Have you ever taken a ride in a glass elevator? How about on a giant peach? Or how about tour in a chocolate factory? This is all possible, thanks to master storyteller Roald Dahl, who was born on this day.
Roald Dahl was born on September 13, 1916 in Cardiff, Wales to Norwegian parents, Harald and Sofie. He had three sisters Alfhild, Else, and Astri, the eldest, who died from appendicitis when Dahl was three. His father died shortly after.
Dahl spent his education in British schools, as per his late father’s wish. One of these schools was Repton School in Derbyshire. During his time at Repton, the students would receive boxes of new chocolates from the chocolate company Cadbury as a way to gauge the reception for the new products. This would inspire Dahl to write his now well-loved book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Dahl served in the British Royal Air Force during World War II. He also became a member of the British Intelligence.
He married American actress Patricia Neal in 1953 and together they had five children: Olivia, Tessa, Theo, Ophelia, and Lucy. However, the marriage only lasted for 30 years. Following this divorce in 1983, Dahl married Felicity Crossland.
While also known for his work for adults, Dahl found greater fame in his body of children’s books. Some of his well-loved stories include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (and it’s sequel Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator), Matilda, James and the Giant Peach, The BFG, and Fantastic Mr Fox.
Dahl died due to a blood disease on November 23, 1990 in Oxford, England. He was 74. He was buried in the cemetery at St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England. In his honor, the Roald Dahl Children’s Gallery was opened in November 1996, at the Buckinghamshire County Museum in nearby Aylesbury.
In remembrance to this literary gem of a man, here is the trailer of the 1996 film adaptation of one of his beloved books, Matilda.