Nine Insane Facts About The Set Of 'The Wizard Of Oz'

The Wizard of Oz is one of those classic movies that you can watch over and over again. Made in 1939 and starring the beautiful Judy Garland, it has been remade many times throughout the years. Nothing beats the original though! However, as time goes on, more and more bizarre facts from the set of the film come out. In 1939, unfortunately, movie sets were not as safe as they are today. The props also could have long-lasting damage to the actors. Learn about some of the craziest things that happened while filming The Wizard of Oz: 1. The green makeup the Wicked Witch wore was extremely toxic Wicked Witch of the West / MGM Back in the day, paint often included a variety of toxic chemicals. The green paint they used to cover Margaret Hamilton's body for her costume contained toxic levels of copper. She had to stay on a strict liquid diet while filming because of it. 2. The studio had to hire attendants to help the Munchkin actors use the bathroom Munchkins / MGM A Munchkin actor reportedly got stuck in a toilet for 45 minutes. After that, MGM hired people to help them get on and off the toilets. This was because the costumes were so difficult. 3. Margaret Hamilton suffered horrible burns Margaret Hamilton / Wikipedia Not only did she have to endure the toxic makeup, but she suffered from second and third-degree burns! Unfortunately, during a scene, she got caught in a trap door trying to escape a fire and spent six weeks recovering from her burns. Poor Margaret! Click to read the NEXT page to find out who was originally set to play The Tin Man! 4. Buddy Ebsen (Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies) was the original Tin Man Buddy Ebsen as Tin Man / MGM However, there was aluminum dust in the makeup and it almost killed him! Buddy was hospitalized and they were forced to replace him. Jack Haley was the Tin Man in the film and they used a different aluminum paste for makeup. Buddy said he had breathing problems the rest of his life. 5. The horses use Jello-O powder in the movie Colored horses / MGM To color the horses in Emerald City, they painted them with Jello-O powder, which had to keep being redone because the horses loved to lick it. 6. Toto was paid more than the Munchkins Toto / MGM The Munchkin actors were only paid $50 a week, while the dog that played Toto was paid $125 per week! Click to read the NEXT page to learn what the "snow" actually was in that scene! 7. The snow in the film was actually asbestos Snow scene / MGM Remember the scene where snow falls in the poppy field? The "snow" not snow, but asbestos. They used it because it looked like snow and was fireproof on set. 8. Shirley Temple as the original Dorothy? Photo of Shirley Temple / Flickr Shirley Temple was originally promised the role, but Judy Garland ended up playing Dorothy because MGM got the movie rights. 9. The studio treated Judy pretty horribly Judy Garland / MGM Not only did MGM studio executives called her a "fat little pig with pigtails," but they also made her stay on a strict diet that included chicken soup, black coffee, cigarettes, and pills that reduced her appetite. Reportedly, her mother also had her on upper pills to keep going during long shoots. How awful! Which fact about the filming of The Wizard of Oz shocked you the most? Love The Wizard of Oz? See photos of a high school student and her dog starring in The Wizard of Oz together!