Gene Wilder is an American stage and screen actor, director, screenwriter, author and activist. Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the TV series Armstrong Circle Theatre in 1962. His first major role was as Leopold Bloom in the 1968 film The Producers which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. This was the first in a series of collaborations with writer/director Mel Brooks, including 1974's Young Frankenstein, a script 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 and for his four films with Richard Pryor: Silver Streak , Stir Crazy , See No Evil, Hear No Evil , and Another You . Wilder has directed and written several of his films, including The Woman in Red . He was married to actress Gilda Radner. Her death from ovarian cancer led to his active involvement in promoting cancer awareness and treatment, helping found the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Detection Center in Los Angeles and co-founding Gilda's Club.
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| Birthdate: | June 11, 1933 |
| Birthplace: | Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
| Age: | 78 |
| Height: | 5' 10" |
| Education: | University of Iowa, Washington High School |
| Religion: | Atheism, Judaism |
| Also known as: | Jerome Silberman |