Where the Wilder Things Are: Whatever Happened to Gene Wilder - 'Where are they Now' Article by Bayani Miguel Acebedo

     Nowadays, people have no idea who Gene Wilder is. Back in the 60s, no comedy movie would be a hit without the performance of Gene Wilder. The former Hollywood star with the soft voice and blue eyes made instant classics out of his movies such as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Young Frankenstein, and The Producers (1967). His performance as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein (pronounced “FRONKenshteen”) in 1974’s Young Frankenstein is ranked #9 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006).        

He has also been turned into quite the internet meme.

                Born June 11, 1933, Jerome Silberman had his big break playing in an off-Broadway production of Roots, which lead him to bigger roles in actual Broadway shows such as My Complacent Lover, The White House, and Luv. He changed his name to Gene Wilder after considering that “he could never imagine Jerome Silberman play Hamlet.” He also admits now that he can’t also imagine Gene Wilder playing Hamlet.

Bet he also didn't imagine Doctor Who playing Hamlet... or Professor X playing Claudius.

                His actor-studio connections got him a small but memorable role as an undertaker in the movie, Bonnie and Clyde. He then got nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role of Leo Bloom in Mel Brooks’ The Producers (1967). This led to numerous collaborations with Mel Brooks, most notably his lead role in the comedy classic Young Frankenstein, a story about Dr. Frankenstein’s grandson who tries to create his own monster after discovering his grandfather’s old notes. This role got him  a second Oscar nomination.

All those nominations without wins make him sound like the Leo DiCaprio of the 60s

                Plenty more movies followed, but they had more of a hit-and-miss nature. His last big screen movie was Another You in 1991, the rest that followed were either guest stints in TV series or roles in a TV movies.  In truth, Gene Wilder has not had any on-screen appearance since 1999. He had an interview, however in 2013, where he was asked about the nature of his retirement. He says that the reason he hasn’t acted in anything as of late was because “the movies nowadays are too loud, and have too much swearing. They send me a lot of movies every year, and if I find one that’s good, I would act in it, but I just haven’t found any.” Wilder spends his days writing and reading. He has already released five books, one of which is his autobiography titled Kiss Me Like a Stranger: My Search for Love and Art.

pictured above: Gene Wilder in 2014

                There isn’t any news yet on whether we would find Gene Wilder on the big screen again, but the chances aren’t totally in a world of pure imagination.