth guy, and I respected him for that,"
Jones said in a phone interview from Los Angeles. "He was a real
guy, but he was such a wonderful actor."
A.C. Lyles, a producer with Paramount Pictures, worked with
Widmark on the 1975 western "The Last Day."
"Dick was just one of the nicest guys I ever worked with: very,
very professional, very, very prepared and he couldn't have been
more cooperative," Lyles said.
"He would have little comments to make during rehearsal about a
scene and it was never a suggestion that would enhance him," he
said. "It was always to enhance someone else in the scene and I
thought that was very courageous of him."
A quiet, inordinately shy man, Widmark often portrayed killers,
cops and Western gunslingers. But he said he hated guns.
(FILES) File picture of late US actor Richard Widmark posing on the balcony of the Deauville casino during the American Film Festival in Deauville, Normandy, Western France on September 7, 1991. Richard Widmark, who became an overnight star for his portrayal of a psychopathic killer in 1947 classic "Kiss of Death" has died after a long illness, US media reported on March, 26, 2008.. AFP PHOTO MYCHELE DANIAU/FILES (Photo credit should read MYCHELE DANIAU/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
(FILES) File picture of late US actor Richard Widmark at a press conference in Rome on April 3, 1958 after the screening of the film "Time Limit". Widmark died at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut on March, 24 2008, his wife Susan Blanchard told the New York Times. Widmark made more than 60 films in a career that spanned five decades which saw him carve out a reputation for playing villains and tough guys.. AFP PHOTO INTERCONTINENTAL/ALDO SVINA/FILES (B/W ONLY) (Photo credit should read ALDO SAVINA/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
(FILE PHOTO) Actor Richard Widmark during a break in filming at Shepperton Studios. He is playing the role of the Dauphin in an adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's 'Saint Joan'. The film is being produced by Otto Preminger and Jean Seberg is playing the part of Joan. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)
Getty Images
**FILE**In this 1984 photo released by Columbia Pictures, actor Richard Widmark appears in a scene from the film "Against All Odds, with actress Jane Greer. Widmark, who made a sensational film debut as the giggling killer in "Kiss of Death" and became a Hollywood leading man in "Broken Lance," "Two Rode Together" and 40 other films, died Monday, March 24, 2008, after a long illness. He was 93. (AP Photo/Columbia Pictures) **NO SALES **
AP
** FILE ** Actor Richard Widmark is shown in Normandy, France in this July 9, 1991 file photo. Widmark died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93. Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday, March 24, 2008. (AP Photo/file)
AP
In this 1967 image originally released by Universal Pictures, actor Richard Widmark arrives at Penn Station in New York. Widmark died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93. Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday, March 24, 2008. (AP Photo/Universal Pictures) ** NO SALES **
AP
In this 1972 image originally released by NBC, actor Richard Widmark stars as Sgt. Dan Madigan a scene from the NBC series, "Madigan." Widmark died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93. Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday, March 24, 2008. (AP Photo/NBC) ** NO SALES **
AP
In this 1950 image originally released by 20th Century Fox, Richard Widmark portrays Lt. Carl Anderson, left, in a scene with Jack Webb in "Halls of Montezuma". Widmark died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93. Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday, March 24, 2008. (AP Photo/20th Century Fox) ** NO SALES **
AP
In this 1962 image originally released by United Artists, Richard Widmark portrays Col. Tad Lawson, right, in a scene with Maximilian Schell in "Judgment at Nuremberg." Widmark died at his home in Roxbury after a long illness. He was 93. Widmark's wife, Susan Blanchard, said he died Monday, March 24, 2008. (AP Photo/United Artists) ** NO SALES **
AP
(FILES) File picture of late US actor Richard Widmark posing on the balcony of the Deauville casino during the American Film Festival in Deauville, Normandy, Western France on September 7, 1991. Richard Widmark, who became an overnight star for his portrayal of a psychopathic killer in 1947 classic "Kiss of Death" has died after a long illness, US media reported on March, 26, 2008.. AFP PHOTO MYCHELE DANIAU/FILES (Photo credit should read MYCHELE DANIAU/AFP/Getty Images)
AFP/Getty Images
"I know I've made kind of a half-assed career out of violence,
but I abhor violence," he remarked in a 1976 Associated Press
interview. "I am an ardent supporter of gun control. It seems
incredible to me that we are the only civilized nation that does
not put some effective control on guns."
Widmark was born Dec. 26, 1914, in Sunrise, Minn., where his
father ran a general store, then became a traveling salesman. The
family moved to Sioux Falls, S.D., Henry, Ill., and Chillicothe,
Mo., before settling in Princeton, Ill.
"Like most small-town boys, I had the urge to get to the big
city and make a name for myself," he recalled in a 1954 interview.
"I was a movie nut from the age of 3, but I don't recall having
any interest in acting," he said.
But at Lake Forest College, he became a protege of the drama
teacher and met his first wife, drama student Ora Jean Hazelwood.
Their daughter, Ann, became the wife of baseball immortal Sandy
Koufax.
Two years out of college, Widmark reached New York in 1938
during the heyday of radio drama. His mellow Midwest voice made him
a favorite in soap operas, and he found himself racing from one
studio to another.
Rejected by the Army because of a punctured eardrum, Widmark
began appearing in Broadway plays in 1943. His first was a comedy
hit "Kiss and Tell." He was appearing in the Chicago company of
"Dream Girl" with June Havoc when 20th Century Fox signed him to
a seven-year contract. He almost missed out on the "Kiss of
Death" role.
"The director, Henry Hathaway, didn't want me," the actor
recalled. "I have a high forehead; he thought I looked too
intellectual." The director was overruled by studio boss Darryl F.
Zanuck, and Hathaway "gave me kind of a bad time."
An immediate star, Widmark appeared in 20 Fox films from 1957 to
1964. Among them: "The Street with No Name," "Road House,"
"Yellow Sky," "Down to the Sea in Ships," "Slattery's
Hurricane," "Panic in the Streets," "No Way Out," "The Halls
of Montezuma," "The Frogmen," "Red Skies of Montana," "My Pal
Gus" and the Samuel Fuller film noir "Pickup on South Street."
In 1952, Widmark starred in "Don't Bother to Knock" with
Marilyn Monroe. He told an interviewer in later years:
"She wanted to be this great star but acting just scared the
hell out of her. That's why she was always late - couldn't get her
on the set. She had trouble remembering lines."
"But none of it mattered. With a very few special people,
something happens between the lens and the film that is pure magic.
... And she really had it."
After leaving Fox, Widmark's career continued to flourish. He
starred (as Jim Bowie) with John Wayne in "The Alamo," with James
Stewart in John Ford's "Two Rode Together," as the U.S.
prosecutor in "Judgment at Nuremberg," and with Robert Mitchum
and Kirk Douglas in "The Way West." Also: "St. Joan" (as the
Dauphin), "How the West Was Won," "Death of a Gunfighter,"
"Murder on the Orient Express," "Midas Run" and "Coma."
"Madigan," a 1968 film with Widmark as a loner detective, was
converted to television and lasted one season in 1972-73. It was
Widmark's only TV series.
He also was in some TV films, including "Cold Sassy Tree" and
"Once Upon a Texas Train."
In later years, Widmark appeared sparingly in films and TV. He
explained to Parade magazine in 1987: "I've discovered in my
dotage that I now find the whole moviemaking process irritating. I
don't have the patience anymore. I've got a few more years to live,
and I don't want to spend them sitting around a movie set for 12
hours to do two minutes of film."
Hazelwood died in 1997 and Widmark married Blanchard in 1999.
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