Fat in 1 Oz of Ground Beef
From offscreen friendships and jarring pay inequality to the special effects and makeup tricks that brought some of the world's favorite movie characters to life, The Wizard of Oz (1939) had so much going on backside the emerald curtain and the Technicolor gloss of an amazing fantasy world.
In accolade of the 80th anniversary of the pic, follow the yellowish brick slideshow to peek behind that drapery and learn more about the secrets and fun facts that make the dearest moving picture a timeless classic.
Margaret Hamilton Was a Fan Before the Film
Every bit a self-proclaimed lifelong fan of Fifty. Frank Baum'southward Oz series, Margaret Hamilton was thrilled to be considered for a function in the 1939 motion picture accommodation. Hamilton called her agent to enquire which character the producers wanted her to play, and her agent famously said, "The witch — who else?"
Hamilton, a single mother, fought MGM for an agreed upon corporeality of guaranteed work time. 3 days before filming began, the studio agreed to a 5-week bargain. In the end, Hamilton was on ready for three months, but many of her scenes were cut for beingness too scary for audiences.
Dorothy'due south Original Wait Was More Movie Star Than Subcontract Daughter
Certain, Dorothy Gale doesn't need prosthetics or aluminum makeup, merely that doesn't mean Judy Garland wasn't put through the costume department wringer. Although she was young at the time, the 16-yr-old Garland had to wear a corset-like device so she looked more than like a preadolescent child.
Director Richard Thorpe suggested Garland wear a blonde wig and loads of "baby-doll" makeup (as whatsoever preadolescent girl would…). Luckily, that vision of the character changed. After MGM fired Thorpe, the intermediate director George Cukor nixed the heavy makeup and wig. Instead, he told Garland to be herself. Smart move.
The "Skywriting" Scene Employed Some Great Movie Magic
The Magician of Oz employs a lot of great moving-picture show tricks, and some of the virtually unique were used in the skywriting scene. In information technology, the Wicked Witch (Margaret Hamilton) flies above the Emerald City, leaving the phrase "Give up Dorothy" in her wake in blackness fume.
Using a hypodermic needle, the special effects team spread black ink across the lesser of a glass tank that was filled with a thick, tinted liquid (some speculate milk). They wrote the phrase in reverse and filmed the scene from beneath. Initially, the skywriting concluded with the ominous "Or Die — W Westward Westward."
The "Snow" in the Poppy Field Was Really Dangerous
One of the Wicked Witch's terminal-ditch efforts to impede Dorothy's quest to come across the Wonderful Magician of Oz involves a poppy field and some magical sleep-inducing snow. While many like to joke that the poppies and their drowsiness are the result of opium (a component of poppies), the scene has a much more blatant toxic connection than that.
All that magical snow? It'due south actually 100% industrial-grade chrysotile asbestos. Even though the health risks associated with the material were known at the time, it was notwithstanding Hollywood'southward preferred choice for faux snow. Our advice to Dorothy? Don't catch whatever snowflakes on your tongue.
Scarecrow'south Makeup Stuck Around for Awhile
In the stop, Ray Bolger (Scarecrow) was probably grateful in more than ways than one for Buddy Ebsen (the original Can Man'due south) willingness to merchandise parts with him. The Can Man's aluminum makeup caused a huge amount of issues for Ebsen, who was replaced by Jack Haley.
Although Bolger'southward makeup feel was amend than Ebsen'south, he however had some issues. The Scarecrow'southward makeup consisted of a safe prosthetic, complete with a woven blueprint that mimicked the look of burlap. After the film wrapped, the prosthetic left patterns on Bolger's confront that took more than than a twelvemonth to fade.
Margaret Hamilton Was Burned On Set
In a outburst of flames and cerise smoke, the Wicked Witch (Margaret Hamilton) vanishes from Munchkinland. Although the scene is terrifying for viewers, it may accept instilled more than fear for Hamilton. On the first have, the fume rose from a subconscious trapdoor too early.
For the second accept, Hamilton stood on the trapdoor as planned, but her greatcoat snagged on the platform when the burn down flared up. Her copper-containing makeup heated up instantly, causing second- and tertiary-caste burns on her hands and face. To brand matters worse, the crew tried to remedy her burns with (an even more painful) acetone solvent.
The Flying Monkeys Became Falling Monkeys
The Wicked Witch'southward legion of flying monkeys — or Winged Monkeys as they're called in the source material — have certainly been a source of terror for generations. Almost every bit scary as the Witch herself, these henchmen soar onto the scene to kidnap Dorothy and Toto — thanks to the magic of piano wires.
