How Many Fluid Oz Can You Bring on a Plane
From offscreen friendships and jarring pay inequality to the special effects and makeup tricks that brought some of the earth'south favorite film 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 honor of the 80th anniversary of the film, follow the yellow brick slideshow to peek behind that curtain and learn more about the secrets and fun facts that make the honey film a timeless archetype.
Margaret Hamilton Was a Fan Before the Moving-picture show
As a self-proclaimed lifelong fan of L. Frank Baum'due south Oz series, Margaret Hamilton was thrilled to be considered for a role in the 1939 flick adaptation. Hamilton called her agent to ask which grapheme the producers wanted her to play, and her amanuensis famously said, "The witch — who else?"
Hamilton, a unmarried mother, fought MGM for an agreed upon corporeality of guaranteed piece of work time. 3 days earlier filming began, the studio agreed to a five-week deal. In the finish, Hamilton was on set for iii months, but many of her scenes were cut for being too scary for audiences.
Sure, Dorothy Gale doesn't need prosthetics or aluminum makeup, but that doesn't mean Judy Garland wasn't put through the costume department wringer. Although she was young at the fourth dimension, the sixteen-year-onetime Garland had to wear a corset-like device and then she looked more like a preadolescent kid.
Director Richard Thorpe suggested Garland wear a blonde wig and loads of "baby-doll" makeup (as any preadolescent daughter would…). Luckily, that vision of the character inverse. 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 Peachy Movie Magic
The Magician of Oz employs a lot of not bad film tricks, and some of the almost unique were used in the skywriting scene. In it, the Wicked Witch (Margaret Hamilton) flies higher up the Emerald City, leaving the phrase "Give up Dorothy" in her wake in black smoke.
Using a hypodermic needle, the special effects squad spread blackness ink across the bottom 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 below. Initially, the skywriting ended with the ominous "Or Die — W W W."
The "Snowfall" in the Poppy Field Was Actually Dangerous
One of the Wicked Witch'due south final-ditch efforts to impede Dorothy's quest to come across the Wonderful Sorcerer of Oz involves a poppy field and some magical sleep-inducing snowfall. While many like to joke that the poppies and their drowsiness are the upshot of opium (a component of poppies), the scene has a much more than breathy toxic connection than that.
All that magical snowfall? It's really 100% industrial-grade chrysotile asbestos. Fifty-fifty though the wellness risks associated with the textile were known at the time, it was nonetheless Hollywood's preferred selection for false snowfall. Our advice to Dorothy? Don't catch whatsoever snowflakes on your tongue.
Scarecrow's Makeup Stuck Around for Awhile
In the end, Ray Bolger (Scarecrow) was probably grateful in more ways than 1 for Buddy Ebsen (the original Can Human being'due south) willingness to trade parts with him. The Tin can Human being's aluminum makeup caused a huge amount of problems for Ebsen, who was replaced by Jack Haley.
Although Bolger's makeup experience was better than Ebsen's, he still had some issues. The Scarecrow'due south makeup consisted of a rubber prosthetic, complete with a woven design that mimicked the look of burlap. After the film wrapped, the prosthetic left patterns on Bolger's face that took more than than a year to fade.
Margaret Hamilton Was Burned On Set
In a flare-up of flames and cerise fume, the Wicked Witch (Margaret Hamilton) vanishes from Munchkinland. Although the scene is terrifying for viewers, information technology may accept instilled more fearfulness for Hamilton. On the outset take, the smoke rose from a hidden trapdoor too early.
For the second take, Hamilton stood on the trapdoor every bit planned, simply her greatcoat snagged on the platform when the fire flared up. Her copper-containing makeup heated up instantly, causing second- and tertiary-degree burns on her hands and face. To make matters worse, the coiffure tried to remedy her burns with (an fifty-fifty more painful) acetone solvent.
The Flying Monkeys Became Falling Monkeys
The Wicked Witch'southward legion of flying monkeys — or Winged Monkeys equally they're called in the source material — accept certainly been a source of terror for generations. Near 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 aerial stunt went awry when several of the piano wires snapped, sending actors plummeting a few feet to the soundstage floor. To create such a vast troupe of monkeys (and cutting down on homo marionettes), filmmakers made miniature safety monkeys to aid populate the sky.
