The star of such classics as ‘Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, ‘Young Frankenstein, ‘ and ‘Blazing Saddles;’ passed away at his home in Stamford, Connecticut, from complications related to Alzheimer’s disease.
Advertisement
A classically trained actor and student of Lee Strasberg’s famed Actors Studio, Wilder started out playing dramatic roles on the stage in off-Broadway productions of “Roots” and “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”.
People across America were hurt by the loss of legendary comedy actor Gene Wilder on Monday, including late-night host James Corden.
Willy Wonka was Ostrum’s first and only movie role – as he chose to pursue a career in veterinary medicine – but he told Variety he still remembers how special it felt to be on set with Wilder.
Mel Brooks posted on Twitter about Gene Wilder’s passing, “Gene Wilder-One of the truly great talents of our time”.
Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle in Young Frankenstein, one of Wilder’s many collaborations with Mel Brooks.
WILLY WONKA & THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY on Saturday, September 3 at 11:00 a.m.at the IMAX Theater in the Indiana State Museum. A true film legend, he elevates every scene and every movie he’s in.
“Oh, Gene, it’s too soon!” “You never knew what to expect from Gene”.
“Something was missing”, Wilder said of the role last June, when he spoke to a crowd at the 92Y in NY. I thought it was sexy. A key break came when he co-starred with Anne Bancroft in Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Courage” in 1963 and met Brooks, her future husband.
Wilder was a last-minute fill-in as the “Waco Kid” in Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles” in 1974, and with Brooks wrote the screenplay for “Young Frankenstein” released later that year, also to big box office returns.
Advertisement
After Radner died of ovarian cancer in 1989, Wilder spent much of his time after promoting cancer research and opened a support facility for cancer patients. But when I think of Gene, I am lucky to remember him as more than the brilliant performer who brought the world so much joy. “I didn’t want to say anything because I wanted it to go on”. He is survived by his wife Karen Boyer, according to the International Movie Database.
