Biography
Gene Wilder (born Jerome Silberman) was an American actor, comedian, writer and filmmaker. He began his career on stage and made his screen debut in an episode of the television series The Play of the Week in 1961. His first film role was as Eugene Grizzard in the 1967 motion picture Bonnie and Clyde.
Wilder's first major role was as Leopold Bloom in the 1967 film The Producers, for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. This began a series of collaborations with writer and director Mel Brooks, including Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein (both 1974), the latter of which he co-wrote. He is also known for his portrayal of Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971) and for four films with Richard Pryor: Silver Streak (1976), Stir Crazy (1980), See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) and Another You (1991).
Wilder directed and wrote several of his own films, including The Woman in Red (1984). With his third wife, Gilda Radner, he starred in three films, the last two of which he also directed.
