Jerome Silberman (June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016), known professionally as Gene Wilder, was an American stage and screen comic actor, screenwriter, film director, and author. "Pure Imagination" is a song from the 1971 movie Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. It was written by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley specifically for the movie. It was sung by Gene Wilder (Willy Wonka). Wilder began his career on stage, and made his screen debut in the TV-series Armstrong Circle Theatre in 1962.