Woman’s Weekly New Zealand – July 29, 2019

2 New Zealand Woman’s Weekly

I

t’s 80 years on, but millions of

us still indulge in a trip to the

Emerald City via the yellow

brick road when we re-watch

one of the greatest movies ever

made, The Wizard of Oz!

To celebrate its massive

milestone, here are 10 little-

known facts about the film that

still makes waves today.

1

The whimsical horses that

you can see in the Emerald

City were actually coloured with

jelly crystals – which meant the

scenes in which they featured

had to be shot very quickly, as

they’d start licking them off!

2

The famous tornado was

actually a 10-metre-long

stocking that was spun around

miniatures of the farm in Kansas

and its surrounding fields.

3

The poppy field scene,

where Dorothy falls

asleep, features a snow fall –

the ‘snow’ is actually asbestos.

4

The people who portrayed

the Munchkins were paid

US$50 for their six-day working

week – while the dog who

played Toto received US$125 –

which in today’s money is

equivalent to NZ$3179.68.

5

On the day that Judy

Garland died, a tornado

struck Kansas.

6

The Cowardly Lion’s face

make-up involved a brown

paper bag, which meant actor

Bert Lahr couldn’t eat without

ruining it. But, he got sick of

milkshakes and liquid food and

intead insisted the make-up

team reapply it after he ate.

7

Judy Garland's daughter,

Liza Minnelli, was married to

Jack Haley’s son, Jack Haley Jr.,

from 1974-79 – Jack Haley Sr

played the Tin Man.

8

In the original book,

Dorothy’s slippers were

silver, and the movie-makers

intended to keep them the

same in the movie, until the

head of MGM, Louis B Mayer,

realised the colour wouldn’t

look great with Technicolour,

so ruby was picked.

9

The set would definitely not

pass today’s health and

safety checks − the original Tin

Man, Buddy Ebsen, quit when

the aluminium dust from his

all-over make-up put him in an

iron lung. Margaret Hamilton,

who played the Wicked Witch,

suffered second and third

degree burns thanks to an

explosion – and her green

make-up was toxic. It also

gave her green skin for

months following filming.

10

While Judy Garland was

16 and 17 during filming,

she was portraying a pre-

adolescent child, so was forced

to wear a constricting corset-

like device that would make

her look

younger.

Beloved!

Ray Bolger, Jack,

Judy and Bert head

off to see the wizard.