WICKED-Respects to Margaret Hamilton

[BEAU HIGGINS]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 10:47am

As WICKED is about to bubble, bubble, toil and trouble over South Florida, it seems appropriate to reflect on some sources that led WICKED to become a 21st Century phenomenon.

The novel, WICKED by Gregory Maguire and its sequel, SON OF A WITCH, would likely not exist were it not for the 1939 M.G.M. film musical THE WIZARD OF OZ. Of course, the classic Judy Garland film was based on the writings of L. Frank Baum. However, it is a certainty that it is not any of Mr. Baum’s books that keep Oz in the hearts and minds of generations of us mere earthlings. It is the 1939 film. That film is as much a part of our lives as Thanksgiving Dinner and death and taxes. The 1939 film, for millions of us, gives us our first true taste of a fantasy world and a frightening world. A world where we can find good vs. evil.

The WIZARD film has had millions of words written about it and dozens of books detailing its genesis. If memory serves me correctly, at least 3 directors worked on THE WIZARD OF OZ. George Cukor, perhaps one of the five greatest directors of film the world has known, was the one to remind Judy Garland that she was always to play the part as an innocent Kansas farm girl. He also threw away footage of Dorothy with blonde hair and allowed more of Judy Garland’s real look to become the image of Dorothy Gale. Victor Fleming is credited as director for the film and in fact won the Best Director Oscar for 1939. Not for THE WIZARD OF OZ, however. Mr. Fleming won his directing Oscar that year for GONE WITH THE WIND. After Mr. Fleming left the Oz soundstage (things were done oddly in those days, weren’t they?) I believe it was the director King Vidor who finished the directorial chores, including filming the “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” sequence.

Judy Garland received a special juvenile Oscar for THE WIZARD OF OZ. Unlike many of Ms. Garland’s possessions, that Oscar still survives in her family. Her daughter Lorna Luft, has her mother’s Oscar securely locked away in a safe. The ruby slippers may have been sold out from under the legendary Garland’s feet. But, it is nice to know that her Oscar is with her family.

WICKED is a descendant of the film THE WIZARD OF OZ and the producers are keenly aware of that, based on their advertising campaign for the musical. As the movie tells us, “Wizard” is a story for the young and the young at heart. The film is a part of the fabric of life in America. So is the performance of Judy Garland as Dorothy (not to mention the wonderful screen gems given us by Bert Lahr, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley and Frank Morgan.) Then again, so is the performance of Margaret Hamilton as Miss Gulch and as The Wicked Witch of the West.

In 1939, the Oscar for best supporting actress went to Hattie McDaniel for GONE WITH THE WIND (the first ever black person to win an Oscar.) For millions of us, Margaret Hamilton in THE WIZARD OF OZ defined, forever, how a wicked witch looks and how she behaves. Her performance in the film is etched in our souls as surely as there are presidents etched on Mt. Rushmore.

WICKED owes special thanks, perhaps its very being, to Ms. Hamilton. Wouldn’t it have been marvelous if Idina Menzel had thanked Margaret Hamilton when Menzel won her Tony for playing the Wicked Witch? It would have been a touching and very appropriate thing to do.

Margaret Hamilton made her Broadway debut in ANOTHER LANGUAGE in 1932. Her final Broadway stint was in a revival of OUR TOWN in 1969. She made dozens of films, hundreds of television appearances and appeared in Maxwellhouse coffee commercials for many years. But, it is the witch, the Wicked Witch of the West, that will for always and forever belong to Margaret Hamilton.

Margaret Hamilton was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 9, 1902, the youngest of four children and obtained her teaching certificate in 1923 from the Wheelock Kindergarten Training School in Boston.

On June 13, 1931, Margaret Hamilton married Paul Boynton Meserve, a landscape architect. Together they had one son, Hamilton Wadsworth Meserve. The marriage ended in divorce in 1938 and Margaret raised her son alone in California.

For nearly fifteen years, Margaret Hamilton lived in Los Angeles, California before establishing permanent residence in New York City in 1951. Wherever her home was, she regularly traveled back and forth between coasts to perform in both movies and the theatre and later in television.

