The family later moved to Chicago, arriving on the day World War I ended. Todd was expelled in the sixth grade for running a game of craps inside the school. In high school, he produced the school play, "The Mikado", which was considered a hit. He eventually dropped out of high school and worked at a variety of jobs, including shoe salesman and store window decorator. One of his first jobs was as a soda jerk at a drugstore. When that drugstore went out of business, Todd had learned enough medical knowledge from his work there to be hired at Chicago's Michael Reese Hospital, as a type of "security guard" to stop visitors from bringing in food that was not on each patient's diet.