WASHINGTON – The death of Gene Wilder has touched a chord with a lot of people in and around the entertainment industry, and Coldplay paid musical tribute to the film star on Monday night.
At a concert in Denver, the band, led by singer Chris Martin at the piano, ended “The Scientist” with a snippet of “Pure Imagination,” Wilder’s trademark song from “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” accompanied by a shower of sparkly confetti. The band tweeted the results on Tuesday:
In a world of pure imagination… R42 pic.twitter.com/R2KD3kA0RK
— Coldplay (@coldplay) August 30, 2016
Wilder died on Sunday; he was 83.
And on Tuesday night, film legend Mel Brooks shared his memories of Wilder with Jimmy Fallon on “The Tonight Show.” He recounted a relationship that began with 1968’s “The Producers,” calling it “such a wonderful part of my life.”
And because there’s never a bad time for the original:
