Richard Widmark, R.I.P.
Richard Widmark, who played Skip in Samuel Fuller’s anti-Communist film noir PICKUP ON SOUTH STREET died on March 24 at the ripe old age of 93. Although he was best known for playing a psychopath in KISS OF DEATH (I’ve seen the famous scene, though not the whole movie), I first saw him in PICKUP, which I showed my students the last time I taught my American Film, American Culture class. It was a good choice because we had a short semester, and PICKUP is an example of a film noir, an anti-Communist movie, and … hmm … something else, but I forgot what … all at once. I was wondering what the students would think of the anti-Communist stuff, but by and large, they thought it was hilarious! Mo’s line, “I don’t know much about Commies … but I don’t like ‘em!” provoked a lot of laughter. I think my students had seen plenty of anti-capitalist propaganda in the past, and it was fun for them to see something from the other side.
Here’s an obituary from the New York Times: Richard Widmark, actor, dies at 93.