There is such a legendary life behind ＂Dream of the Dream＂!

Poster of "Dream of the Dream"

Special feature of 1905 film network　On October 14th, the Hollywood fantasy film Dream of the Giant was released in mainland China. As we all know, it is a masterpiece of the great director Steven Allan Spielberg this year, but most people may not know it very well. There is a more legendary figure behind this film. The following small series will take you to understand the shocking life experience of this great children’s literature writer.　

• He used to be a pilot in World War II, but he survived a plane crash.

• He is a Norwegian, but he serves Britain and works as a spy in the United States.

• He declared himself an anti-Semitic, so he was boycotted in Israel.

• He married an Oscar-winning actress, but divorced because he cheated on her best friend at the age of 67.

• He is an outstanding British children’s literature writer, and his position in the hearts of British readers even exceeds that of J.K. Rowling;

• He is the original author of Dream of the Dream, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Fantastic Mr. Fox — — Roald dahl.

  

A giant, a witch, a flying peach, and a little girl with special functions, Roald has created many fantastic and ingenious fairy tales, but if you get to know him better, you will find that his life is no less wonderful than his stories.

A naughty childhood is the source of works.

　

In 1916, Roald was born in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, England. His parents were Norwegian, and Roald’s name also came from the famous Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen..

　

Roald Amundsen was the first person in the world to reach the South Pole.

When Roald was 3 years old, his 7-year-old sister died of appendicitis, and a month later, his father died of pneumonia. Because of his father’s early death, orphans often appear in his fairy tales. For example, James, the protagonist in The Adventures of Flying Peach, whose parents were eaten by rhinoceros, Luke in The Witch and Sophie in The Dream of a Giant are orphans (Sophie’s name comes from Roald’s granddaughter).

James and Luke

Roald used to be naughty when he was a child. There is a candy store on his way to school. The proprietress is very hard on the children, and she won’t let them touch the candy. She also said that they would leave if they didn’t buy anything. So Roald and his friends put a dead mouse in her candy jar.

　

To this end, Roald and his friends were called to the principal’s office to spank. The headmaster is very good at hitting people. He will hit them every five seconds, because the pain is usually delayed for a while, and the second stick comes at the same time when it hurts the most. It is conceivable that this is probably the prototype of the cruel and irritable principal in Matilda.

The headmaster in Matilda

　

When he was in middle school, Cadbury Chocolate Factory would send new chocolate products and ask students to help test the taste. Roald’s dream at that time was to invent a new type of chocolate by himself, which was recognized by Cadbury, which was the source of inspiration for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Second, the open life does not need to be explained.

　

After graduation,RoaldJoined the famous oil company Shell, and was transferred to Tanzania, Africa. At that time, he needed to cross Tanzania to provide oil for customers, so he was attacked by lions, cobras and other wild animals on his way, but they all survived.

　

During World War II, Roald joined the British Air Force, and he conducted flight training with 20 companions. As a result, 17 people died in air combat. Once, an air force commander asked him to fly to a seaside town. At that time, pilots didn’t have navigation equipment, and they all relied on maps to identify their directions. He flew in accordance with the instructions and found that it was a desert and could not find the airport to land. At this time, it was getting dark, so he had to risk landing. As a result, the wheels of the plane hit the gravel, causing the plane to crash and catch fire. He climbed out of the plane and took his life. Later, I learned that it was the commander who made a mistake in his position.

　

Roald was taken to the hospital. He was injured in both eyes, and his vision had not recovered. He fell in love with the nurse who looked after him by voice. Eight weeks later, the first person he saw when his vision recovered was the same nurse, but he decided not to love her anymore. Why do you think this is?

　

In 1942, Roald, who was discharged from the army, was sent to the British Embassy in the United States, during which he met the famous writer C.S. Forrest.Because Forrest worked for British intelligence, Roald was also influenced by it and began to engage in espionage. During the war, he gave information about Washington to his boss, William Stephenson, a Canadian spy leader who was famous for his bravery. It is said that,RoaldIts main task is to gather intelligence by luring powerful American women.

　

Later, when Roald returned to Britain, the intelligence department doubted his loyalty to Britain and kicked him out of the intelligence unit.After that, thanks toStephenson was promoted to his official position so that he could return to work in Washington.