However, the aeriform stunt went amiss when several of the piano wires snapped, sending actors plummeting a few feet to the soundstage flooring. To create such a vast troupe of monkeys (and cut down on man marionettes), filmmakers fabricated miniature rubber monkeys to help populate the sky.
"Over the Rainbow" Was Almost on the Cut Room Floor
To no one's surprise, the American Moving-picture show Institute ranked "Over the Rainbow" #1 on a list of 100 Greatest Songs in American Films. Merely what may surprise you? The (arguably) most iconic song of Judy Garland's career was nearly cut from the film.
Studio execs at MGM idea the song made the Kansas scenes too long. Moreover, filmmakers were concerned that children wouldn't sympathize the song'southward meaning. Luckily, this unfounded business organisation melted like lemon drops. Unfortunately, Garland's bawling reprise of the vocal was left on the cut room floor.
The Tin Man Costume Didn't Allow Jack Haley to Remainder Easy
Although Bert Lahr had to schlep around in a xc-pound lion costume, Jack Haley didn't accept it piece of cake either. From the lingering concerns about the aluminum paste-based makeup on his face and hands to the minimal flexibility of the "can" torso and arms, Haley faced some challenges.
Reportedly, his costume was so stiff that he had to lean against a board to remainder properly. Many years later, actor Anthony Daniels, known for playing the protocol droid C-3PO in the Star Wars films, had the same issue with his rigid costume. Information technology seems even fantasy and sci-fi can't help folks escape all their bug.
The Original Tin Homo Was Rushed to the Hospital
Initially, Buddy Ebsen was bandage equally the Scarecrow, only traded parts with Ray Bolger. However, Ebsen'due south new character, the Tin Man, caused him a world of issues. Namely, the character's silverish makeup contained a harmful aluminum dust that coated Ebsen's lungs.
To make matters worse, Ebsen had an allergic reaction, and, unable to breathe, he was rushed to the infirmary. MGM recast the role with Jack Haley (and inverse upward the makeup), but didn't explicate why Ebsen "dropped out." Although Ebsen didn't announced in the final picture show, his vocals can exist heard in "Nosotros're Off to See the Magician."
A Stocking & Some Miniatures Gave Us the Tornado
The tornado that strikes the Gale homestead is full of practical special effects that really concur up. The funnel itself was really a 35-human foot long stocking made of muslin. The special furnishings squad spun it effectually miniatures that resembled the farms and fields of Kansas. Confronting the painted properties, the tornado looks menacing.
The Gale house, which falls from the heaven and into Oz, is but a miniature business firm that was dropped onto a heaven painting. Filmmakers then reversed the footage to make it await like the firm was falling out of the clouds.
Hollywood Didn't Pay Upwardly And so Either
Pay inequality has e'er been an issue in Hollywood. For example, Adriana Caselotti, phonation of the titular grapheme in Walt Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), made $970 for her functioning. The picture show went on to make roughly $8 million.
Co-ordinate to the Los Angeles Times, Judy Garland's pay was ameliorate than Caselotti'south — playing Dorothy earned her $500 a calendar week — but it withal didn't reflect the picture's success. Even more discouraging, the folks who portrayed the citizens of Munchkinland were paid a mere $l per calendar week. (Meanwhile, Terry the dog earned $125 per week every bit Toto. A real yikes.)
Bert Lahr's Lion Costume Was Taxing
Originally, MGM thought it might cast its mascot — the actual king of beasts used in the studio's title card — as the cowardly character. Fortunately, for the prophylactic of the actors and the animal, the filmmakers decided to bandage actor Bert Lahr as the anthropomorphic character instead.
To brand a convincing fauna, the costume department fashioned Lahr a ninety-pound outfit made from existent lion skin. Even so, the arc lights used on set made things a steamy 100 degrees during filming, which meant Lahr did a lot of sweating unrelated to his character'south fretfulness. Each night, two stagehands dried the costume for the next mean solar day.
The Initial Box Part Returns Were Uneven
The film started shooting in October of 1938 but didn't wrap until March of 1939, racking up an unheard of $2,777,000 in costs. That's nearly $l million adapted for inflation. Upon its initial release, the movie only earned $3 million at the box part — almost $51.8 meg by today's standards.
Although that seems impressive for a Depression-era pic, remember that Disney made $8 million with Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs (1937). The Magician of Oz's modest success in the U.Due south. barely covered production and picture rights' costs — MGM paid $75,000 to the publisher for those — only success overseas fortunately bolstered the film's returns.
The Dark Side of Oz in a Time Before "Me Too"
Judy Garland was just sixteen years sometime when she was bandage equally Dorothy. Insecure and lonesome, she became fond to amphetamines and barbiturates, which were frequently given to young actors to aid them slumber afterward studios shot them upward with adrenaline so they could piece of work long hours.
