Page 9 - Martin Downs Bulletin - October '24

Martin Downs, Page 9

filM review

Remembering Gene Wilder: New York to Los several of these films I shed a tear or two as well. Despite
Angeles in 1981 as a
all the wonderful humor that was his gift to us, for Gene
A Documentary magazine publisher Wilder himself all of life’s success was nothing to laugh at
and ran into Wilder in the end. With all his comedic genius, he died on August
By Nils A. Shapiro in a restaurant the 29th, 2016 at the age of 83 as the result of complications
Almost 20 years ago I read, and thoroughly enjoyed, physical image I had from Alzheimer’s.
Kiss Me Like a Stranger: My Search for Love and Art, the of him from those Interestingly, although one of the most appealing
memoir written by actor, writer and director Gene Wilder, films was shattered aspects of this documentary is the fact that Wilder himself
who in those pages came across as one of the sweetest, when I realized that narrates the story of his childhood and start in show
gentlest and just plain nicest human beings ever to have he was actually quite business. Yet the actual production of the film did not
graced the American theater and screen. handsome in person, begin until years after Wilder’s death. It turns out the
Like millions of others I had for many years enjoyed his his eyes a piercing narration used in the documentary was picked up from
performances as a vulnerable, zany, hilarious comedian blue.) the one Wilder had made for the audiobook version of
in such films as: Young Frankenstein; Blazing Saddles; Having enjoyed his 2005 memoir, Kiss Me Like a Stranger, and works
The Producers; The Woman in Red; The Frisco Kid; Willy his memoir, when I seamlessly here together with the film’s scenes of Wilder’s
Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and others–and paired noted in late August the release of this documentary of his growing-up years in a middle-class Milwaukee Jewish
with Richard Pryor in See No Evil, Hear No Evil and life on Netflix, I was drawn to it immediately and, sure family and his first big break when Mel Brooks’s wife,
Silver Streak. (I should add that after I had moved from enough, amid the many laughs inspired by brief clips of Anne Bancroft, tells her husband she suggests the young
Wilder be hired for a role in her Broadway play.
Gene Wilder had been born with the last name of
Silberman. As a young boy he was told by his father that
his mother had a serious heart condition, could not bear
any stress, and that it was important for the boy to try
instead to make his mother laugh as much as possible.
That was the moment and motivation that set the boy on
his life path. As he later relates, “I didn’t think the name
Silberman seemed right for the job. I wanted to be wilder!”
And that is how the rest of the world came to know and
love him.
Among those who appear in this film to discuss the
Gene Wilder they knew are his widow, Karen Wilder, Mel
Brooks, Alan Alda, Carol Kane, Harry Connick Jr., Dick
Cavett, producer Mike Medavoy and Ben Mankiewicz,
among others.
It is all here, in this documentary: his loves—which
included an earlier marriage to the Saturday Night Live
comedienne Gilda Radner, and tragic loss of her to
cancer—and his extraordinary successes as an actor,
writer and director. Now this documentary of his life has
won numerous awards, among the most recent the Best
Documentary Feature at the 2024 Boca International
Jewish Film Festival.
Remembering Gene Wilder. You won’t forget it for the
many memories it will bring back to you.

In Your Community from page 8

Barry Manilow’s Copacabana will have you reliving
the excitement of this disco favorite. And Miami Sound
Machine will transport you back to the dance floors
of the past.
This concert promises to be a delightful experience
for music lovers of all ages, and we encourage everyone
to come and enjoy an afternoon of fun and nostalgia.
Tickets are available for purchase through the Kane
Center’s website, www.kanecenter.org, by clicking on
the events calendar or by calling the Kane Center at
(772) 223-7800.
• Advanced tickets are $14.
• Tickets at the door are $16.
Don’t miss out on this chance to relive the music of
the past!
The band continues its 2024/25 season with the
following concerts:
Celebrating Christmas Around The World
December 7, Blake Library, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Let’s Go To The Movies
January 26, 2025, Kane Center, 2 p.m.
The Wild West
March 2, 2025, Kane Center, 2 p.m.
Air And Space
April 6, 2025, Kane Center, 2 p.m.
Beyond Our Borders
May 18, 2025, Kane Center, 2 p.m.
The Stuart Community Concert Band is a 501(c)
(3) not-for-profit organization of over 70 dedicated
volunteer musicians who play for the love of music.
For more information on the band and how you
can help support your community band, visit www.
Stuartcommunityconcertband.org.
Rehearsals are held at the Elliott Museum on
Hutchinson Island most Mondays from 7 to 9 p.m. We
invite our fellow musicians to join us.
For more information, please visit our website,
www.stuartcommunityconcertband.com or email us at
See answer in this paper. stuartcommunityconcertband@gmail.com.