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Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

#1
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3/26/08 at 12:35pm
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One of the last stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood has passed away at 93. Personally, he was one of my favorite actors. He had great versatility in which he could play the hero or villian with equal ability and effect. May he R.I.P.

Tough-guy actor Richard Widmark dies at 93 - CNN.com
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#2
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3/26/08 at 1:29pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

What a huge loss for the film-world. Unfortunately, he was one of those names that not too many people outside of the film-buff circles knew.

To the best of my knowledge, he has pretty much isolated himself in recent years. Has he ever been recorded for a documentary or commentary to anyone's knowledge?

R.I.P.
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#3
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3/26/08 at 2:57pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

It's rather odd that he wasn't given an Honorary Oscar in recent years, never having won one. Perhaps that was his decision. Nevertheless, it is sad to see his passing. I have fond memories of "Night And The City", "Pickup On South Street", "Kiss Of Death", "No Way Out", "Panic In The Streets", "Madigan" and many others. My thoughts and prayers to his family, friends and fans.

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#4
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3/26/08 at 3:18pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

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#5
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3/26/08 at 3:40pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

i can always picture him laughing maniacally as he pushes the wheelchair down the stairs, my condolences to his family and fans.
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#6
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3/26/08 at 3:42pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by dana martin
i can always picture him laughing maniacally as he pushes the wheelchair down the stairs...
As sick as it sounds, that's my favorite part of Kiss Of Death. He did a great job playing a maniac.

Best wishes to his family and friends.
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#7
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3/26/08 at 3:44pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

i think that is the career moment that he is remembered for the most
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Quote:Wells, Kubrick, Hitchcock, Spielberg, Jackson, Wood ?? a true Auteur should be one who follows his artistic vision
support classic animation, call WB and complain about T&J vol 3 till it is fixed
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#8
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3/26/08 at 3:47pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

TCM having a movie tribute on 04-04-08. IMO, the tribute is rather weak with not enough of his best films. Perhaps, Fox Movie Channel will do a better Tribute?

Movie News and Releases - DVD Film Reviews by Turner Classic Movies
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#9
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3/26/08 at 4:08pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

One of my favorite Richard Widmark roles was as the humourless hard-as-nails captain in The Bedford Incident. A pretty good 60's cold war drama with a shocking climax.

One of the Hollywood greats.

R.I.P
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#10
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3/26/08 at 4:18pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

One of my favorites R.I.P. Richard.
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#11
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3/26/08 at 4:49pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

He was a one of a kind. Very sad news. RIP
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#12
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3/26/08 at 4:54pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

One of my favourite Noir and Western actors.

Thank you for leaving us with a legacy of wonderful films.
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#13
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3/27/08 at 4:58am
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Do I have to turn in my HTF card if I admit that I've never seen one of his movies?

R.I.P. Mr. Widmark.
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#14
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3/27/08 at 5:28am
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by ZacharyTait
Do I have to turn in my HTF card if I admit that I've never seen one of his movies?

R.I.P. Mr. Widmark.
Have you seen "Against All Odds"?




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#15
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3/27/08 at 9:40am
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

By a sad coincidence, Abby Mann, who wrote Judgment at Nuremberg, died on Tuesday. William Shatner and Maximilian Schell better be careful.
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#16
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3/27/08 at 12:04pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Ironically, Robert wrote this only a few days ago:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert Crawford
I think Widmark is the oldest male star still alive from the Golden Age of film.
I just read the sad news and was thinking of the "Richard Widmark Box Set request" thread immediately.

Indeed it's his versatility that was so striking. He was a very solid actor, I can't even remember a less than strong performance. I find it difficult to pronounce a favourite one, but I will never forget his supportive role in a "difficult" movie, one of my all time favourites: Warlock (1959).
Or his character Madigan.

Thinking it over once again, perhaps his character in Warlock wasn't even "supportive", but really the protagonist.

Truly a great actor. We need that Box Set soon.
May he rest in peace!


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#17
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3/27/08 at 2:20pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

From the Golden Age, Kirk Douglas and Olivia deHavilland are still thankfully still with us. Also, Eli Wallach, Van Johnson, Joan Fontaine, Jennifer Jones, Celeste Holm, Lizabeth Scott, Cyd Charisse, Maureen O'Hara and Lauren Bacall, amongst others, still remain. Still the point is relevant and true, the past stars of Hollywood are fading from our lives, if never our memories.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ZacharyTait
Do I have to turn in my HTF card if I admit that I've never seen one of his movies?