The spotlight — and her damaging contract with MGM — didn't help, leading to her lifelong struggles with an eating disorder and alcoholism. According to a author for Limited, "[Garland] was molested by older men, including studio chiefs [and head Louis B. Mayer], who considered her little more their 'belongings.'" Moreover, MGM forced Garland to stick to a wildly unhealthy diet of cigarettes, coffee and chicken soup.
The Voice of Snowfall White Had a Cameo
A few years before The Wizard of Oz debuted, Walt Disney's feature-length animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) became a smash-hit. Not just did the picture revolutionize the animation manufacture, information technology too reinvigorated the fantasy genre.
Disney wanted to follow up Snowfall White — then the most successful flick of all time — with an accommodation of The Wizard of Oz, just MGM owned the rights. By happenstance, Adriana Caselotti, who voiced Snow White, had an uncredited role in Oz. During the Tin can Man'southward "If I Only Had a Heart," Caselotti speaks her sole line, "Wherefore art yard Romeo?"
The Reddish Slippers Are Props & Treasured Artifacts
Keeping in line with the book, Dorothy'southward iconic footwear was originally argent, only screenwriter Noel Langley felt the red color would actually pop in glorious Technicolor. Designed by MGM's chief costume designer Gilbert Adrian, the shoes are each covered in about 2,300 sequins.
1 of the remaining pairs is on view in the Smithsonian Establishment's National Museum of American History. Since the brandish is so heavily trafficked, the museum has replaced the carpet there several times. Another pair were stolen from Minnesota's Judy Garland Museum in 2005, just the FBI recovered the slippers for the institution in 2018.
Only One Sequence Was Filmed "On Location"
The Sorcerer of Oz is your classic hazard story, and Dorothy'due south quest leads her from a Kansas subcontract to another globe — complete with corn fields, poppy-filled meadows and forests. However, despite all these breathtaking locations, most all the scenes were shot on a soundstage.
As was customary at the time, immense, detailed backdrops were painted by studio artists, making it possible for filmmakers to send audiences to far away places without filming on location. In fact, the only location footage in the film is the opening title sequence — those clouds are 100% the real deal.
A 2d Toto Was Brought In
Toto, played primarily by Terry, is one of the almost beloved dogs in film history. Terry was famously not a huge fan of special furnishings and can oftentimes exist seen running out of a shot when something loud or alarming happens — like when the Tin can Man spouts out all of that steam.
After i of the Witch's guards accidentally stepped on her, Terry was on bedrest for two weeks. Filmmakers went through two doubles to find one that resembled the original canine actor more closely.
Fun fact: Judy Garland was so fond of Terry that she wanted to adopt the dog.
Margaret Hamilton "Mourns the Wicked" Witch
In addition to being a huge fan of the Oz books, Margaret Hamilton likewise believed her character was more than just your run-of-the-mill evil villain. More than 35 years later on the film debuted, Hamilton, donning her Witch's costume to bear witness kids information technology was make-believe, appeared on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, where Fred Rogers interviewed her nigh the graphic symbol.
According to Hamilton, the and then-called Wicked Witch relished everything she did, merely she was also a sorry, lone figure. In curt, things never went well for the frustrated Witch. Oddly enough, the Broadway musical Wicked also takes this approach to the Witch's character.
The "Horse of a Different Color" Was Made Possible Cheers to a Food Product
In 1939, audiences were simply as amazed as Dorothy, Scarecrow, Can Homo and the Cowardly Panthera leo when the equus caballus in Emerald City took on a rainbow of colors. This "horse of a dissimilar color" was made possible thanks to a surprising food item…
Clot-O crystals were used to colour the horses, which meant filmmakers had to motion quickly — the animals were eager to lick upwards the sugariness treat. Merely the colorful steed isn't the merely interesting component in this fan-favorite scene. The horse-drawn carriage was once owned by President Abraham Lincoln and at present resides at the Judy Garland Museum.
The Makeup Department Hired on Extra Hands
From the citizens of Munchkinland and Emerald Urban center to the Witch's flying monkeys, so many actors had to undergo a makeup transformation in order to requite life to this fantasy film. To keep up with the daily demands, MGM chosen upon workers from the studio mailroom and courier service to manage makeup stations.
Since about of the Ozian ensemble required prosthetics, makeup artists — and "makeshift" artists — formed a kind of costuming assembly line. Most actors had to make it before 5:00 in the morning — 6 days a week! — to brainstorm the intensive process.
Memorable (& Often Misquoted) Lines Fill the Moving-picture show
The film is chock-full of iconic, memorable songs, and it has the peachy fortune of being responsible for some of the most quoted lines in movie history too. In 2007, Premiere compiled a list of "The 100 Greatest Picture show Lines" and placed a whopping 3 of the film's lines on the list.
