PPL Film Festival to highlight Richard Widmark and the Wild West

Although he made his Hollywood reputation early on as a film noir villain, Princeton native Richard Widmark starred in well over a dozen Westerns, playing both leading parts and supporting roles opposite some of the biggest names in the business. In 2002, Widmark was inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. To recognize Widmark's virtuosity as a Western star, and to celebrate his centennial birthday coming up on December 26, Princeton Public Library is partnering with the Rediscover Richard Widmark to screen four different Westerns, one each night at 6:30 p.m., between Monday, September 29, and Thursday, October 2. Bart Kassabaum, one of the Rediscover Richard Widmark members, said, "Widmark Western Week will include three films from the 50s with Widmark as the man on the wrong side of the law but twice redeemed, plus an Oscar-worthy performance two decades later, in a modern western, as a man with no redeeming values - Widmark at his best as he always was. He captures and commands the screen with every line and action." For additional information on activities of Rediscover Richard Widmark, call (815) 872-7081 or e-mail RediscoverRichardWidmark@gmail.com. For individual movie titles included in Widmark Western Week, contact the Princeton Public Library at (815) 875-1331. The Princeton Public Library is located at 698 E. Peru Street in Princeton, Illinois. All programs