Gene Wilder (born
Jerome Silberman; June 11, 1933) is an American
stage and
screen actor,
director,
screenwriter, and author.
Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the film
Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. His first major role was as
Leo Bloom in the 1968 film
The Producers. This was the first in a series of prolific collaborations with writer/director
Mel Brooks, including 1974's
Young Frankenstein, the script of which garnered the pair an
Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Wilder is known for his portrayal of
Willy Wonka in
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) and for his four films with
Richard Pryor:
Silver Streak (1976),
Stir Crazy (1980),
See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989), and
Another You (1991). Wilder has directed and written several of his films, including
The Woman in Red (1984).