Among her other accomplishments, Margaret Hamilton was an honorary trustee of the Cleveland PlayHouse and was the recipient in 1977 of the Governor's Award of the State of Ohio. She was also a member of the Veterans Hospital Radio and TV Guild. She would visit hospitals to work with disabled veterans interested in the theatre and broadcasting.

Margaret Hamilton's performances included some seventy-five movies, at least as many stage plays, countless radio and television dramas, and commercials.

Margaret Hamilton had already played in some twenty-five films before she accepted the role of Miss Gulch and the Wicked Witch in "The Wizard of Oz". Margaret Hamilton once said this about her role as the Wicked Witch, "I don't look on it as any great shakes of acting," she explained to Al Cohn in an interview for Newsday (March 19, 1978.) "It's not subtle or restrained. It isn't any of the things you like to think might apply to your acting."

Some other memorable films that Margaret Hamilton appeared in after "The Wizard of Oz" included: "My Little Chickadee", "The Oxbow Incident", "Guest in the House","George White's Scandals", "State of the Union", "The Red Pony", "The Beautiful Blonde", "Bashful Bend", "13 Ghosts" and "Brewster McCloud."

One of Margaret Hamilton's assets as a character actress has been her distinctive nose, whose bump she inherited from her father.

Margaret Hamilton once told Robert C. Roman in an interview for After Dark Magazine that The Wizard of Oz keeps coming back every year "because it's such a beautiful film. I don't think any of us knew how lovely it was at first. But, after a while, we all began to feel it coming together--and knew we had something. I can watch it again and again and remember wonderful Judy, Bert, Ray, Jack, Billie, Frank and how wonderful they all were. The scene that always gets to me, though, and I think it's one of the most appealing scenes I've ever seen, is the one where the Wizard gives the gifts to them at the end. Frank [Morgan] was just like that as a person. And every time I see him do it, the tears come to my eyes. I listen to the words. I think of Frank, and I know how much he meant what he said, and how much the words themselves mean."

Margaret Hamilton's role as the Wicked Witch of the West is loved by millions of Oz fans. As a result, she was frequently called upon to reflect on her experiences in MGM's classic film. Two such examples are introductions that Margaret wrote for the following books: "The Wizard of Oz" by L.Frank Baum, beautifully illustrated by Greg Hildebrandt, published by The Unicorn Publishing House in 1985 just before her death. And, the 1977 edition of "The Making of The Wizard of Oz" by Aljean Harmetz.

Margaret Hamilton's enormous stage and screen presence far outweighed her physical stature as she stood only five feet tall and weighed only 115 pounds.

Margaret Hamilton died May 16, 1985 from a heart attack in a nursing home in Salisbury, Connecticut.

As WICKED brings the witch of the west live and onstage to the musical theater, we should stop and pay thanks to Ms. Hamilton. Our collective childhoods would have been different without her performance in Oz. I suspect the musical WICKED, might not exist had it not been for Margaret Hamilton’s sensational work as the witch in the film.

We are thinking of you Margaret Hamilton and we are thanking you for enriching our lives.

As WICKED opens at the Broward Center in Fort Lauderdale, we know somewhere high above and overhead, you are circling the theater on your magical broomstick. We hear you cackling with delight at the joy and indeed fear, your eternal performance has influenced for generation after generation of fantasy film lovers and lovers of musical theater.

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Updated On: 2/8/06 at 10:47 AM

[Unknown User]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 11:09am

Question: Did Margaret Hamilton have some trouble with the green makeup she wore in Wizard of Oz?

[EganFan2]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 11:11am

I believe she did. When she went through the floor and that ball of flame came up, her clothes caught fire and the makeup aggrivated burns on her skin that she had as a result of the accident.
Updated On: 2/8/06 at 11:11 AM

[BEAU HIGGINS]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 11:25am

We know that Buddy Ebsen was originally the Tin Man but the makeup they used on him made him sick for too long to do the film...and we know the part was subsequently done by Jack Haley.

