Mel Stuart

Not to be confused with Mel Stewart.

Mel Stuart
Born	Stuart Solomon (1928-09-02)September 2, 1928 New York City
Died	Beverly Hills, California, U.S.A.
Cause of death	Cancer
Nationality	American
Occupation	Director, producer
Years active	1963–2000
Relatives	Maximilian Stuart, Eleanor Stuart (Grandchildren) Andrew Stuart, Madeleine Stuart, Peter Stuart (Children)

Mel Stuart, (born Stuart Solomon) (September 2, 1928 – August 9, 2012), was an American film director and producer.

Stuart directed the fantasy-musical Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971). He has directed other features, including If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969), One is a Lonely Number (1972) and Running on the Sun: The Badwater 135 (2000).

Stuart also directed feature documentaries including Four Days in November and Wattstax.

In addition he has directed or produced over 180 films including movies of the week, The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal, Bill, The Chisholms, and Ruby and Oswald, the television series Ripley's Believe it Not, and the documentaries The Making of the President 1960, 1964, and 1968, The Hobart Shakespeareans, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, Man Ray — The Prophet of the Avant-Garde, George Plimpton and the Philharmonic and The Poet's View.

He was awarded four Emmy awards, an Academy Award nomination, a Peabody, and numerous other awards. Stuart also served as president of the International Documentary Association for two years.

He often worked with TV producer David L. Wolper. Stuart died of cancer at his Beverly Hills home on August 9, 2012.

Family

Stuart was a first cousin of Stan Lee of Marvel Comics. Stuart married his first wife Harriet Rosalind Dolin on August 12, 1956. They have three children: Madeline, Peter, and Andrew. Madeline and Peter make appearances in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Stuart and Dolin divorced in 1979. He married his second wife Roberta Silberman in the 1980s, and they stayed together until her death in 2011.

Death

On August 9, 2012, Stuart died at the age of 83 from cancer at his home in Los Angeles, California. In addition to his three children from his first marriage, Andrew, Madeleine, and Peter Stuart. Stuart was also survived by two grandchildren, Maximilian Stuart and Eleanor Stuart.

Selected filmography

• Four Days in November (1964)
• If It's Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium (1969)
• I Love My Wife (film) (1970)
• Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
• One is a Lonely Number (1972)
• Wattstax (1974)
• Brenda Starr (1976) (TV)
• Welcome Back, Kotter (1977) (TV)
• Ruby and Oswald (1978) (TV)
• Mean Dog Blues (1978)
• The Triangle Factory Fire Scandal (1979)
• The Chisholms (1980) (TV)
• Sophia Loren: Her Own Story (1980) (TV)
• The White Lions (1981)

External links

• Mel Stuart at the Internet Movie Database