The Greatest Hero of All Time

~The Wizard of Oz~

TRIGGER WARNINGS: Suicide,Sexual Assault.

Keep in mind that, 'The Wizard of Oz' was made in 1939.

•The Tin Man's makeup was toxic: Buddy Epsen,who was the initial actor cast as the 'Tin Man' turned out to be dangerously allergic to the aluminum dust that was used to give the 'Tin Man' his metallic shine. He had to be hospitalized due to that allergic reaction and he ultimately bowed out of the film entirely. His singing can still be heard with, 'We're Off to see the Wizard. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.' He experienced lifelong health effects and breathing problems.

•Ebsen was replaced by Jack Haley and the dust was replaced with an aluminum paste that could be painted on. It did give Haley an eye infection and filming had to be delayed while he recovered. He was able to keep the job and he did not appear to have any long-lasting effects after it.

• Bert Lahr's 'Cowardly Lion' costume was made out of real lion hair but it was very heavy and hot inside. Coupled with the heat by the studio lights. Lahr getting overheated was a legitimate concern. Via 'Dusty Old Thing.'

• Both Margaret Hamilton,who played the Wicked Witch of the West and her stunt double,Betty Danko were badly burnt when scenes involved fire went terribly wrong. She was supposed to drop down through a trap door but it malfunctioned and Hamilton suffered second and third degree burns on her face and hands.

• Hamilton's role as the 'Wicked Witch' required her to be painted green and the only way to remove it was by alcohol,which exacerbated her wounds,per 'History Collection.' She had to take 6 weeks off to recover before she returned to set on the condition that she would not do any more scenes involving fireworks.

•Betty Danko,was tasked with filming the next scene that included fire and that scene also went horribly wrong. She was supposed to sit on an actual pipe that was filled with combustible materials but it exploded and she suffered extreme burns on her legs and had to be hospitalized for 11 days. They hired a stunt actress named 'Aline Goodwin' to finish the take.

• Judy Garland wasn't the top choice to play 'Dorothy' Instead,they wanted Shirley Temple,who was six years younger than Garland but upon auditioning,Temple was found to be lacking in the vocal range department. Garland was 16 years old when she shot the film and to make her body appear younger,her breasts had to be taped down and she had to be squeezed into a tight corset.

• The studio also put Garland on a weight control diet that consisted of chicken soup,black coffee and cigarettes with diet pills for good measure. They also gave her adrenaline shots as well. It wasn't new for Garland as her mother gave her 'Pep Pills' since she performed as a child.

• MGM had to hire attendants to help the little people on and off the toilets because one of the munchkin actors got stuck in a toilet for 45 minutes.

• Clara Blandick,who played, 'Auntie Em' committed suicide at the age of 85.

• The male actors who played Munchkins would often torment Judy on set,and some allegedly sexually assaulted her by putting their hands up her skirt. The munchkins mostly spent their time at bars after work.

• A lot of the Munchkin actors were so bad that they would often get arrested between shoots. But they couldn't keep them for long because they were needed back on set.

• They put Jell-O powder on the horses to color the horses in the Emerald City scene.

•The actors who played the Munchkins got paid only $50 a week which is $900 in today's world.

• Terry the dog who played 'Toto' got paid three times as much as the munchkins. She made $125 per week. That would be $2,300 per week in 2019.

• The "snowstorm" that took place in the poppy field scene was actually asbestos falling on the actors.

• The MGM studio executives treated Judy Garland so terribly that they often referred to her as "A fat little pig with pigtails."

•Judy Garland was even forced to smoke up to 80 cigarettes a day to suppress her appetite.

• Judy Garland's song, 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' was almost cut but spared at the last minute and thankfully so.

•Today,thanks to its many televised reruns on network tv, 'The Wizard of Oz' is the most watched film in Hollywood history.

• 'Dorothy' was named after Frank's niece,who died from infancy.

• Judy Garland's daughter,Liza Minnelli dated Jack Haley's son,Jack Haley Jr. Jack Haley played the 'Tin Man' in 'The Wizard of Oz' with her mother,Judy Garland,who portrayed the main character, 'Dorothy' in the classic 1939 film.

•The Tin Man's "Oil" was actually chocolate sauce.

• Director Victor Fleming slapped Judy Garland when she wouldn't stop giggling but afterwords,he felt terrible about it and asked someone to do the same to him. Then,Judy Garland kissed him on the nose.

*These facts are not my own as I have gotten them from websites and videos.*