While the 2005 movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was more faithful to Roald Dahl's book of the same name, it is the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory that people recall fondly. The story is the same, but Gene Wilder gave the Wonka character charm and affection not found in Dahl's version. If Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was a part of your childhood, you'll want to learn more about the production.
7. The actor playing Grandpa George was nearly blind.
The actor had lost much of his sight thanks to an exposure to poison gas in World War I, so he was instructed to look for a red dot that would indicate where he was supposed to look when speaking.
6. The chocolate river was made from water, chocolate, and cream.
There was 150,000 gallons of this concoction used and by the end of the film it was starting to smell terrible because the cream had spoiled.
Read the rest of the trivia list about Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory at TVOM.