I DO seem to recall a not well remembered Tragedy during the filming of Oz. During a stunt test of the Wicked Witch flying during the 'Surrender Dorothy' scene in the Emerald City, I believe the stuntperson was killed.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 12:01pm

Oy. Are they really blaming Idina for not mentioning her? Please. How many people forget to thank their own mothers in acceptance speeches for awards?

Buddy Ebsen had problems because the makeup they used was silver powder that coated his lungs.

[Pinaud]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 12:25pm

The Surrender Dorothy story is an urban legend, I'm afraid. Hamilton's stuntwoman did hurt herself filming part of that scene, but she only suffered some bad bruises. The actual writing of Surrender Dorothy was done by a three inch witch replica in a tank of water, used to simulate the sky.

Part of the reason Hamilton got so badly burned during the munchkin scene is that the(this is a little graphic) makeup heated up to such an intensity that it actually started to burn her face, and when they tried to get it off, it ended up taking some layers of skin with it.

She had said that she always had a very slight green coloration that remained after filming. Ray Bolger said there were also slight indentations left permanently on his skin from the his make up.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:06pm

Margaret Hamilton was one of the nicest human beings I've ever met. She was my second grade pen-pal (I kid you not). I have several letters and post cards from her (as well as three autographed photos), after meeting her first in New York when I was seven years old.

The story about the makeup: Her green makeup actually had a copper (metal) base in it. When she went through the trap door in Munchkinland, they lowered it just a bit too late so that the fire ball came up before she had made it through the floor. Her face, hat and broom were "cooked," as well as her hand that was holding the broom.

They immediately tried to take the makeup off, but realized that because of the copper base, they ran the risk of poisoning her blood. They had to remove it very carefully and quickly with cotton balls to avoid serious toxicity. She was out six weeks while her face and hand healed enough to continue with her scenes in the film. They rearranged the production schedule to shoot her remaining scenes at the very end of the Oz schedule (the Kansas scenes were shot after that). She came VERY close to suing MGM for the negligence, but instead opted to "stay friendly" with them. She new she would wind up with a wad of cash and no further film work there.

As far as the filming, she did have to wear a thin green glove on her burned hand for a few shots, since she had not developed enough of a "new skin" to take the makeup again.

She used to joke that Billie Burke had sprained her ankle on the Munchkinland set, and it had made all the newspapers... but Billie was a big star. Margaret, as a "working actress," never made the papers with her burns from the filming.

An interesting follow-up story: When Maggie (as she was known) came back to the set to resume filming, one of the first scenes she was to work on was the sky-writing ("Surrender Dorothy"). They had planned for SFX long shots, plus close-ups and medium shots of Maggie riding her broom WITH FIRE COMING OUT of the back. She point-blank refused to do the shots. She told them to fire her if they wanted to, but she would not do anymore SFX shots with real fire... (except for the melting scene where she tries to burn the Scarecrow, which freaked her out SO MUCH, but she knew it was essential to the plot). They ended up trying to shoot the medium shots of the flying broom with fire using her stand-in Betty Danko. While they were testing the wires and smoke with Betty riding the broom, it EXPLODED on her... sending Betty to the hospital with serious burns as well.

