Child Catcher

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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.

[edit] 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.
• After the end of the day when Helpmann was finished work, he gave Adrian Hall, and Heather Ripley his facial wax add ons.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Characters: Caractacus Potts | Truly Scrumptious | Child Catcher | Baroness Bomburst | Baron Bomburst
Objects and locations: Vulgaria | Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (car)
Media: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car | Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (film)   Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (song) | Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (musical)