One of the most famous (and quotable–three lines from the film are on the American Film Institute’s list of the greatest movie quotes) movies of all time, The Wizard of Oz was released on this day in 1939. And while it was a box office failure whose production was filled with drama–four different directors worked on the project, as did over a dozen writers!–its airings on television during the 50s catapulted it into a realm of popularity that few films have ever topped. In honor of its release, let’s take a trip down the Yellow Brick Road and pick up some trivia.
- The shoot was an incredibly dangerous one for several of its leads. Buddy Ebsen, who went on to fame with The Beverly Hillbillies, was cast as the Tin Man originally, but after nine days of filming, his body suffered a severe allergic reaction to the aluminum powder makeup he wore and he wound up hospitalized in respiratory distress. Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked Witch, was coated in green makeup that was copper-based, which was incredibly toxic; once her makeup was applied, she couldn’t eat, and had to subsist on a liquid diet and drink from a straw. As if that weren’t dangerous enough, when she filmed her fiery exit from Munchkinland, the makeup caused her to suffer third degree burns on her hands and second degree burns on her face.
- Jack Haley, who replaced Buddy Ebsen, had a son, Jack Jr., a producer who married Liza Minelli in the 1970s. Yes, the Tin Man’s son married Dorothy’s daughter!
- The Horse of a Different Color got its changing hue with the help of Jell-O crystals, which were chosen by the ASPCA for being safe for the horses. Filming these scenes needed to be quick, because the horses kept trying to lick the Jell-O off.
- The Cowardly Lion costume was made of real lion pelt and weighed 100 pounds; his tail moved by a fishing line that was controlled by a stagehand sitting on the catwalk above the soundstage.
- Where did the word Oz come from? L. Frank Baum’s filing cabinets. The first was labeled A-N, and the second was O-Z and the rest…is history.
Has this nostalgia inspired you to watch an Oz movie? Try one of these:
- The classic original, The Wizard of Oz
- The Wiz
- Oz The Great and Powerful
- The Muppet Wizard of Oz
You can read the original Oz books, if you’re feeling literary:
Or try these Oz books…with a twist!
- Wicked, by Gregory Maguire
- The Dorothy Must Die series, by Danielle Paige