R.I.P. Mr. Widmark.

No, but I would think you have a very enjoyable mission ahead of you.

"I was born when she kissed me. I died when she left me. I lived a few weeks while she loved me."

My 25 most wanted DVDs: Chilly Scenes Of Winter (1979); The Dead (1987); The African Queen (1951); Johnny Guitar (1954); The Sterile Cuckoo (1969); The Friends Of Eddie Coyle (1973); The Rain People (196...

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#18
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3/28/08 at 2:22pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

RIP...I watched Kiss of Death this week in honor of Mr. Widmark. That performance has got to be one of the most chilling ever captured on film.

I read this week on some newsgroup that Johnny Udo was the basis of Frank Gorshin's portrayal of the Riddler. Anyone know if that is true?

Widmark was quoted in one of his obits that the reason he retired was that at his age and with relatively few years left he didn't want to spend 12 hours a day sitting around a set to do a 2 minute scene. That makes a lot of sense and speaks well of his ability to put his life priorities in order.
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#19
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3/28/08 at 3:50pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

This weekend, I will be watching "The Last Wagon" which is one of my favorite Widmark films.

Also, I noticed I have 29 of his films on dvd including a couple on preorder.
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#20
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3/28/08 at 4:11pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

I'm shocked by the lack of responses from other members. Anyhow, I read this good article from the NYT.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/26/ar...l?pagewanted=1

Here is a listing of his films including the television movies.

Richard Widmark Filmography
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#21
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3/29/08 at 1:53pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert Crawford
I'm shocked by the lack of responses from other members. Anyhow, I read this good article from the NYT.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/26/ar...l?pagewanted=1

Thank you. Very good article.
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#22
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3/29/08 at 2:24pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

I programmed my own mini-retrospective of Mr. Widmark, a truly magnificent actor. Rest in peace.

03/26/08: Kiss of Death (1947) Dir: Henry Hathaway
His debut. Pure theatrics, but what a show!

03/26/08: The Street with No Name (1948) Dir: William Keighley
Here playing the cerebral crime boss building his organization "along scientific lines." Widmark blows the doors off of poor Mark Stevens, Fox's bland Alan Ladd ripoff. I think I read somewhere that the business with the inhaler was his own idea.

03/26/08: Yellow Sky (1948) Dir: William Wellman
As 'Dude' he has the small but important role of antagonizing Greg Peck. Great film.

03/27/08: Night and the City (1950) Dir: Jules Dassin
For me, Harry Fabian is one of the most vivid depictions of ineffectualness and desperation ever put on screen.

03/27/08: No Way Out (1950) Dir: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Full commitment in a role he obviously found personally distasteful. How many actors would be willing to take something like this on, I wonder? The film still has the ability to shock.

03/27/08: Panic in the Streets (1950) Dir: Elia Kazan
Best scenes are with him and the excellent Paul Douglas, but even the stuff with the wife and kid (and next-door neighbor) is above average.

03/28/08: Red Skies of Montana (1952) Dir: Joseph M. Newman
Strictly on assignment in this straight adventure film about Forest Service firefighters in Montana. It's a good idea, the kind of thing Hawks would have somehow made great. Here it's merely good, no fault due to Widmark.

03/28/08: Pickup on South Street (1953) Dir: Samuel Fuller
Anti-hero Skip McCoy is immune to entreaties based on love or patriotism, he just wants his big score. Watch the sparks between Widmark and Jean Peters, especially their first scene.

