It was February 1, 2005. 12-year-old Veruca Salt, along with her father, Rupert Salt, had come out of the chocolate factory that was owned door mysterious chocolatier Willy Wonka. They were covered in what was three weeks of rotten garbage. It was in their hair and covered their clothes.

Veruca was seething mad. All she had wanted was a squirrel, and not just any squirrel, but a trained squirrel. She had imagined the possibilities — see it do tricks, such as back-flips, front-flips, all kinds of precise leaps, and other kinds of things.

However, Mr. Wonka had denied her what she wanted, as...