Golden Ticket

A Golden Ticket is a fictional item created by Roald Dahl in the 1964 novel, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". It was also shown in the two films based on the novel: "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" (1971), and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", (2005).

Willy Wonka releases five Golden Tickets, which are hidden among ordinary looking Wonka Bars. The winner of the ticket is promised entry to the chocolate factory, which has been closed for many years, as well a special prize at the end of the tour. In the novel the winner is allowed to take two guardians with them but both movies only allow one guardian to be chosen.

In 2005, to coincide with the cinematic release of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Nestlé promoted a competition similar to the film, with which five actual Golden Tickets were released in various Wonka Brand products. The prizes offered were cash prizes as well as an overseas vacation and chocolate factory tour, depending on the country. The competition was held in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada.

A similar promotion was also held in the United States, Canada and Australia where paper Golden Tickets were hidden inside the sleeve of the 2-disc "deluxe edition" release of the DVD.

Text

Book

1971 Film

"Greetings to you, the lucky finder of this Golden Ticket, from Mr. Willy Wonka. Present this ticket at the factory gates at ten o'clock in the morning of the first day of October and do not be late. You may bring with you one member of your own family...and only one...but no one else. In your wildest dreams, you could not imagine the marvelous surprises that await you". As this film is a musical, there is a song entitled "I've Got a Golden Ticket", and it was sung by Charlie Bucket and Grandpa Joe. Julie Dawn Cole, who played Veruca Salt in the original film, received a golden ticket signed by Paris Themmen, who played Mike Teevee, which can be viewed at [http://www.stilldemanding.com/?page_id=2 stilldemanding.com]

2005 Film

"Greetings to you, the lucky finder of this Golden Ticket, from Mr. Willy Wonka! I shake you warmly by the hand for now I do invite you to come to my factory and be my guest for one whole day. I, Willy Wonka, will conduct you around the factory myself, showing you everything there is to see. Afterwards, when it is time to leave, you will be escorted home by a procession of large trucks, each one filled with all the chocolate you could ever eat! And remember, one of you lucky five children will receive an extra prize beyond your wildest imagination. Now, here are your instructions: On the first of February, you must come to the factory gates at 10 A.M. sharp. You are allowed to bring one member of your family to look after you. Until then Willy Wonka"

Use on Television Shows

The role of the Golden Ticket was reprised in some manner on several American television shows:

ingled Out

In later seasons of the MTV dating game show "Singled Out", a Golden Ticket was given to the contestant narrowing down the pool of potential dates; upon eliminating a category of contestants, the picker could give the Golden Ticket to one eliminated contestant as they passed by; this player automatically advanced to the next round of the game.

Big Brother

The concept of the Golden Ticket was also used by producers of "Big Brother" in 2006, whereby members of the public had the chance to find Golden Tickets hidden in Nestle's Kit Kat chocolate bars. The tickets gave finders the opportunity to enter the Big Brother House as a housemate. There were 34 golden ticket winners altogether, including Danielle James, Vicky Ellis, Phil Colaco and Su Carter. After a lottery selection, Susie Verrico was selected to enter.

American Idol

The Golden Ticket can also be seen in the US show, American Idol. During the first round of the competition, contestants who make it through to the Hollywood round of the show receive a "Golden Ticket", which is really a goldenrod-colored sheet of paper admitting them to the second round of auditions.

Parodies

*The concept of the Golden Ticket has been parodied by a number of film and television shows, often as part of a plot that involves parodying "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" itself.

*For example, in "The Simpsons" episode "Simple Simpson", Homer tries to win a tour of a bacon factory by uncovering a Golden Ticket in packs of bacon. He is only able to find a Silver Ticket, which entitles the bearer to be a judge at a local fair.

*In "Fry and the Slurm Factory", an episode of "Futurama", Fry chokes on a Golden Bottlecap, which wins him, Leela, and Bender a tour of the Slurm Factory.

*More recently, in the "Family Guy" episode "Wasted Talent", Peter tries to win a tour of Pawtucket Pat's brewery by finding one of four Silver Scrolls hidden in bottles of beer. As he runs home excitedly, he trips in front of his house, and spends several seconds clutching his shin and writhing in pain. He later does the same thing when he gets hit by a Chuma Wumba while getting thrown out of the factory. (The scene that leads to this, Peter and Brian drinking beer that never loses its fizz, is a parody of Grandpa Joe and Charlie drinking the fizzy lifting drinks; Peter and Brian must fart to get back down instead of burp.)

*Also, in Simpsons Comics, the story "Bart Simpson and the Krusty Brand Fun Factory" focuses on Bart desperately trying to get a Golden Straw hidden inside bottles of Cherry Soda. He eventually gets one after Homer chokes on one and it is removed from his artery. The other winners are Ralph Wiggum, Barney Gumble, Milhouse and Nelson Muntz.

*The Golden Ticket concept is also parodied in the Dexter's Lab episode, Golden Diskette. In it, Dexter and other junior geniuses are looking for Golden Diskettes to gain entry into Professor Hawk's secret laboratory.

*British R&B star Craig David's video for "What's Your Flava?" is essentially a parody of the original 1971 film; he places four "Golden CD's" for lucky fans to obtain a tour of his house and studio.

*In the new 2007 movie, Epic Movie, there is a parody of a golden ticket in a Wonka bar for going on an epic adventure.

*In the VeggieTales movie "", the do-nothing pirates look through bags of "Cheese Curls", a parody of Cheetos chips, for a golden ticket to a tour of the Cheese Curls factory, as well as a curly, pointy, odd looking hat.

*The alternative rock group 30 Seconds to Mars included in some copies of their album "A Beautiful Lie" several golden tickets which allowed the entrance to any 30 Seconds to Mars concert for three years.

*In an episode of My Name is Earl, a character named Randy finds a dollar in a sewer, and uses it to purchase a lottery ticket. Randy and Earl scratch off the ticket squares, speaking the same lines use when Charlie and Grandpa open the candy bar, all while the original golden ticket music plays. The lottery ticket turns out to be fake.