The Wizard of Oz

Cast of 1939 Wizard of Oz Film

The appearance of the main characters from the 1939 MGM film version differs greatly from those in the 1925 version. Because W. W. Denslow's illustrations were used in creating their costumes, they look more like the characters in the first edition of the book. The great popularity of the film has fixed these images in the minds of millions of people as the way the Oz characters should look. Although the five main stars each made a number of films, they are best remembered for their roles in the Wizard: (l-r): Jack Haley (1899-1979), the Tin Man; Bert Lahr (1904-1967), the Cowardly Lion; Frank Morgan (1890-1949), the Wizard; Judy Garland (1922-1969), Dorothy; and Ray Bolger (1904-1987), the Scarecrow.

Shooting the Wizard of Oz

Like most films of the 1930s, the Wizard of Oz was shot on sets constructed in the MGM studio in Hollywood. Because the set was so large, as many as nine cameras hidden in bushes or potted plants would be used to film one scene. The hidden cameras took close-ups, while the main camera, used to capture the whole scene, was on the end of a boom and was constantly moving. The extensive lighting equipment necessary for Technicolor photography in 1939 is very apparent in these behind-the-scenes shots. Banks of lights lined the floor of the stages and the catwalks above the actors and made the set uncomfortably hot, especially for the actors wearing heavy costumes.

Publicity stills showing
The Wizard of Oz film in production.
Image 1 - Image 2
Hollywood: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1939. Copyprint.
 

The Wizard of Oz Being Filmed

In this November 1938 production shot, Dorothy and the Scarecrow are seen inviting the Tin Man to join their journey to see the Wizard while the Wicked Witch of the West eavesdrops on their conversation. In the foreground, producer Mervyn Le Roy leans over to discuss the scene with Victor Fleming, seated in the director's chair.

Recording the Oz Music

In this publicity still, Herbert Stothart, house composer for MGM, conducts the studio orchestra in music for a scene later cut from the film, the return of Dorothy and her friends to the Emerald City with the Wicked Witch's broomstick. Stothart composed the background music for the film, as well as leading the orchestra in synchronizing the music with the on-screen action.

Emerald City Townsman's Jacket from Wizard of Oz Film

The wardrobe department at MGM made almost 1,000 costumes for the 600 actors in the Wizard of Oz. The ones for the main characters were highly elaborate, but even the costumes of the extras display fine workmanship and attention to detail. One of several in this design, this heavy felt jacket was worn by an Emerald City townsman. Other jackets were nearly identical, with the exception of the loop pattern on the yoke. In the film, the extras wearing this type of jacket were most prominently featured in crowd scenes in the Emerald City.

MGM, 1939 (Sepia/Color, 100 minutes, Production No. 1060)
Screen Play by: Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf
Adaptation by: Noel Langley (from the book by L. Frank Baum)
Musical Adaptation by: Herbert Stothart
Lyrics by: E.Y. Harburg
Music by: Harold Arlen
Associate Conductor: George Stoll
Orchestral and Vocal Arrangements: George Bassman, Murray Cutter, Paul Marquardt and Ken Darby
Musical Numbers Staged by: Bobby Connolly
Photographed by: Harold Rosson, A.S.C.
Associate: Allen Davey, A.S.C.
Technicolor Color Director: Natalie Kalmus
Associate: Henri Jaffa
Recording Director: Douglas Shearer
Art Director: Cedric Gibbons
Associate: William A. Horning
Set Decorations: Edwin B. Willis
Special Effects: Arnold Gillespie
Costumes by: Adrian
Character Make-Ups Created by: Jack Dawn
Film Editor: Blanche Sewell
Western Electric Sound System
Produced by: Mervyn LeRoy
Directed by: Victor Fleming
Principal Filming: September 1938 - March 1939 (Judy was 16)
Released: August 1939

Back Row (l-r): Frank Morgan, Charley Grapewin, Bert Lahr.
Front Row: Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Clara Blandick
 

