The Wizard of Oz is a classic musical fantasy movie. This iconic film was released back in 1939, and it was based on the book. The film is a go-to family film for many and made history in Hollywood.

In the movie, a tornado makes its way into Kansas. The main character, Dorothy, who is played by legendary Judy Garland, and her dog get swooped away while inside their house to the ‘magical land of Oz’. While they are there, they stride down the Yellow Brick Road. Throughout the film, many different adventures come about and all sorts of characters are introduced.

The well-known song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” was sung by Judy Garland at one point in the movie. The Wizard of Oz was also one of the most iconic older films to be recorded in color.

This movie is a fun and commonly watched film that made an impact on many people’s childhood. However, many people are unaware of what really happened during the making of this movie.

Judy Garland was just sixteen years old when she played her iconic role as Dorothy. At this young age, the managers of the film forced her to maintain a strict diet. One thing that management had her take was tobacco, which quelled her appetite. During the film, she also had to wear a tight-fitting corset under her costume to “fix” her figure. Garland’s ex-husband published a memoir in 2005, which revealed disturbing information about her being sexually assaulted by other members of the cast. The actors who played as the munchkins would touch her inappropriately on set, and everyone who witnessed it didn’t do anything about it.

Many things happened to many other cast members as well. Margaret Hamilton, who was the actress for The Wicked Witch, got third-degree burns on her hands and face during a stunt. While they were practicing a scene, a stunt went wrong and the paint on her face and hand, which were made of copper, lit on fire.

A lot of the cosmetics that they used for the movie were dangerous. For instance, Buddy Ebsen, who was originally cast as Tin Man, had to wear makeup made up of aluminum powder. After a short period of being on set, the actor inhaled the powder, and it traveled into his lungs. This led to a near-death experience, and they had to find someone else to play his role in the movie.

The events that occurred on the set of The Wizard of Oz were traumatic and are not discussed about enough. Many cast members went through a lot of horrific experiences, some of which haven’t been mentioned in this article. This film is one that many people around the world cherish, yet they don’t know the circumstances people went through to make it as historic as it has become.