"Over the Rainbow" Was Almost on the Cut Room Floor
To no i's surprise, the American Pic Institute ranked "Over the Rainbow" #ane 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 most cut from the film.
Studio execs at MGM thought the vocal made the Kansas scenes too long. Moreover, filmmakers were concerned that children wouldn't sympathise the song's meaning. Luckily, this unfounded business melted similar lemon drops. Unfortunately, Garland's tearful reprise of the song was left on the cutting room flooring.
The Tin Human Costume Didn't Allow Jack Haley to Rest Like shooting fish in a barrel
Although Bert Lahr had to schlep around in a xc-pound king of beasts costume, Jack Haley didn't have it easy either. From the lingering concerns about the aluminum paste-based makeup on his face up and hands to the minimal flexibility of the "tin can" torso and arms, Haley faced some challenges.
Reportedly, his costume was so stiff that he had to lean against a board to residual properly. Many years subsequently, actor Anthony Daniels, known for playing the protocol droid C-3PO in the Star Wars films, had the same event with his rigid costume. It seems even fantasy and sci-fi can't help folks escape all their problems.
The Original Can Man Was Rushed to the Infirmary
Initially, Buddy Ebsen was cast as the Scarecrow, but traded parts with Ray Bolger. However, Ebsen'south new character, the Tin can Human being, caused him a world of issues. Namely, the graphic symbol's silver makeup contained a harmful aluminum dust that coated Ebsen'south lungs.
To make matters worse, Ebsen had an allergic reaction, and, unable to breathe, he was rushed to the hospital. MGM recast the function with Jack Haley (and changed up the makeup), but didn't explain why Ebsen "dropped out." Although Ebsen didn't announced in the final film, his vocals tin can exist heard in "We're Off to See the Sorcerer."
A Stocking & Some Miniatures Gave Us the Tornado
The tornado that strikes the Gale homestead is full of practical special effects that really concur upwards. The funnel itself was actually a 35-foot long stocking made of muslin. The special effects team spun it around miniatures that resembled the farms and fields of Kansas. Against the painted backdrop, the tornado looks menacing.
The Gale house, which falls from the sky and into Oz, is just a miniature house that was dropped onto a heaven painting. Filmmakers then reversed the footage to get in await like the firm was falling out of the clouds.
Hollywood Didn't Pay Up And then Either
Pay inequality has always been an consequence in Hollywood. For example, Adriana Caselotti, vocalism of the titular character in Walt Disney's Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs (1937), made $970 for her performance. The film went on to make roughly $8 million.
Co-ordinate to the Los Angeles Times, Judy Garland's pay was better than Caselotti'south — playing Dorothy earned her $500 a calendar week — but it still didn't reverberate the motion picture's success. Even more discouraging, the folks who portrayed the citizens of Munchkinland were paid a mere $l per week. (Meanwhile, Terry the dog earned $125 per week as Toto. A real yikes.)
Bert Lahr's Lion Costume Was Taxing
Originally, MGM idea it might cast its mascot — the actual lion used in the studio's title card — as the cowardly character. Fortunately, for the condom of the actors and the animal, the filmmakers decided to cast histrion Bert Lahr equally the anthropomorphic character instead.
To make a convincing beast, the costume department fashioned Lahr a xc-pound outfit fabricated from real lion peel. However, 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's nerves. Each night, two stagehands stale the costume for the next day.
The Initial Box Function Returns Were Uneven
The flick started shooting in October of 1938 but didn't wrap until March of 1939, racking upwards an unheard of $2,777,000 in costs. That'southward nearly $50 million adapted for inflation. Upon its initial release, the movie but earned $3 one thousand thousand at the box function — about $51.8 million by today's standards.
Although that seems impressive for a Low-era motion-picture show, remember that Disney made $8 million with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). The Wizard of Oz's small-scale success in the U.S. barely covered production and motion picture rights' costs — MGM paid $75,000 to the publisher for those — only success overseas fortunately bolstered the pic's returns.
The Dark Side of Oz in a Fourth dimension Before "Me Also"
Judy Garland was merely sixteen years old when she was cast as Dorothy. Insecure and lonesome, she became addicted to amphetamines and barbiturates, which were often given to young actors to assist them sleep later studios shot them upward with adrenaline then they could 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 Express, "[Garland] was molested past older men, including studio chiefs [and head Louis B. Mayer], who considered her fiddling more than their 'belongings.'" Moreover, MGM forced Garland to stick to a wildly unhealthy diet of cigarettes, java and craven soup.
