Richard Widmark: A Princeton legend

Richard Widmark was disappointed, to say the least, when he returned home to Princeton, Ill., in the first part of July in the summer of 1932. He would not be going to the University of Arizona as he had hoped, and the road trip, intended to end up there with Tom Best and Gail Castner along for a last big adventure, had only gotten them to Sioux Falls, S.D., for a visit with Dick’s Uncle Leo and grandmother Mary Barr. His father, Carl H. Widmark, had sent a wire to Sioux Falls telling his son that he could not help him with the money to attend the University of Arizona, and Richard had no choice but to return home. He was living at 428 S. Pleasant St. with his mother, Ethel Mae, and brother, Donald. His parents had separated in 1931, while he was a senior at Princeton Township High School.

Widmark parked his Chevrolet coupe on Main Street in front of Heck’s Rexall and headed into the store. He had bought the 5-year-old car from Leslie Monroe at Monroe’s Chevrolet dealership on the corner of Main and Peru streets, across from the post office during his senior year. The car had been very reliable on the trip to Sioux Falls and back to Princeton. Richard was at least thankful for that. He had made a good deal with Monroe and the automobile was as good as promoted.

He still didn’t have a plan of action for what to do next, but he did know he wanted to get into a college, hopefully in law. He was meeting Tom Best at Heck’s. Tom already had plans to attend Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., where he would be studying to be a dentist. He walked into Heck’s and smiled when he saw Tom already sitting at the soda fountain counter. Dick sat on a stool next to Tom. Now that high school was behind them, part of the summer was gone, and Dick’s plans a bust, an ice cream soda could only help.

Dick loved ice cream sodas. Christian G. Heck, everyone knew him as C.G., was the owner of the drug store. C.G., sensitive to their taste buds, served up two double chocolates to Tom and Dick, without even waiting for their order. He nodded, grinned knowingly, and then waited on another customer who came in and sat at the counter next to the boys. Tom was rehashing his own plans, and Dick was lamenting his dilemma after their shortened adventure. C.G. served the new customer a hot fudge sundae. The guy sat eating his sundae, listening to the discussion of the young men.

Tom was trying to cheer Dick up, bringing up all of the positives, reminding him of all his academic accomplishments and great skill on the gridiron. That’s what good friends did. Tom wanted to get Dick back in the game. When there was a lull in the conversation, the man eating the sundae and taking everything in, turned to Widmark and said, “Why don’t you try Lake Forest College? It isn’t far from Northwestern; it’s a nice smaller school; and you wouldn’t be very far from your friend. With your accomplishments it sounds like you might could get a scholarship.”

That started a whole new conversation at the soda fountain in Heck’s Rexall, with many questions from Widmark and answers given, when the gentleman eating the sundae could provide them. Richard Widmark had a new game plan.

It was almost the middle of August when the letter addressed to Mr. Richard Widmark arrived at 428 N. Pleasant St. It was from the Registrar’s Office of Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, Ill. Richard had wasted no time in applying for admission after the conversation at the soda fountain in Heck’s Rexall. He sat at the kitchen table, opened the letter and read:

“Dear Mr. Widmark: 

“We are pleased to inform you that your application for admission to Lake Forest College has been approved and that you may matriculate as one of our students this fall.

“The transcript of your record at the Princeton Township High School indicates that you have a fine foundation upon which to build your college life. We believe that Lake Forest College will afford splendid opportunity for your further development.

“Any specific information which you may need, regarding your enrollment at Lake Forest, will be sent to you later. However, we will be pleased to hear from you at any time you want information. Yours very truly, Registrar.”

Richard Widmark got a full four-year scholarship to Lake Forest College because of his good grades, his need, and signing on to play football. He would start as a prelaw student and had this to say in several interviews years later: “I was a kid who was terribly broke in the middle of the Depression, and Lake Forest gave me a scholarship. I got to go to college, which I didn’t think I was going to do. I was fortunate to go, not every kid did ... a scholarship helped a lot. When a kid found out that he was able to talk, he wanted to be a lawyer. That was automatic.”

Lake Forest College was and is a liberal arts college north of Chicago near the Lake Michigan shore. It is a 107-acre campus located 30 miles north of downtown Chicago in the historic suburb of Lake Forest. Wooded ravines connect North, Middle, and South Campus, and the beach along Lake Michigan is a short distance away, making it an easy to walk campus. There were only about 300 students when Widmark attended from 1932 to 1936.

Richard Widmark regarded his college years as significant ones. He turned his attentions from law to speech, a major that included classes in the dramatic arts. He would study drama under the instruction of Professor Russell C. Tomlinson, who would become one of his most influential mentors.

“I probably worked harder at Lake Forest College than I ever have, before or since. I was constantly busy, always in a play, about 30 in all. I debated all over and played on the football team. It was one of the periods of my greatest activity.”

During his freshman year, Widmark was encouraged by a friend to try out for the college drama group, the Garrick Club (later called the Garrick Players), and he was accepted.

Richard’s grandmother, Mary Barr, had taken him to the movies starting at the age of 3, and he was smitten with them, even to the point of acting out his own scenes in the backyard as a young boy. He was in several plays in high school and involved in many musical and dramatic endeavors.

“I always loved the movies and had a feeling I’d like to do them; but when I found out I could talk, I thought I’d like to become a lawyer. Theater and movies were a million miles away, totally removed from my ken. In my day, coming from a little town, California and New York were places that could have been on the moon.”

How ironic that California and New York would indeed be the locations of two of his residences. Richard Widmark would find his early training in theater invaluable in his career, and his four years at Lake Forest College is where this would happen.

I’ll be back with more of his college life in a couple of weeks.