The Wizard Of… Hell? There are various rumors and conspiracies of the situations that the cast of the 1939 movie, The Wizard Of Oz, went through during the filming. Such as makeup and costumes incidents, hospital trips, abuse, all very sickening situations that each actor went through. We’re not talking about how the movie turned out, we’re talking about the behind the scenes, which can be completely different, one is fantasy, one is real life.
This movie came out on August 25, 1939. However the movie was made from October 1938 to March 1939, most of the cast worked 6 days a week and had to arrive super early to get into their costumes and get their makeup done. The Cowardly lion’s makeup took the most time to finish, the actor, Bert Lahr, could not eat solid foods after his makeup was done. This actor’s costume was made from an actual lion hide and it weighed around 90lbs, which made the actor struggle even move. The wicked witch, Margaret Hamilton, received second and third-degree burns all over her body due to her green copper makeup that became dangerously hot during the filming of a fire scene. The snow in one of the scenes was pure asbestos, which could give you a lung condition.
The Tin Man’s costume was made of actual metal, so the actor, Jack Haley, couldn't even sit down during the filming of the movie, he also had a violent reaction to silver makeup and had to be sent to the hospital. Judy Garland, the main character, Dorothy, was only 16 years old during her time on set and was given amphetamines, forced to diet, they made her to smoke many cigarettes a day, she struggled with mental health, etc. There is also a legend that says that an actor hanged himself on set during filming, there is even a video trying to prove this. This legend was never evidenced, though it created a lot of controversy.
For this legend there are various points of view, some people think the “death on set” was actually just a silhouette of a bird in the studio, not someone hanging themselves. On the other hand, some people believe an actor actually committed suicide on set. This movie won 2 awards and received 98% rotten tomatoes… but was it worth it? The production team was obviously not professional, the director, Victor Fleming, would even slap the actors on set for giggling or forgetting their lines. It is absolutely terrifying thinking about what the cast went through.
I also linked a video of the possible evidence of the death on set.
QUESTIONS:
Have you ever heard about this? Did you find it interesting?
Do you believe the death on set actually happened or is it only a legend?
Would you be willing to be treated like this if you were paid more than $500 per week? (which was the amount they paid most of the actors)
Replies
Love this topic! Super job Sofia!
I have never heard of this theory this is really intresting. I belive there could have been a death on set bc the way they were treated. I dont think i would ever put up with that for $500 a week bc there would be other oppertiunites.
I have never heard of this conspricy, howevery I do find it interesting. I think the death on set could have happened, however I don't think all of these theories are right. I would not go through all of this just to get $500 a week, I would find a different job.
I have heard about this but I didn't think it was real until reading this. I do think it is possible there was a death on set but I think more people would talk about it unless they hid it very well. I would not let myself be treated like this for weeks for $500 per week.
I have never heard of this before or also never seen this movie but after reading this I belive that it was not planned very well. I think that if there was death there would be a lot more people talking about it.
I have heard a little about this but I wasn't aware how bad it had gotten. I don't think that there was a death on set because I feel like it would get talked about more often. Personally I wouldn't do that because it sounds horrible.
I have heard about many of these conspiracy theories and I do find them very interesting. I believe that it is very possible that a death happened on set but it could also just be a rumor. I would not be let myself be treated like this if I was only getting paid $500.
I have never heard of this before and I also have never seen this movie but after reading this I believe that the movie must not be that great. I think that even if it happened there was a motive I think that the treatment the actors received was horrible and inhumane to an extent.
I'm pretty sure I've already seen the movie before, a really long time ago. I will defenitely re watch it to try evidencing some of these tragedies. And yes I agree, the production team and director were very bad and unprofessional.
I have heard about this but it was a long time ago and didn't really give it much thought. Although it is crazy to hear this stuff could have been going on during the filming process of this film. I feel like there would be a lot more evidence if somebody died or news. It would be hard to keep it on the down low.
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