Denise Nickerson, best known for playing the snobby, gum-chomping Violet Beauregarde in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, has died following a series of medical issues. The actress’ family confirmed her death in a Facebook post, writing, “She’s gone.” Nickerson was 62.

Nickerson suffered a “major medical emergency” at home on Monday, followed by seizures and both pulmonary and respiratory distress. She was admitted to the intensive unit of a Colorado hospital, where doctors also discovered that she had aspirated and developed pneumonia. She previously endured a severe stroke in June 2018.

Born in New York City in 1957, Nickerson began her television career in the 1960s, debuting with a role in the adventure-drama series Flipper, and her breakout gig came in 1968 with a recurring spot on the Gothic soap opera Dark Shadows.

Related

Netflix Plots New Animated 'Willy Wonka,' 'Matilda' Shows

Gene Wilder's 'Willy Wonka,' 'Blazing Saddles' Returning to Theaters

She landed her most iconic part at age 13 in 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, director Mel Stuart’s film musical adaptation of the 1964 Roald Dahl novel, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. She stole scenes as the mean-spirited Beauregarde, one of several children antagonists promised a lifetime supply of chocolate from titular chocolatier Wonka, played by Gene Wilder. (She winds up with purple skin, swollen into a massive blueberry.)

Nickerson continued to work in television and film throughout the 1970s, including spots on The Brady Bunch, educational children’s series The Electric Company and Michael Ritchie’s satirical comedy-drama Smile. She retired from acting in 1978, later working in doctor’s offices and as a receptionist. Despite reports to the contrary, she never worked as a professional nurse: “The career I would most closely say she held was an accountant,” her family wrote on Facebook.

Nickerson is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Joshua and Jasmine Nickerson, who created a Go Fund Me page to help pay her death expenses.

Source: Read Full Article