Remembering Gene Wilder, The Star Of “Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory”

Gene Wilder, a beloved and twice Oscar-nominated comic actor and writer who had nonetheless stayed away from the big screen for two decades, has died aged 83.

Best remembered for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, as well as collaborations with Mel Brooks (Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles , The Producers) and Richard Pryor (Stir Crazy, See No Evil Hear No Evil), a statement released by his nephew, Jordan Walker-Pearlman, paints a picture of a man who lived a full life, long after he farewelled show business.

Wilder reportedly passed at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, surrounded by family, to the tune of Ella Fitzgerald’s “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”, following complications of Alzheimer’s disease.

In his statement, Walker-Pearlman explained why Wilder kept his condition – which he had lived with for three years - private.

“The decision to wait until this time to disclose his condition wasn’t vanity, but more so that the countless young children that would smile or call out to him ‘there’s Willy Wonka’ would not have to be then exposed to an adult referencing illness or trouble and causing delight to travel to worry, disappointment or confusion” he wrote.

“He simply couldn’t bear the idea of one less smile in the world.”

Though Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory will likely (and deservingly) be played on a loop at homes around the world this week, this writer’s mind turns to the following sequence from Young Frankenstein, one of the greatest comedies ever made, elevated by Wilder’s turn as Dr. Fronkensteen.

But then, when choosing iconic Gene Wilder moments, it’s hard to look past Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

As the inscrutable chocolatier, Wilder breathed life into one of the all-time great literary characters, and turned him into one of the all-time great movie characters; playful and prickly, but with a warm, gooey centre.

R.I.P.

Photo: Warner Bros.