Bernard A. Widen
Bernard A. Widen (1920–2017) was an American dentist and artist. Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, Bernard Widen spent the years of the Great Depression on Chicago's West Side where his father, Dr. Jacob Widen, was a practicing dentist. Deciding to follow his father's choice of profession, Bernard Widen attended Herzl Junior College and the YMCA College to obtain the prerequisites necessary for entry into the University of Illinois College of Dentistry. Following graduation in 1944 he served as a captain in the U.S. Army in Germany and Austria, where duty took him to a concentration camp and an encounter with survivors of the Nazi Holocaust. Upon discharge, Widen briefly joined his father in general dentistry on Chicago's North Side before starting his own downtown practice. After 12 years in general dentistry, Widen decided he wanted to shift the focus of his practice to the specialty of orthodontia. He applied to the Loyola University School of Dentistry and in 1960, Widen earned his master's degree. Widen's Masters thesis involved a study using electromyography on facial muscles following the separation of banded teeth and was cited in future thesis papers. Widen opened a new specialty practice on Chicago's North Side, and after