"Pay no attending to that man behind the drape" was voted #24, while "There's no identify like home" nabbed the 11th spot. Finally, the frequently misquoted "Toto, I have a feeling nosotros're not in Kansas anymore" landed in the 62nd spot.
The Witch's Fire Employed Some Technical Wizardry (& Juice)
Conspicuously, the technical wizardry — or witchcraft — in the film is incredible. Like the "horse of a different colour" sequence, another iconic, special effects-heavy scene harnessed the power of everyday household items to pull off fun tricks.
Presently after Dorothy arrives in Munchkinland, the Wicked Witch tries to snatch the carmine slippers from the immature girl's feet. However, fire strikes the Witch's hands, repelling her. This "burn down" is actually apple juice spouting from the slippers in a sped-up clip to brand it look more flame-similar.
Technicolor Required Some Ingenuity in the Props Department
Experimenting with Technicolor was office fun and part problem-solving for filmmakers. In order to properly capture scenes with the Technicolor camera, the soundstage needed to be lit with arc lights, which often heated the fix to a toasty 100 degrees.
After the lights were set, the experts experimented with what would look all-time on film, especially in colorized form. For example, the white role of Dorothy's apparel is actually pink — simply because it filmed better. And the oil the Tin can Human is so excited about? It's really chocolate syrup.
The Wicked Witch of the East Makes More Than Ane Advent
Function of the Wicked Witch of the West'due south beef with Dorothy is that the young girl dropped a firm on her sister, the Wicked Witch of the East, who was the brusk-lived owner of the ruby slippers. Although Margaret Hamilton already plays both the Wicked Witch of the West and her Kansas counterpart Almira Gulch, she also plays the Wicked Witch of the Due east — if only briefly.
During the tornado sequence, an addled Dorothy looks out her bedroom window and watches Gulch transform into a witch, her shoes shimmering. For fans, this glint indicates the witch outside the window is wearing the ruby slippers. The restored version of the picture makes that shimmer even more noticeable.
The Motion picture's Running Fourth dimension Was Cutting Downwardly Several Times
The showtime cut of the moving picture clocked in at a running time of 120 minutes. Although that seems like cipher past today's Curiosity motion-picture show standards, producer Mervyn LeRoy felt it was long and unwieldy and wanted to chop off xx minutes.
After cutting the famed "Jitterbug" number (superlative right) and an extended Scarecrow dance sequence, the film was 112 minutes long. LeRoy held a 2nd preview screening, and, afterward, nixed Dorothy's "Over the Rainbow" reprise, an Emerald City reprise of "Ding! Dong! The Witch Is Dead," a scene where the Tin Man becomes a human beehive (Yikes!) and a few Kansas sequences.
So Much for a "Wicked" Witch
Filmmakers deemed Margaret Hamilton'due south Wicked Witch of the West performance too frightening for audiences and cut or trimmed many of her scenes. Only non everyone idea her performance was terrifying — namely Judy Garland, who played the Wicked Witch's nemesis, Dorothy Gale.
Off-screen, the film's starring foes were actually friends. One story that emerged from the gear up described Garland excitedly showing off a apparel to Hamilton, declaring she was going to wear information technology for her graduation. Unfortunately, MGM'due south Louis B. Mayer sent Garland on a printing bout the day of her graduation. Upset, Hamilton phoned Mayer and chewed him out.
Giving Credit to Technicolor
In the opening credits, the text reads "Photographed in Technicolor," as opposed to the more apt "Color Sequences past Technicolor." The phrasing of the credits makes it seem every bit though the unabridged film was shot in color. Was this done deliberately, or was it a pocket-sized syntactical faux pas?
Information technology's widely believed this was a bit of a stunt done to enhance the surprise of the motion-picture show turning into total three-strip Technicolor when Dorothy arrives in Oz. Posters made at the time of the picture's debut made no mention of sepia tint (or "black-and-white"), adding credence to this theory.
Ane of History'south Nigh-Watched Films
Although The Wizard of Oz proved popular in theaters, another motion picture released the same year, likewise directed past Victor Fleming, actually topped the box part. (You may take heard of that trivial motion picture — it's called Gone with the Current of air.) Nonetheless, MGM's musical fantasy may accept more than staying power than other films of the era, thanks in office to re-releases.
The picture was outset broadcast on television on Nov iii, 1956, and garnered an impressive 44 1000000 viewers. It'south believed that The Wizard of Oz is ane of the 10 most-watched feature-length movies in picture history, largely due to the number of annual tv screenings, theater viewings and various format re-releases.
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