Riverland Community College theatre director Lindsey Williams recalls seeing Frank Bridges at last year’s production of “Young Frankenstein,” and then seeing him again — and again, during the play’s run.

“He said he loved it; thought it was so funny — I think he came back four times,” Williams said, with a chuckle. “He loved theatre so much; as long as he was able, he would always come back.”

Williams’s voice joined a chorus of accolades earlier this week when old friends heard that Bridges, 90, had passed away in Albert Lea.

Bridges was the head of theatre at RCC until 1989, and the founder of the Summerset Theatre, a community theatre whose productions are held at Riverland. The theater was named the Frank W. Bridges Theater in his honor in 1992.

“I don’t think the theater program at Riverland Community College would be what it is today without Frank Bridges,” said Williams. “We were very lucky to have him for as long as we did.”

Longtime friend and former student, Penny Kinney, agreed.

“He was a true gentleman,” she said. “So knowledgeable — and always thinking. Inspirational. Students really loved him. He was such a philosopher! We liked to talk about things, and so did he.”

She appeared in several shows he directed, and had equal praise for him in that capacity.

“He would really get into the meat of the drama,” she said.

Former RCC theater director Jerry Girton — also a former student of Bridges’ — said his mentor was “so humble and so smart,” Girton said. “He was able to gather very talented people to him.”

Girton succeeded Bridges in the position and always found Bridges to be supportive and excited about subsequent shows.

Bridges loved “the classics,” said Girton, “Ibsen, Strindberg, Shakespeare — but then, he loved the big musical. Putting together the cast, the singers, dancers, orchestra — he really liked the challenge of it all.”

Girton recalled Bridges was also a statistician at heart, keeping notes about attendance and “what percentage of the Greater Austin area came to see plays.”

“We know today that ‘The Sound of Music’ was the most well-attended production” ever mounted at Riverland, Girton said. “That was Frank; he had every stat you could think of.”

Girton said when any praise came Bridges’ way, he deflected it to others.

“He would always say, ‘I was in the right place at the right time, with people doing the right thing,’” he said. “He always gave the credit to those people around him.”

Bridges, a native of Sioux City, Iowa, and who grew up in St. James, came to Austin to teach first at the high school and then at what was eventually to become Riverland Community College, located on the third floor of the high school.

It wasn’t long before he sought the establishment of the Summerset Theater, which not only drew student talent, but community talent as well.

“I think Frank had really good theatrical intuition; he knew there was a lot of talent in the area,” Girton said. “He could see Summerset as a real possibility.”

Girton recalled Bridges saying of the first season, ‘Well, let’s call it Summerset 1’ and then we’ll see how it goes.’ “

Girton laughed at the thought. Twenty-five years later, the theatre was named in Bridges’ honor.

“Here he was coming back thinking it was a celebration of the 25 years, and then the sign saying ‘Frank W. Bridges Theatre’ was unveiled. He was so humbled, so proud, so everything. It meant a lot to him,” Girton said.

His friends meant a lot to him, too. He remained active in his retirement years, visiting children and grandchildren, attending productions and having “Dinner with Frank” gatherings, after first getting a small group of friends and colleagues together. The gatherings started to increase and soon, “Dinner with Frank” was a regular social event.

“We might talk about Shakespeare, or some other topic. Sometimes Frank brought hand-outs,” Girton said with a chuckle.

Bridges would often visit Riverland and the theatre.

“Frank would stop and say, ‘Do you mind if I take a walk through the theater?’” Girton said. “Here he was, asking me if it was okay to walk through the theater.”

Girton laughed when recalling a time when Bridges visited Girton’s office, asking his stock question about walking through the theater. Girton couldn’t wait until Bridges took that walk — because Girton knew what he would see: a swimming pool.

The play was “Metamorphoses,” and a pool was central to the set.

“So we had a 15 by 15 by 4 foot deep pool in the [orchestra] pit,” Girton said. “Frank came back to my office. He said, ‘I’ve seen a lot of things in my day, but I never thought I would see that.’”

Girton said Bridges’ legacy can be seen in every theatre season at Riverland.

“He was a legend,” he said.