Gene Wilder Who Played ‘Willy Wonka’ Passes Away at 83

Wilder acted in the“Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” and “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein.

Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. (Photo Courtesy: ChippyChopper)

Actor Gene Wilder, best known for his role in the fantasy film “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” and comedic star turns in such Mel Brooks farces as “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein,” died on Monday at age 83, his family said in a statement.

Wilder, an often frantic presence in some of the funniest movies of the 1970s and ‘80s with his kinky curls and startled blue eyes, succumbed to complications from Alzheimer’s disease, which he had battled privately for the past three years, the statement said.