SUMAKABILANG-BUHAY na ang komedyanteng si Gene Wilder sa edad na 83, kinumpirma ng kanyang pamangkin na si Jordan Walker-Pearlman sa ET.
Pumanaw ang komedyante na naging bida sa mga klasikong pelikulang Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, at The Producers, sa kanyang tahanan sa Stamford, Connecticut, noong Linggo sanhi ng mga komplikasyon sa Alzheimer’s disease.
“It is almost unbearable for us to contemplate our life without him,” saad sa pahayag hinggil sa kanyang pagkamatay.
Silvanas, pasok sa ‘50 best cookies in the world’
Nakipaglaban si Wilder sa sakit na Alzheimer’s nitong nakalipas na tatlong taon, at pinili ng aktor at ng kanyang pamilya na ilihim sa publiko ang tungkol sa sakit niya.
“We understand for all the emotional and physical challenges this situation presented we have been among the lucky ones -- this illness-pirate, unlike in so many cases, never stole his ability to recognize those that were closest to him, nor took command of his central-gentle-life affirming core personality,” saad sa pahayag ni Walker-Pearlman. “It took enough, but not that.”
“The decision to wait until this time to disclose his condition wasn’t vanity, but more so that the countless young children that would smile or call out to him, ‘There’s Willy Wonka,’ would not have to be then exposed to an adult referencing illness or trouble and causing delight to travel to worry, disappointment or confusion,” pagpapatuloy ng pahayag. “He simply couldn’t bear the idea of one less smile in the world.”
Nakabagbag-damdamin ang pagtatapos ng pahayag ni Walker-Pearlman ngunit may magagandang alaala sa huling sandali ni Wilder.
“He was 83 and passed holding our hands with the same tenderness and love he exhibited as long as I can remember,” aniya. “As our hands clutched and he performed one last breath the music speaker, which was set to random, began to blare out one of his favorites: Ella Fitzgerald. There is a picture of he and Ella meeting at a London Bistro some years ago that are among each or cherished possessions. She was singing ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow,’ as he was taken away.”
Unang inulat ng Associated Press ang balita, sa pamamagitan ng may tweet na, “Gene Wilder, star of ‘Willy Wonka’ and Mel Brooks comedies, is dead at 83, his family says.” (ET Online)
