Featured image credit: PA
When the notification popped up on my phone yesterday and I read about the loss of Gene Wilder, my heart sank - no amount of fizzy lifting drink could keep it afloat.
Best known for his superb role as Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971), it turns out that Wilder had just one request when he accepted the role from the director, Mel Stuart.
According to Letters of Note, it transpires that Wilder's request ultimately led to one of the many movie's best-loved scenes.
"When I make my first entrance, I'd like to come out of the crowd carrying a cane and then walk toward the door with a limp," Wilder insisted.
"After the crowd sees Willy Wonka is a cripple, they all whisper to themselves and then become deathly quiet.
"As I walk towards them, my cane sinks into one of the cobblestones I'm walking on and stands straight up, by itself, but I keep on walking, until I realise I no longer have my cane.
"I start to fall forward, and just before I hit the ground, I do a beautiful forward somersault and bounce back up, to great applause."
No one can argue that Wilder didn't understand his character. When asked why, his response was golden ticket material.
"Because from that time on, no one will know if I'm lying or telling the truth," he said.
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Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) - Willy Wonka's (played by Gene Wilder) iconic entrance. Video credit: Paramount Pictures.
Thankfully, his request was accepted and the rest is history.
RIP Gene Wilder (1933 - 2016).
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Death, Film, TV and Film