Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 19, 1991 TAG: 9104190124
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV4 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: ROBERT RIVENBARK SPECIAL TO THE ROANOKE TIMES & WORLD-NEWS
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Long
His face has livened up hundreds of sitcoms, dramas and movies of the week - in fact, his list of credits is so long it's hard to imagine American television without him.
He starred in two TV series, "The Farmer's Daughter" and "My World and Welcome To It," picking up an Emmy for the latter.
He guest-starred on "Dallas," "St. Elsewhere," "All in the Family," "Barney Miller," "Fantasy Island," "Magnum, P.I.," and many other TV shows.
He appeared in 17 films, playing opposite the likes of Gregory Peck, Burt Lancaster and James Garner.
Many may remember him as Commodore Decker in the "Doomsday Machine" episode of "Star Trek," or as one of the human characters who turn out to be dolls trapped in a barrel in a classic "Twilight Zone" episode.
Or you may have caught him in "They're Tearing Down Tim Riley's Bar," a "Night Gallery" episode.
The 67-year-old actor - currently a semi-regular on "Murder, She Wrote" starring Angela Lansbury - also lit up Broadway for 15 years, playing opposite Richard Burton, Helen Hayes, Julie Harris, Nancy Walker, Joan Bennett, Eli Wallach and Zachary Scott.
Since 1972, Windom has toured 40 states and several foreign countries, performing his James Thurber and Ernie Pyle one-man shows.
While Windom never has snared the stardom of some of his co-stars, he has no regrets about choosing acting as his calling.
"I tried the 9-to-5 world in my early 20s, selling insurance in New York," he said. "It took me three years to get back into acting, but I finally did, and I've been able to make my living at it pretty much ever since.
"Since I did my stint in business, I don't wonder if I threw my life away on something frivolous. I tried wearing a tie, coming into an office, seeing the same faces every day. It wasn't for me. In a world of grasshoppers and ants, I'm definitely a grasshopper."
Windom has faced lean times as an actor, and expects more.
"People ask me `What was your big break?'" he said. "I've had many of them. I'm waiting for another.
"Big breaks don't last forever. They've got to keep happening. People don't care what you did more than a month ago," he said. "They may say `I remember you from so-and-so.' Then they go out and watch the latest rock group. They won't buy tickets to see you unless you've been doing enough to keep yourself in the forefront of their minds."
Windom's upbringing prepared him for the uncertainties of the actor's life. He was born in New York but didn't stay long. His father, an architect, shuttled between jobs in New York, Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia and Europe. Windom spent a lot of his youth in the care of assorted aunts and his grandmothers.
"I spoke French and Spanish by the time I was 8 years old," he said. "But, in the third grade, I got beaten up at recess because I would hold up my hand for every question and be the teacher's pet. A couple of punches in the nose and you learn: Don't make waves. You learn to giggle, have a little fun, make people laugh, and it takes you a long way."
Windom's first part was as Ygor in the Boy Scout skit of "Frankenstein." As a student at the Admiral Billard Academy, a prep school in New London, Conn., he did ingenue parts in plays at the all-boy school.
He settled on acting as a profession after serving in the Army in World War II. Stuck in Biarritz, France, waiting for a ship home after the war, he enrolled in Biarritz American University, a makeshift college set up by the Army to keep the GIs occupied. He tried out for a production of "Richard III," sponsored by the American Repertory Theater, and got the lead.
"Richard III" toured Army bases throughout occupied Europe for two months in 1946. The audiences were great. Windom was hooked.
"When you've played Richard III for a lusty audience for two months, you lose interest in going back to school to study for the foreign service, or forestry, or whatever," he said.
Home from the war with a letter of introduction from his "Richard III" director, Windom presented himself to Broadway and won roles in six classic plays running in repertory.
"I never had formal acting training, so I've never stopped learning," he said. "I get a free lesson every time I stand in an elevator with other people: body language, voice, eye movements. It's all there, free of charge, if you've got your eyes open."
Like many of his colleagues, Windom prefers the stage to movies and television.
"The stage is like dancing with a girl because you feel where and how far the audience wants you to take them," he said. "Movies are like dancing with a chair, and TV is like dancing with a wet raincoat. The only thing is, the girl is not going to show up to dance with you unless she's seen you work out with the chair and the raincoat."
Windom looks forwards to playing Elwood P. Dowd in the Radford production of "Harvey." He saw and admired the original Broadway production with Frank Fay as Elwood, and, like many Americans, caught the Jimmy Stewart film version, which he says he didn't like. His Elwood will be all Windom.
"I wanted to do `Harvey' because it's a comedy that doesn't rely on one-liners," he said. "It's old-fashioned, it's gentle and has a certain charm for that reason."
Windom performs in "Harvey" Monday through April 27 in Radford University's Porterfield Theater. Curtain time each night is 8. Admission is free to students, faculty and Radford staff with university identification, and $3 for others. All seats are reserved. Tickets are available at the theater box office, noon to 6 p.m. weekdays, and one hour before each performance. Call 831-5289.
Keywords:
PROFILE
by CNB