Roald dahl Square

In 1990,RoaldDied, in order to commemorate him, Cardiff’s landmark Oval Basin plaza was renamed as Roald Dahl Plass. "Plass" means Norwegian square, which is to express his recognition of Norwegian nationality. His birthday, September 13th, was also designated as roald dahl Day.

Third, the legendary marriage is like a tragicomedy.

Roald was married twice. The first wife was Patricia Neal, a beautiful woman and the winner of the Oscar for Best Actress. Her major works include day the earth stood still, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Heidi.

Patricia Neal in his youth.

They have five children. When his son Theo was four months old, he was hit by a taxi in the stroller, causing severe brain edema and almost losing his eyes. Roald and experts developed a medical product to relieve symptoms, which made Theo gradually recover and grow up smoothly. Later, their seven-year-old daughter Olivia died of measles.

Roald and Patricia

　

The disaster didn’t stop. Patricia suffered three strokes when she was pregnant with her fifth child Lucy at the age of 39. Roald tried every means to help her recover, and it was a year before she could walk and talk again. However, love can’t last longer than gold, and sharing weal and woe doesn’t necessarily last forever. In 1983, Patricia found out that Roald had an affair with his best friend, and then decided to divorce.

Fourth, I never stop writing and finally embark on the road of literature.

After coming to the United States,ForrestEncouraged by him, Roald began to write war memoirs, and thus embarked on the road of writing. Roald wrote three novels and more than 60 short stories, and won three Allen Poe Literature Awards.

　

Roald’s story is not only sought after by American magazines, but also favored by the film and television circles. Walter Disney had planned to adapt his first children’s literature work, The Naughty Elf, into a film, but it failed.

Walter Disney andRoald

His adult novel The Smoker was included in Hitchcock’s Suspense Stories, and was later adapted into a part of the film Four Rooms by Quentin Talentino.Roald himself has been a screenwriter, and his works include the 007 series "Lei Ting Gu" and his own work "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" in 1971.

Five, Roald’s major film adaptations

Dream of the Dream Giant 2016

Sophie, a girl in an orphanage, couldn’t sleep at night and found a giant several stories high. The giant took her back to her cave. It turned out that she was a kind-hearted giant who specialized in collecting dreams and then blew them into the children’s room with a trumpet. But other giants are terrible, and they all take people as food. The film tells the story of Sophie and a good-hearted giant against a man-eating giant.

Fantastic Mr. Fox 2009.

Father Fox bought a tree house, and the neighbors across the street were three ruthless farmers. The delicious food on the farm aroused the desire of Father Fox to be a "Jiang Yang thief", so he made a detailed plan and successfully looted three farms. But the farmers are not good. They decided to catch Father Fox by all means. This protracted war is on the verge of breaking out, even involving all the animals in the surrounding area. Who will win or lose in the end?

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 2005.

The film tells that the little boy Charlie and his family live a poor and harmonious life. Charlie’s favorite is the chocolate produced by Wonka Chocolate Factory. This is the largest chocolate factory in the world. His owner, Mr. Wonka, is very creative and invents all kinds of sweets, but the factory alwaysgateLocked, it seems that no one has ever come in or out. One day, Mr Wonka announced that he would invite five lucky children to visit his factory, and Charlie became the last lucky one. So, what amazing secrets are hidden in this mysterious factory?

Adventures of Flying Peach, 1996

The little boy James’s parents were eaten by rhinoceros, and two vicious aunts adopted him. The daily abuse made him miserable. One day, James met a mysterious old man. The old man’s magic made a huge peach grow in the yard. James climbed into the peach and met six insects who were also enchanted. They went to dream new york by giant peach together, and went through all kinds of difficulties along the way.

Matilda 1996

Matilda was gifted since she was a child. She began to take care of herself at the age of two. At the age of four, she was able to read books in the library by herself, but her parents were not proud of it. Instead, they always tortured her for her eagerness to learn. After Matilda went to school, her principal was a strong man who liked to abuse students and threw them out of the window at every turn. The only thing that brings Matilda comfort is her teacher, Miss Henny, but Miss Henny also has her own secrets. Matilda gradually discovered that she had the special function of moving things with her mind. She used this skill to teach the headmaster and help Miss Henny.

The Witch 1990

Luke, a little boy whose parents died, lived alone with his grandmother. When the grandparents and grandchildren went to the hotel for a holiday, Luke broke into a big gathering of witches all over Britain and was turned into a mouse by witches. Luke decided to fight with the witches in order to prevent them from hurting other children.