The film director Mel Stuart died yesterday in his home in Los Angeles. Mr. Stuart was most known as the director of the classic film "Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory". He was also a documentary filmmaker. He won an Emmy award for his documentary "The Making of the President 1960". Other films on his resume included "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" and the comedy "If it's Tuesday, this Must be Belgium".
Willie Wonka will forever be in my opinion his masterpiece. The film is now a cult classic and seen by children and adults everywhere. At the time of its release Willie Wonka was considered a flop as it didn't recoup its costs even though it received Oscar nomination for best original score. It took television to bring the film to cult status.
"Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" was based of the book "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl. Mr. Dahl loathed the film version! He especially hated the belching scene. The film is truly a classic. The characters are completely believable. Everyone knows a Veruca Salt and a Mike Teevee or a Augustus Gloop or a Violet Beauregarde we all went to school with them. Charlie and Uncle Joe are uber heroes and completely lovable. Slugworth the scariest of villians and Willie Wonka is just the kind of guy who should own a chocolate factory!
Thank You Mel Stuart!
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