Richard Widmark Biography

Fast Facts

• Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960
• The Museum of Modern Art honored Widmark with a retrospect of his films in 2001
• Studied acting at Lake Forest College in Illinois
• Widmark's professional career began on the radio in 1938 on the soap opera "Aunt Jenny's Real Life Stories․"
• Quote: "I suppose I wanted to act in order to have a place in the sun․ I'd always lived in small towns, and acting meant having some kind of identity․"
• Best known for his role as Tommy Udo in the 1947 film "Kiss of Death," which earned him an Academy Award nomination
• Known for portraying villains and anti-heroes in film noirs of the 1940s and 50s
• Entertained servicemen during World War II as part of the American Theatre Wing