William “Bill” Trice

Theater the star of LR lawyer’s life

Whether in the courtroom or onstage, William “Bill” Trice III was a stickler for details and always wanted to be well-prepared.

Once, while performing in the Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s traveling musical production of Dames at Sea, Trice’s wife-to-be, Judy Edwards, fell when stairs were not secured. She wasn’t hurt and finished the play, recalled Cliff Baker, the founder of the Rep. But Trice immediately let him know about the need to make sure that traveling set designs were anchored.

“He had told us to make sure the stairs were secure,” Baker said. “As soon as the show was over, he came over and gave me hell about it. There was nothing I could do but agree and say, ‘I’m sorry. You’re right.’”

“He was an attorney, but his real passion was in the theater.”

Trice, 67, of Little Rock died of a heart attack Thursday in his home. He was in remission from pancreatic cancer. He is survived by his wife, Judy Trice, and their three children, Kathryn Pryor of Little Rock, Jeffrey Pryor of Fort Smith and William “Will” Trice of New York City.

Trice was born in Vicksburg, Miss., and earned his bachelor’s and juris doctorate from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. He began his law career as a Pulaski County deputy prosecutor and later entered private practice.

For the past 25 years, Trice represented the Arkansas State Medical Board, the state Board of Dental Examiners and the state Board of Optometry.

When the Medical Board chose its attorney in 1989, several applied for the position, said Dr. Joseph Beck, the chairman of the board. Trice’s desire for preparation easily outdistanced him from the other candidates.

“He was the only one who read the entire Medical Practices Act,” Beck said. “He was always well-prepared. He was always two or three steps ahead of everyone.”

At times, prosecuting doctors at board hearings could become contentious, Beck said.

“It wasn’t always a pleasant thing when physicians had to testify to the board,” he said. “But Bill kept the board focused, and he had a core of kindness that came through. He was the consummate Southern gentleman.”

The law was Trice’s career, but it was only one aspect of his love of life, his wife said.

“He was a fun-loving, wonderful father,” she said. “He had a strong religious faith, and he loved the theater. He loved the law and politics. He was a very Renaissance type of man.People saw him as a problem-solver. He could fix things and make it right, and lots of people came to him with problems.”

Trice became involved with the theater while in basic training with the Army in New Jersey. He began acting at a theater in Monmouth County, N.J. He would often travel to New York to watch Broadway productions and dine on his favorite meal of spaghetti with red clam sauce, Judy Trice said.

When he returned to Arkansas, he directed, choreographed, wrote and performed for productions at the Rep, the Community Theatre of Little Rock and the Weekend Theatre in Little Rock.

“He always auditioned for plays,” his wife said. “He was a good dancer and a singer. We said he was a pretty good actor in the courtroom, too.”

Baker said Trice and his wife were “incredible supporters” of the arts in Little Rock. “He loved the theater in Little Rock.

“Lots of lawyers are frustrated actors,” Baker said. “Bill had the good sense … to follow his father’s advice and go into law instead of being a struggling artist, but his real passion was in theater.”

Beck said his love of acting was a hobby that gave Trice a positive attitude, despite dealing with the more bleak realities of law at times.

“There were dark things he saw,” Beck said. “But he helped push people from the dark side. He could do his job without getting too dark.

“He was always happy,” Beck said. “He made lemonade out of lemons. He was an excellent attorney, and he served the state well.”

Arkansas, Pages 16 on 04/12/2014

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