The Voice of Snowfall White Had a Cameo
A few years before The Wizard of Oz debuted, Walt Disney's feature-length animated moving-picture show Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) became a blast-striking. Not but did the film revolutionize the animation manufacture, information technology too reinvigorated the fantasy genre.
Disney wanted to follow upward Snowfall White — then the most successful film of all fourth dimension — with an adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, but MGM owned the rights. By happenstance, Adriana Caselotti, who voiced Snow White, had an uncredited role in Oz. During the Tin can Man's "If I But Had a Heart," Caselotti speaks her sole line, "Wherefore fine art thou Romeo?"
The Ruby Slippers Are Props & Treasured Artifacts
Keeping in line with the book, Dorothy's iconic footwear was originally silver, but screenwriter Noel Langley felt the ruddy color would really pop in glorious Technicolor. Designed past MGM's chief costume designer Gilbert Adrian, the shoes are each covered in about 2,300 sequins.
One of the remaining pairs is on view in the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. Since the display is so heavily trafficked, the museum has replaced the carpet there several times. Some other pair were stolen from Minnesota'south Judy Garland Museum in 2005, but the FBI recovered the slippers for the institution in 2018.
But I Sequence Was Filmed "On Location"
The Sorcerer of Oz is your classic adventure story, and Dorothy'southward quest leads her from a Kansas farm to another earth — complete with corn fields, poppy-filled meadows and forests. Yet, despite all these scenic locations, nigh all the scenes were shot on a soundstage.
As was customary at the time, immense, detailed backdrops were painted by studio artists, making information technology possible for filmmakers to transport 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 Second Toto Was Brought In
Toto, played primarily by Terry, is one of the near love dogs in film history. Terry was famously not a huge fan of special effects and tin can oft be seen running out of a shot when something loud or alarming happens — like when the Can Man spouts out all of that steam.
After one of the Witch's guards accidentally stepped on her, Terry was on bedrest for two weeks. Filmmakers went through 2 doubles to find i that resembled the original canine histrion more closely.
Fun fact: Judy Garland was and then addicted of Terry that she wanted to adopt the canis familiaris.
Margaret Hamilton "Mourns the Wicked" Witch
In addition to being a huge fan of the Oz books, Margaret Hamilton also believed her graphic symbol was more merely your run-of-the-mill evil villain. More 35 years after the motion picture debuted, Hamilton, donning her Witch's costume to show kids it was brand-believe, appeared on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, where Fred Rogers interviewed her about the character.
Co-ordinate to Hamilton, the so-called Wicked Witch relished everything she did, but she was also a sad, solitary effigy. In short, things never went well for the frustrated Witch. Oddly enough, the Broadway musical Wicked too takes this arroyo to the Witch'due south character.
The "Horse of a Unlike Colour" Was Made Possible Thanks to a Nutrient Product
In 1939, audiences were merely as amazed as Dorothy, Scarecrow, Can Man and the Cowardly Lion when the horse in Emerald Urban center took on a rainbow of colors. This "horse of a different color" was made possible thanks to a surprising food detail…
Jell-O crystals were used to color the horses, which meant filmmakers had to move speedily — the animals were eager to lick upwardly the sugariness treat. But the colorful steed isn't the but interesting component in this fan-favorite scene. The equus caballus-drawn carriage was once endemic past 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 gild to requite life to this fantasy film. To keep up with the daily demands, MGM called upon workers from the studio mailroom and courier service to manage makeup stations.
Since most of the Ozian ensemble required prosthetics, makeup artists — and "makeshift" artists — formed a kind of costuming assembly line. Most actors had to arrive before 5:00 in the morning — six days a week! — to begin the intensive process.
Memorable (& Frequently Misquoted) Lines Fill the Film
The film is chock-total of iconic, memorable songs, and it has the dandy fortune of being responsible for some of the well-nigh quoted lines in moving picture history as well. In 2007, Premiere compiled a list of "The 100 Greatest Movie Lines" and placed a whopping three of the picture show'south lines on the listing.