Updated On: 2/8/06 at 01:06 PM

[BEAU HIGGINS]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:06pm

Wow, some of us never knew make up could be so dangerous! Of course, the makeup used in 1938 filming was 'special effects' makeup and also, pioneering. I guess there is often some kind of risk in anything 'pioneering.'
Nah orangeskittles, not blaming the wonderful Idina as it probably never occured to her. That was the point of the 'piece' I wrote for Broadwayworld.
Priscilla Lopez has said on many occasions that she regrets forgetting to thank Harpo Marx during her Tony acceptance for A DAY IN HOLLYWOOD...........(she appeared as Harpo Marx in that show.)
Idina surely did not appear as Margaret Hamilton, but as a character Hamilton immortalized. One wonders if the film, THE WIZARD OF OZ, would have been as great as it is, without Ms. Hamilton playing Miss Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West.
Generations of us have grown up with the words, wicked witch, instantly conjuring images of Maragaret Hamilton in THE WIZARD OF OZ.
It is possible (likely?)that without her performance in the film, the book WICKED never would have been written and of course, the musical never would have followed.
Knowing just a bit about Idina Menzel, I am QUITE sure that she would have very likely thanked the memory of Margaret Hamilton had she simply thought to do so, or had someone wise suggested it to her.
A few years back Bebe Neuwirth thanked Chita Rivera for creating the part of Velma in CHICAGO.
I was thrilled when Idina Menzel won her Tony. It would have been lovely and touching had she mentioned Margaret Hamilton. Ms. Hamilton is sadly, most often forgetten as a very important ancestor to the musical WICKED.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:17pm

I appreciate your passion for her, Beau, but Maggie's performance is HARDLY forgotten.

On the recent AFI list of top screen villains ever, it was fourth on their list of the top 50 villains, behind Hannibal Lecter, Darth Vader and Norman Bates. She was the top-ranked female above all... and that's pretty impressive for only 12 minutes of total screen time.

AFI Heroes & Villains link

Updated On: 2/8/06 at 01:17 PM

[jv92]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:21pm

Oh jeez,
Chtia Rivera CREATED the part of Velma Kelly
Margaret Hamilton as the witch and Idina Menzel as Elphaba are two different characters. For a good 65% of the show, Menzel is Elphaba.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:25pm

Beau---One other interesting tidbit. Maguire made his Elphaba both green and 38 years old as a direct "nod" to Margaret Hamilton's witch in the MGM film. Maggie was 38 when she played the role, and it's the exact age of Elphaba at the end of the book when she encounters Dorothy.

Updated On: 2/8/06 at 01:25 PM

[landryjames]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 1:55pm

As a huge Wizard of Oz fan--I love this thread.

Maguire has also pointed out that many of the names associated with Wicked Witch of the West have three syllables with an accent on the first: "L-Frank-Baum" "MAR-gar-et" "HAM-il-ton" "I-di-na" "EL-pha-ba"
(not to mention--"GREG-o-ry" "STEPH-a-nie" and "SHO-sha-na")
Updated On: 2/8/06 at 01:55 PM

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 2:16pm

Idina made several mentions of taking some of her inspiration for the role from Margaret Hamilton. She tried to mimic the amazing witch cackle that Hamilton did in the film. (I don't think anyone can ever get it as perfect as Hamilton.)

And as for the syllables, it's very interesting, but Idina's accent is on the second syllable, not the first. It's basically pronounced "a-DEE-na." Isn't Shoshana's accent more on the second syllable, too?

Updated On: 2/8/06 at 02:16 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 2:25pm

I agree that the triple-syllable coincidence is a bit of a stretch, but landryjames is right that Maguire has pointed it out himself.

[JerseyGirl2]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 2:35pm

Oh, I wasn't disputing that he said it. I remember reading it myself. Like you, I was just saying it was a stretch.

[JHartnow]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 3:02pm

Beau,

Betty Danko, Maggie's stunt double, was not killed during that sequence, but did get banged up quite a bit. The broomstick more or less exploded. Her black wool witches hat was found months later in the rafters of sound stage 27, where most of the fantasy scenes for Oz were filmed.

-John

[JHartnow]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 3:12pm

As far as Idina mentioning and/or thanking Hamilton at the Tony's, that might have been a conscience choice not to compare or contrast the shows obvious roots to the 1939 film to the legalities that have plagued them in their incarnation. I have heard Idina mention Margaret before, and Kristin mentioned the movie and its two witch stars on an NBC TODAY SHOW performance, but the nods have been few and far between. Not that Hamilton doesn't deserve her credit of influence, there are just legal issues that might arise if they're too vocal. Just my thoughts...