Cast

Judy Garland ... Dorothy Gale
Frank Morgan ... Professor Marvel, Doorman, Cabby, Guard, The Wizard of Oz
Ray Bolger ... Hunk/Scarecrow
Bert Lahr ... Zeke/Cowardly Lion
Jack Haley ... Hickory/Tin Man
Margaret Hamilton ... Miss Almira Gulch/Wicked Witch of the West
Billie Burke ... Glinda, the Good Witch of the North
Charley Grapewin ... Uncle Henry
Clara Blandick ... Auntie Em
Pat Walshe ... Nikko
The Singer Midgets ... The Munchkins
Terry ... Toto
 

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Notes
 

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Buddy Ebsen originally played the Tin Man, but after several weeks of filming, he became very ill. It turned out he had a serious allergic reaction to the aluminum powder in his face makeup, and very nearly died. Rather than hold up production, MGM decided to replace Ebsen with Jack Haley. If you listen closely, you can hear Buddy Ebsen's voice in two choruses of "We're Off to See the Wizard" (the Tin Man scene and the Lion scene), which the production staff decided to not re-record.

Early on in the project, Buddy Ebsen was cast as the Scarecrow and Ray Bolger was cast as the Tin Man. However, Bolger complained that he had stipulated in his MGM contract that if MGM ever produced The Wizard of Oz, he wanted to play the Scarecrow. So, the two actors switched roles.

All songs: Words by E.Y. Harburg, Music by Harold Arlen

"Over the Rainbow" [ AA]   (Judy Garland)
Munchkinland Musical Sequence:
    "Come Out, Come Out..."  
(Billie Burke and The Munchkins)
    "It Really Was No Miracle"  
(Judy Garland, Billy Bletcher and The Munchkins)
    "We Thank You Very Sweetly"  
(Jospeh Koziel[?] and Frank Cucksey)
    "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead"  
(The Munchkins)
    "As Mayor of the Munchkin City"  
(Billy Bletcher, Pinto Colveg and J.D. Jewkes)
    "As Coroner, I Must Aver"  
(Harry Stanton)
    "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead"  
(reprise, The Munchkins)
    "The Lullaby League"  
(Lorraine Bridges, Betty Rome and Carol Tevis)
    "The Lollipop Guild"  
(Billy Bletcher, Pinto Colveg and Harry Stanton)
    "We Welcome You to Munchkinland"  
(The Munchkins)
    "Follow the Yellow Brick Road/You're Off to See the Wizard"  
(Judy Garland and The Munchkins)
"If I Only Had a Brain"  
(Ray Bolger and Judy Garland)
"We're off to See the Wizard"  
(Judy Garland and Ray Bolger)
"If I Only Had a Heart"  
(Jack Haley with Adriana Caselotti as Juliet)
"We're off to See the Wizard"  
(Judy Garland, Ray Bolger and Buddy Ebsen)
"If I Only Had the Nerve"  
(Bert Lahr, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley and Judy Garland)
"We're off to See the Wizard"  
(Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Buddy Ebsen and Bert Lahr)
"Optimistic Voices"  
(MGM Studio Chorus, The Debutantes, and The Rhythmettes)
"The Merry Old Land of Oz"  
(Frank Morgan, Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Tyler Brook, Ralph Sudam, Bobby Watson, Oliver Smith, Charles Irwin, Lois January, Elivda Rizzo, Lorraine Bridges and the MGM Studio Chorus)
"If I Were King of the Forest"  
(Bert Lahr, Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Buddy Ebsen)
"The Jitterbug"  
(Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Buddy Ebsen and Bert Lahr) [cut]
"Over the Rainbow"  
(reprise, Judy Garland) [cut]
 

Somewhere over the rainbow
way up high,
there's a land that I heard of
once in a lullaby.

Somewhere over the rainbow
skies are blue,
and the dreams that you dare to dream
really do come true.

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