"Pay no attending to that man behind the curtain" was voted #24, while "At that place'southward no place like home" nabbed the 11th spot. Finally, the frequently misquoted "Toto, I accept a feeling nosotros're non in Kansas anymore" landed in the 62nd spot.
The Witch's Burn Employed Some Technical Wizardry (& Juice)
Clearly, the technical wizardry — or witchcraft — in the picture is incredible. Similar the "equus caballus of a different color" sequence, another iconic, special furnishings-heavy scene harnessed the ability of everyday household items to pull off fun tricks.
Soon later on Dorothy arrives in Munchkinland, the Wicked Witch tries to snatch the ruby slippers from the young girl'due south feet. However, burn strikes the Witch's hands, repelling her. This "fire" is actually apple tree juice spouting from the slippers in a sped-upwardly clip to make information technology look more flame-like.
Technicolor Required Some Ingenuity in the Props Department
Experimenting with Technicolor was part fun and part problem-solving for filmmakers. In guild to properly capture scenes with the Technicolor camera, the soundstage needed to exist lit with arc lights, which often heated the set upward to a toasty 100 degrees.
After the lights were prepare, the experts experimented with what would look all-time on movie, especially in colorized form. For example, the white part of Dorothy's clothes is actually pink — just because it filmed ameliorate. And the oil the Tin Man is so excited well-nigh? It's actually chocolate syrup.
The Wicked Witch of the East Makes More than Than One Appearance
Part of the Wicked Witch of the West's beef with Dorothy is that the young girl dropped a house on her sister, the Wicked Witch of the E, who was the short-lived owner of the ruby-red slippers. Although Margaret Hamilton already plays both the Wicked Witch of the West and her Kansas analogue Almira Gulch, she also plays the Wicked Witch of the East — if just briefly.
During the tornado sequence, an addled Dorothy looks out her sleeping accommodation 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 film makes that shimmer even more noticeable.
The Film's Running Time Was Cut Down Several Times
The first cutting of the film clocked in at a running time of 120 minutes. Although that seems similar goose egg past today'south Marvel moving-picture show standards, producer Mervyn LeRoy felt it was long and unwieldy and wanted to chop off 20 minutes.
After cut the famed "Jitterbug" number (height correct) and an extended Scarecrow dance sequence, the flick was 112 minutes long. LeRoy held a second preview screening, and, subsequently, nixed Dorothy'southward "Over the Rainbow" reprise, an Emerald Metropolis reprise of "Ding! Dong! The Witch Is Dead," a scene where the Can Man becomes a human beehive (Yikes!) and a few Kansas sequences.
So Much for a "Wicked" Witch
Filmmakers deemed Margaret Hamilton'southward Wicked Witch of the West operation likewise frightening for audiences and cut or trimmed many of her scenes. But not everyone thought her performance was terrifying — namely Judy Garland, who played the Wicked Witch's nemesis, Dorothy Gale.
Off-screen, the motion-picture show's starring foes were actually friends. One story that emerged from the set described Garland excitedly showing off a dress to Hamilton, declaring she was going to wear information technology for her graduation. Unfortunately, MGM'south Louis B. Mayer sent Garland on a press tour 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," every bit opposed to the more apt "Color Sequences past Technicolor." The phrasing of the credits makes it seem as though the unabridged film was shot in color. Was this done deliberately, or was it a minor syntactical faux pas?
It's widely believed this was a bit of a stunt done to enhance the surprise of the moving picture turning into full three-strip Technicolor when Dorothy arrives in Oz. Posters made at the time of the flick's debut made no mention of sepia tint (or "black-and-white"), adding credence to this theory.
One of History's Most-Watched Films
Although The Magician of Oz proved popular in theaters, another film released the same year, also directed past Victor Fleming, really topped the box role. (You may have heard of that lilliputian movie — it's called Gone with the Current of air.) Nonetheless, MGM'south musical fantasy may have more staying power than other films of the era, thanks in function to re-releases.
The picture show was first broadcast on television on November three, 1956, and garnered an impressive 44 1000000 viewers. It's believed that The Wizard of Oz is ane of the ten most-watched feature-length movies in moving picture history, largely due to the number of annual television set screenings, theater viewings and various format re-releases.
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