In numerous storefront theatrical productions in the mid-1990s, the peripatetic Chicago actor Ray Wild was difficult to miss. He sported a shock of white hair, a booming voice and an intense gaze.
And, usually, he was about 30 years older than any of the other actors on the stage.
Mr. Wild, 68, whose full name was Raymond William Wild Jr., died in his Chicago home on Thursday, Feb. 12, surrounded by family and friends. The cause of death was complications due to cancer, said his son, Michael.
Mr. Wild relished his role as a mentor to younger people, said actress Lindsay Porter, a friend.
“He told us all that having so many young friends gave him the necessary courage to die with dignity,” Porter said. “He was inspiring right up until the very end.”
“He was so young at heart,” said theatrical director Charlie Sherman. “Ray had such gusto for living. And he was a stunning-looking bloke.”
Mr. Wild’s life was split between politics and the theater, with occasional detours into journalism, including a stint as a reporter and editor at the Darien (Conn.) Review.
Born in New Jersey, Mr. Wild attended the Goodman School of Drama in Chicago and did a little acting. He then moved into political campaigns, working for the late U.S. Rep. Sidney Yates and eventually becoming chief of staff for the campaign of the Adlai Stevenson III for treasurer of Illinois. Mr. Wild remained chief of staff through Stevenson’s first year in office. He also later served as executive secretary to Mayor Richard Gordon Hatcher of Gary.
Mr. Wild later served as director of public affairs and communication for the Washington, D.C., Bicentennial Commission. In 1982, he moved back to Chicago to work again with Hatcher as coordinator of the Black Economic Summit Conference and to become an independent consultant.
At the age of 57, Mr. Wild returned to acting with gusto.
He appeared in numerous productions at the Organic Theatre, the European Repertory Theatre, Roadworks Productions, the Raven Theatre, Next Theatre and many others.
Moving up the ranks, he appeared in “Desire Under the Elms” at the Court Theatre, “House and Garden” at the Goodman Theatre and served as Brian Dennehy’s understudy in the Goodman’s widely acclaimed production of “Long Day’s Journey Into Night.”
Following his diagnosis with terminal cancer about 18 months ago, Mr. Wild played the title role in a staged reading of William Shakespeare’s “King Lear.”
“The worlds of politics and theater really overlapped for him,” Michael Wild said. “That gave him a vast network of very interesting friends.”
Besides his son, Mr. Wild is survived by his daughter, Erin Wild, and his partner, Connie Mack-Ward. Services have been held.
