"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" was released in 1971. It was based on Roald Dahl's classic children's tale, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." Roald Dahl wrote the screenplay himself. Though the dialogue was in English and the actors were mostly British or American, the movie was actually filmed in Munich, Germany.
Roald Dahl published "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" in 1964. In 1973 a revised edition came out, in which the Oompa-Loompas were changed from black to white. In Dahl's screenplay for the movie, they were orange. The book won several awards, including the Millenium Children's Book Award (United Kingdom) in 2000.
"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" is the story of reclusive millionaire candy maker Willy Wonka, who hides golden tickets in five candy bars. Whoever finds the tickets is invited to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. (The movie's tagline is, "It's everybody's non-pollutionary, anti-institutionary, pro-confectionery factory of fun!") Charlie, a poor, downtrodden boy, finds the last ticket. He brings his grandfather with him. They visit the factory with four unappealing children and their clueless parents. As the visit progresses, they go on wild rides and meet the Oompa-Loompas, a strange race of orange beings that act as a singing Greek chorus. All the other children wind up leaving the factory in distress, thanks to their faults. Eventually only Charlie is left--and quite surprised by what happens then.
Comedian Gene Wilder stars in the film as Willy Wonka. Jack Albertson ("The Man" from the 1970's TV show "Chico and the Man," as well as a Broadway star) plays Grandpa Joe. Peter Ostrum plays Charlie. He sings the song "I've Got a Golden Ticket." Ostrum reprised this song in the 2007 movie "Sicko."
"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" was nominated for an Oscar for best adaptation and original song score. Gene Wilder was nominated for a Golden Globe award for best performance by an actor in a musical or comedy. While it received no other awards, the movie did spawn a top 40 single: Sammy Davis Jr.'s recording of the opening song, "Candyman."