March 26, 2008

Richard Widmark, R.I.P.


Perhaps his most famous role, from 1947's Kiss of Death:



I can't imagine that's how he'd have wanted his career to be remembered but not everyone can lay claim to creating such an iconically evil character. And it was his first movie role, to boot!

Widmark gets extra props for this
A passionate liberal Democrat, Mr. Widmark played a bigot who baits a black doctor in Joseph Mankiewicz’s “No Way Out” (1950). He was so embarrassed by the character that after every scene he apologized to the young actor he was required to torment, Sidney Poitier.

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