03/28/08: Warlock (1959) Dir: Edward Dmytryk
This one has grown in my estimation over time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cees Alons
...Thinking it over once again, perhaps his character in Warlock wasn't even "supportive", but really the protagonist...
I agree. While Fonda and Quinn seemingly have the main roles (interestingly, Widmark was top-billed), it's Johhny Gannon's transformation, and the symbolic reflection in the town of Warlock, that makes up the main story.
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#23
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3/30/08 at 1:44pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Widmark was also in The Domino Principle with Gene Hackman. I hope that Fox releases Destination Gobi with Richard Widmark on DVD. I saw the trailer for it when the studio released The Immortal Sergeant on dvd starring Henry Fonda.
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#24
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3/30/08 at 6:25pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Robert,thanks for your wonderful,thoughtful post on Richard Widmark's passing, he was truly a film legend and always a professional. I wanted to add that I usually would see the posts of someone's passing in the AfterHours Lounge so when I hadn't seen any posts there for Richard Widmark I made one today.I should have done a search before starting the post! Thanks to Patrick Sun,he directed me here.Thanks to all who remembered Richard Widmark and their kind thoughts.May he R.I.P.
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#25
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3/31/08 at 12:45pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
To the best of my knowledge, he has pretty much isolated himself in recent years. Has he ever been recorded for a documentary or commentary to anyone's knowledge?
There was an excellent documentary on him a few years ago on (I think) the Biography Channel (you guys get that in the USA don't you?).

Mr Widmark was one of nature's genuinely nice guys. For example, he was color blind in the best sense of the word, and was a close friend of several black actors back in the bad old days when off-set actors of different colors didn't interact socially. If I remember correctly, he was the first white actor to invite Sidney Poitier to his home for a party.

He was faithful to his wife (the reason he dropped off the radar was largely because he felt a greater priority than acting and earning money he didn't need was to nurse her through her lengthy terminal illness). He was a great host and sociable, but never did drugs, didn't drink to excess, didn't disgrace himself in public, and was very well read without posturing about what a great intellectual he was.

Okay, so in terms of his films he didn't leave behind all that many truly great performances. To some extent this was the fault of the scripts - he never got the one that absolutely suited him and would have propelled him to superstardom. But that can be said of many other actors. And unlike many other actors, he was never embarrassingly awful even in the most mediocre of parts. The worst that could be said was that he was competent.

So, a long life, a well-led life, a life of caring and consideration for others, and competent in all that he worked at. Not a bad epitaph, all things considered. RIP, Mr Widmark.
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#26
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3/31/08 at 7:15pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by seanOhara
By a sad coincidence, Abby Mann, who wrote Judgment at Nuremberg, died on Tuesday. William Shatner and Maximilian Schell better be careful.

Another sad coincidence -- Jules Dassin just died.
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#27
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4/2/08 at 11:22am
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by andrew markworthy
Okay, so in terms of his films he didn't leave behind all that many truly great performances. To some extent this was the fault of the scripts - he never got the one that absolutely suited him and would have propelled him to superstardom. But that can be said of many other actors. And unlike many other actors, he was never embarrassingly awful even in the most mediocre of parts. The worst that could be said was that he was competent.
I beg to differ on your part about Widmark not having many great performances. The following list includes films in which I thought he was outstanding in his acting. Some might have other performances, but these roles get my vote.
  • Night and the City
  • No Way Out
  • Kiss of Death
  • Road House
  • Halls of Montezuma
  • Pickup on South Street
  • The Street with No Name
  • Warlock
  • The Last Wagon
  • Judgement at Nuremberg
  • The Law and Jake Wade
  • Cheyenne Autumn
  • The Bedford Incident
  • Madigan
  • Mr. Horn





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#28
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4/2/08 at 11:23am
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
Originally Posted by seanOhara
Another sad coincidence -- Jules Dassin just died.
Sad to see that and noted so in his tribute thread.





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#29
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4/2/08 at 12:09pm
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Re: Richard Widmark has passed away at 93!

Quote:
I beg to differ on your part about Widmark not having many great performances.
I agree totally with your list, Robert. Apologies, instead of what I wrote I should have used a phrase like 'iconic' as in capturing the general public imagination rather than any reflection on the quality of Mr W's acting at its best. At its best he was magnificent, and I feel more than a little shamefaced that I implied his acting at his best wasn't A1. It was, and I would sooner have someone like Mr W than a lot of the over-hyped bigger stars chewing the scenery (Olivier, Hoffman, to name but two) any day of the week. But I never felt that even with his best performances that he ever truly had a part that was iconic. There's absolutely no insult implied in this. I feel the same about e.g. Kenneth Branagh - a superb actor and I yield to none in my admiration for him, but have you ever seen him play a part in a movie which you felt was iconic? Henry V perhaps comes close, but having said that, it's a dream of a part.
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