Actor Leonard Stone died 2 November 2011 of cancer. Born 3 November 1923 in Salem, Oregon, he started his career as a stage actor, studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. He performed in the West End, on Broadway, and toured the world (including traveling for eight years in Australia and New Zealand in the musical South Pacific). He earned a 1959 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role in Redhead.
His first television role came in 1956 episode of Kraft Theatre, and he went on to make more than 100 film and television appearances (not including placing second on Wheel of Fortune in 2000). His last appearance was in the 2006 tv movie Surrender, Dorothy.
His long-lasting claim to fame was an early role, when he played Sam Beauregarde (Violet’s father) in the 1971 Gene Wilder Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. His other genre appearances include: Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005), The Invisible Man (2001), Gemini Man (1976), The Six Million Dollar Man (1974), Soylent Green (1973), two episodes of Land of the Giants (1969), two episodes of Lost in Space (1967 and 1968), The Invaders (1967), The Ghost of Sierra de Cobre (1964), and The Outer Limits (1963).
He is survived by his wife of 47 years, Carole H. Kleinman, and four children, and eight grandchildren.