-John

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 3:16pm

Hey, John--- You reminded me of another cool tidbit. Only a few months ago a copy of the book "The Wizard of Oz" came up for auction on eBay. It was signed by every principle cast member as well as key behind-the-scenes people from the film... and given to Betty Danko, while she was recovering in the hospital from her injuries! Many "get well soon" wishes are on the inside covers. Such a great find. I'm not sure how much it sold for, though. I loved reading all the notes from everyone in the posted scans). Judy Garland even signed the book twice (both front and back inside covers). Scatterbrain!

EDIT: Also, you might be interested in reading this older thread that I started, raising the same legal issues you're talking about. I still don't think they're as easily dismissed as others seem to.
Wicked Legal Issues thread...

Updated On: 2/8/06 at 03:16 PM

[JHartnow]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 3:46pm

Very interesting, best12bars! Thanks for that. I was the "resident" historian over the sale of Anthony Landini's ruby slippers back in 2000 when they were auctioned off for $666k at Christies East. We were hoping for more. The shoes have always been a huge fascination for me, as well as all of the other props and costumes from production #1060. I've got a few original pieces in my collection...but the real stuff is hard to come by...very few and far between. Now it seems as if the RENT costumes (I make the broadway bears from RENT) are taking over the house! Maybe I'll start pawning stuff off on ebay! HA!

-John

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 4:00pm

John---That's SO COOL! I actually met Michael Shaw a couple of years ago. He lives in the same apartment complex as a close friend of mine. We were taken over to his place and shown his Ruby Slippers. I have a few photos of them, as well as his incredible apartment (filled with classic movie props and costumes).

...And of course, you probably know his shoes were stolen recently. It was national news, a couple of months ago. His shoes have never come up for auction and are estimated at 1.5 million. (He was offered 2 million from Michael Jackson... about 10 years ago, when Michael could've probably afforded to pay that amount.) In addition to the shoes, he has Margaret Hamilton's witch hat, and a pair of her high-button shoes (which were never worn on camera), plus one of the ten gingham dresses that Judy wore as Dorothy (in pristine condition). OH! He also has a Munchkin soldier's uniform (made out of felt).

The Wizard of Oz was, is, and will likely always be, my favorite film. Sorry if I sound like such a geek about it.

[Enjolras77]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 4:15pm

Best12bars...no you are definitely not a geek! I have been fascinated by this thread. I had heard some of these stories previously but not in such detail. As a child, The Wizard of Oz was my favorite movie and may even still be today. The only piece of memorabilia I have is an autographed oil painting of the munchkins in Munchkinland by original Munchkin, Mickey Carroll, who I met several years ago.

[Enjolras77]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 4:17pm

I also remember LOVING the episode of "Mister Rogers Neighborhood" where he talked with Margaret Hamilton. As a child I couldn't belive I was seeing her and she wasn't green!

[DivaBrigader]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 5:43pm

Is Hamilton really only in "The Wizard of Oz" for 12 minutes total? Wow. Didn't know that. Talk about impact!

[Scottie310]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 6:01pm

I think she was brilliant. I only wish I was alive back then to see her in other things besides the Wizard of Oz. I feel like she would of been an incredible actress on stage. Granted the only thing I have ever seen her in is Wizard of Oz, but you could just tell by that how talented she was.
She was able to scare me so much when I was younger and I really thought she was the Wicked Witch. And like someone said earlier, anytime I hear the words witch or Wicked Witch, I immediately picture her. It's sort of ironic considering she had a reputation as being one of the nicest and most caring actresses of that era (wasn't she a Kindergarden teacher at one point?)

[grizzabella]

Posted: 2/8/06 at 7:04pm

This has been a fascinating thread and I've certainly learned a lot. I've always loved Margaret Hamilton, and even when she didn't have a lot of screen time, she made an impact. One such film was her appearance in "My Little Chickadee" with Mae West and W.C. Fields. She's a passenger on a train, doesn't have a lot of screen time, but her repressed, humorless spinster is priceless. She could take two lines and be brilliant. I had no idea, as others have said, that she had only 12 minutes in The Wizard of Oz. Just goes to show that there are no small parts!