Mr. Beauregarde
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Mr. Beauregarde is a character in the novel Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and its 1971 incarnation Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. He is the father of Violet Beauregarde.
[edit] In the novel
Mr. and Mrs. Beauregarde both accompany their daughter to the chocolate factory. Their characters are the least developed among the parents in attendance, not speaking until Violet has done so. They are critical of their daughter but try their best to hide it. As the daughter chews the gum, they egg her on; he calls her the first person in the world to have a chewing-gum meal. (The line is assigned to his wife in the 2005 movie). The parents leave with their daughter at the end of the novel.
[edit] 1971 film
In the subsequent film adaptation, he is given the name Sam. In the introduction, he refers to himself during sales pitches 'Square Deal Sam'. He is a prominent politician, car salesman, and civic leader in Violet's hometown of Miles City, Montana. He never misses an opportunity to sell off his used cars, but Violet is quick to reclaim the spotlight. He is fast talking and crooked (he thinks "contracts are strictly for suckers"), but towards his daughter, he is generally an attentive and caring father.
In the Inventing Room, he tries peeking under a top secret machine, but an alarm foils this. He is enraged at Willy Wonka when Violet's comeuppance begins (although his irrational anger towards Wonka may be due to the stress of his unfortunately-deformed daughter, as he originally considered Violet's actions as stupid), condoning Violet's own lack of respect for authority and is last seen being led after her after one last threatening grab at Wonka. After his threat to get back at Wonka, he is led out of the room to sadly (and comically) moan, "I've got a blueberry for a daughter."
His fate at the film's conclusion remains unknown. He is played by Leonard Stone.
Mr. Beauregarde is absent from the 2005 adaptation, where Violet is instead accompanied by her mother.
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