Safety nets and pads usually saved the day, although several "monkeys" landed in the hospital. This was because the producers thought the song to be too slow and not interesting enough for the children, and also, the studio head Louis B was of the view that the song was depressing. Gillespie, a husky Texan from El Paso, began his career as a set designer at Paramount in 1922, then joined MGM as an art director when the studio opened in 1925 and stayed for 41 years. The MGM Optical Department photographed the film's titles. He had a regular gig throwing confetti at the end of each Gong Show; had recurring roles on Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and Sid and Marty Kroffts Lidsville; and guest-starred on such series as The Odd Couple, The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart, The Wild Wild West and Seinfeld (in the 1997 The Yada Yada episode). The green makeup used for Margaret Hamilton's costume was so, MGM hired attendants to help the little people on and off studio toilets because one of the Munchkin actors got, Clara Blandick, who played Auntie Em, committed, Margaret Hamilton, aka the Wicked Witch of the West, suffered second-degree burns on her face and third-degree burns on her hand after a stunt, The male actors who played Munchkins would often, In fact, a lot of the Munchkin actors were so bad that an MGM employee was literally assigned to watch over them, and a lot of the actors ended up getting, Buddy Ebsen was the original Tin Man, but the aluminum dust from the makeup, Figuring out how to color the horses in Emerald City was an extremely difficult task, and the studio ultimately decided to paint them with, The actors who played Munchkins were only paid, And Terry, the dog who played Toto, was paid nearly three times as much as the Munchkins. Instead, the camera moved to make the ball appear to describe the path it was to follow. He is a member of famous Actor with the age 79 years old group. When the Witch sets the Scarecrow on fire, Dorothy throws water on him. The vivid colors came from dyes added during this process. Aug. 15, 1939: The west-coast premiere of The Wizard of Oz at Grauman's Theater in Los Angeles. When Feiner inspected the Scarecrow scene, the image seemed slightly off. , money, salary, income, and assets. We have covered the most interesting facts about the film. at the Wyndham's Theatre. This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Billy Curtis (born Luigi Curto; June 27, 1909 November 9, 1988) was an American film and television actor with dwarfism, who had a 50-year career in the entertainment industry. The bulk of his work was in the western and science fiction genres, portraying a little person. A.I. Category : The Wizard of Oz In regards to having bathroom attendants, Margaret Pellegrini, one of the last surviving Munchkin actors, added that it was "the first time I'd ever had anybody help me go to the bathroom. The Wizard of Oz | Bert Lahr was a vaudeville star famous for playing anxious and neurotic comic characters. This film was previously released on home video in a very truncated version with all the naughty bits removed. It's a hazardous journey. I. E. Chadwick produced a silent Wizard in 1925 which also flopped, despite featuring Larry Semon as the Scarecrow, Oliver Hardy as the Tin Woodsman, and Charlie Murray as the Wizard. Dorothy and her friends take the broomstick and return to face the Mighty Oz. The 50 greatest TV and movie detectives of all time. The studio's next choice was W.C. Fields a mind-boggling concept! He replaced Buddy Ebsen two weeks into filming after the original Tin Man fell ill. Seldom accepting a role which demeaned or patronized little people, Curtis played an obnoxious vaudeville performer compelled to sit on Gary Cooper's lap in Meet John Doe (1941), a suspicious circus star willing to turn Robert Cummings over to the cops in Saboteur (1942), and one of the many fair-weather friends of The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957). The film's director slapped Judy Garland. Did you know that Frank Morgan played the title role of Wizard of Oz in the movie? His net worth has been growing significantly in 2022-2023. Like the silver makeup of the Tin Man, Margaret Hamilton's (The Witch of the West) green makeup was poisonous. The trio (plus Toto, whose real name was Terry) approaches the Cowardly Lion's hunting grounds. But by the end of 1938, with 25 Technicolor features in release, color had become a selling point instead of a liability. An Unusual Hero Just livin the good life, he told the Los Angeles Times. Stories of randy Munchkinland behavior, like the anecdotes Judy Garland told frequently in her later. Judy Garland Dorothy Gale. Jerry Maren, the last surviving adult Munchkin from The Wizard of Oz, has died. Curtis' big movie season was 1938-39: he was cast in The Wizard of Oz (1939) (albeit with voice dubbed by Pinto Colvig) and as the cowboy hero of the all-dwarf western The Terror of Tiny Town (1938). With those words, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer introduced what became the most popular Technicolor fantasy ever made, The Wizard of Oz. Reporting on what you care about. He also appeared as Little Oscar in Oscar Mayer ads and as Buster Brown for the shoe company. The camera was placed in the center and spun rapidly while the muslin remained stationary. Maren, now 94, is the last surviving Munchkin actor. ", Sidney Luft, Judy's ex-husband, wrote in his memoir that Garland, "unlike other actresses, could not successfully camouflage extra weight, especially because she was dancing and singing in revealing costumes. Diminutive American actor Billy Curtis avoided the usual onus of freak-show employment as a youth, opting for a mainstream job as a shoe clerk. That was then considered to be the archival master. He was 98. We try our very best, but cannot guarantee perfection. No, you have no eye vision issues. On the paper attached to the frame, he wrote, "With this pencil, I wrote the manuscript of The Emerald City." Louis B. Mayer, the top man at MGM, bought the rights from Goldwyn for $75,000 in June of 1938. A strange sequence follows in which Dorothy and her house are inside the twister and she sees various things picked up by the cone go hurtling by. He wanted to produce and direct Wizard, but was informed he was assigned to produce but not direct the high-budget project. Glinda tells her she can go home if she clicks the heels of the ruby slippers and thinks "There's no place like home" three times. As of today, no principal cast of the film is still alive. The actor, who stayed active in show business long after Dorothy had returned to her home in Kansas, died May 24 at an assisted-care facility in the San Warren Newcombe headed the matte painting section, where he and his assistants produced what the studio called "Newcombe Shots.".