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is the Child Catcher from the premiere cast of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang .]]
as the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang .]]
The Child Catcher is a fictional character who appears in the film '' Chitty Chitty Bang Bang '' and in the later Stage Musical Adaptation . The character was created by screenwriter Roald Dahl and did not appear in the original Ian Fleming novel.

In the 1968 film, he is played by the late Ballet dancer Sir Robert Helpmann . In the theatrical version in London, he was played by Richard O'Brien , and on Broadway, he was played by Kevin Cahoon.

He works for the Baron and Baronness of Vulgaria to kidnap and lock up the country's children. He wears an all-black suit, with a top hat, and has moderately long black hair. In general appearance, he is quite pale, thin, and has a spider-like quality and grace in the way he moves. His most recognizable feature is his elongated nose, with which he is able to smell children and find where they are hiding. When searching for the children, he carries a large net and a hook to catch them. From the way he talks about children, one can assume that he knows a lot about the way they behave in frightening situations. He says that they get under the floor boards, in cracks in the walls, and in wood work, by which he means they are so small and flexible, they can squeeze into the smallest and hardest-to-reach places. He drives a horse-drawn dark buggy equipped with a Cage , but he sometimes disguises the buggy as a candy-and-ice cream wagon in order to lure, and so ensnare, children. He also disguises himself with colorful clothing and carries lollies and other sweets with which to tempt the children out of their hiding places (not unlike the Pied Piper ) and--to younger viewers at least--is therefore easily the most intimidating character in the film.


TRIVIA

  • Robert Helpmann was well liked by the child actors Adrian Hall and Heather Ripley on the film, and he himself, in reality, loved children.

  • Dick Van Dyke recalls that when Sir Robert Helpmann was driving the wagon in the scenes for the film, the wagon tipped over the side, but as it did so, Helpmann managed to perform a quick stunt of his own to escape. He said Helpmann stepped across the carriage as it was tipping over.

  • At the end of the day when Helpmann was finished with work, he gave Adrian Hall and Heather Ripley his facial wax add-ons.

  • Helpmann's character has often been named as one of the scariest characters ever to be brought on screen. Not only did it make it into Empire magazine, but also onto Channel 4 's 100 Scariest Movie Moments, and came in place at number 37.

  • The Child Catcher was the inspiration for Marilyn Manson's 'Smells Like Children' EP. The title and cover art, as well as Manson's outfit and appearance during the album, reference the Robert Helpmann character.

  • In 2005, the Child Catcher was voted "the scariest villain" in children's books" {Link without Title} , despite not actually featuring in the original book. He was created for the movie by Roald Dahl , who also created two of the other scariest villains, according to this poll.