Who played the Wicked Witch of the West in the movie The Wizard of Oz?
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In the 1939 version of "The Wizard of Oz", Margaret Hamilton plays the Wicked Witch of the West as a green-skinned witch dressed in a long black dress with a black pointed hat. She does not wear an eye-patch like in the novel. This representation of the Wicked Witch has become a standard for what witches resemble and an archetype of human wickedness. While this relationship is not mentioned in Baum's books, in the movie, the Witch is the sister of the Wicked Witch of the East. The movie makes her even more of a primary antagonist, and consequently she appears in the film much earlier (and more often), than in Baum's original novel. She demands the Munchkins reveal who killed her sister, not long after Dorothy's arrival in Oz. She is described by Glinda the Good Witch of the North, not the South as in the book, as "worse than the other one". She actively seeks revenge against Dorothy for killing her sister, even though it was "accidental". However, as soon as the Witch is reminded of the ruby slippers, all interest in her sister's death vanishes and all she cares about are obtaining "her" slippers, which will enable her to conquer Oz. She is more menacing than her literary counterpart, making Dorothy too afraid to ever lose her temper with the Witch. She makes sure that Dorothy knows her power when Dorothy meets the Scarecrow by throwing a ball of fire at them. Before Dorothy and her friends get to the city, the Witch casts a sleeping spell over a field of poppies through which the group must pass. Glinda remotely counteracts the spell with a snowfall. The Wicked Witch then flies on her broom over the Emerald City, demanding that the citizens of the Emerald City surrender Dorothy to her, and the Wizard demands the destruction of the Witch, with her broom as proof, in exchange for granting the wishes of Dorothy and her companions. Unlike Baum's original depiction, the Wicked Witch sends the Winged Monkeys as the first wave of attack. The Golden Cap is not mentioned but, after the failure of her poppy spell, the Witch does hold and then angrily cast away a costume piece that could be considered the cap (It greatly resembles the Cap in depicted in W. W. Denslow's original illustrations for "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz") and was mentioned as her "wishing cap" in the original shooting script. She is killed when Dorothy throws a bucket of water on her, in attempt to put out a fire the witch bestowed on the Scarecrow. In the novel, Dorothy simply throws it on her in a fit of anger. There is no prior mention of the Wicked Witch's vulnerability to water in the movie, save for a split-second before the water actually douses her when she screams "Don't touch that water!" (this line does not appear in the film's shooting script). After the Wicked Witch of the West is dead, her soldiers are glad to be free of her power, and quote "Hail to Dorothy! The Wicked Witch is dead!" The character ranks No. 4 in the American Film Institute's list of the 50 Best Movie Villains of All Time, making her the highest ranking female villain, as well as placing 90th on "Empire" magazine's "100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time".
Wicked Witch of the West
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The Wicked Witch of the West is one of the most iconic villains of modern times. However, the iconic version of the Wicked Witch is Margaret Hamilton's portrayal in the 1939 movie, which is copyrighted. The character of the Wicked Witch from the book is in public domain, but that version of the Wicked Witch is not even green. Most modern portrayals of the Wicked Witch of the West do make her green, because that is how the public thinks of the Wicked Witch, but they all strive to make her appearance somehow distinctive.
The Wicked Witch is not given a name in the books, so subsequent authors gave her their own names. All of these names are protected under copyright as part of their respective works, which means new creators have to keep coming up with their own version. Some of the most well-known incarnations of the Wicked Witch of the West are "Elphaba" ("Wicked"), "Theodora" ("Oz the Great and Powerful"), "Zelena" ("Once Upon a Time"), "Evillene" ("The Wiz"), and "Azkadellia" ("Tin Man").
There are similar issues regarding portrayals of the Wicked Witch of the East, but she is not as prevalent in the public conscious as her Western sister.
Copyright status of The Wizard of Oz and related works in the United States
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Luft appeared in "The Wizard Of Oz", a stage version of the movie that made Garland famous, at The Lowry Centre in Manchester, England. She portrayed the role of the Wicked Witch of the West, played by Margaret Hamilton in the film.
Lorna Luft
2199627#4
In "The Wizard of Oz" (1939), the actors who played the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, and the Scarecrow also played farmhands in scenes set in Kansas. Margaret Hamilton played both the roles of Miss Gulch and the Wicked Witch of the West, and Frank Morgan played multiple characters in addition to the title role of the Wizard.
Dual role
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Margaret Brainard Hamilton (December 9, 1902 – May 16, 1985) was an American film character actress best known for her portrayal of Miss Gulch and the Wicked Witch of the West in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's classic film "The Wizard of Oz" (1939).
Margaret Hamilton (actress)
933294#0
The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum as the antagonist in his classic children's novel "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" (1900). In Baum's subsequent "Oz" novels, it is the Nome King who is the principal villain; the Wicked Witch of the West is rarely even referred to again after her death in the first book.
Wicked Witch of the West
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The Wicked Witch of the West originated as the primary villain and main antagonist of L. Frank Baum's "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" book, in which she is given no name. She is described as being completely blind in one eye, and there is no mention of her having green skin. She rules the western quadrant called Winkie Country in the Land of Oz and enslaved many of the natives. She also owns a pack of killer wolves, black crows and stinging bees. When Dorothy Gale and company are sent by the Wizard to defeat her, she sends her collection of deadly pets to kill them but is unsuccessful. She then uses the Golden Cap to call upon the Winged Monkeys who destroy the Scarecrow and Tin Woodman, but capture Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion. She imprisons them in her castle before Dorothy melts her with a bucket of water when the Wicked Witch tried to steal one of her Silver Shoes. After her death in "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz", The Wicked Witch of the West is rarely referred to again in the later Oz books.
List of Oz characters (created by Baum)
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The Wicked Witch of the West is the malevolent ruler of the Winkie Country. Her castle is described as beautiful instead of being the sinister fortress shown in the movie. In all versions, she is seriously aquaphobic. The Wicked Witch of the West was not related to the Wicked Witch of the East, but leagued together with her, the Wicked Witch of the South and Mombi to conquer the Land of Oz and divide it among themselves, as recounted in L. Frank Baum's "Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz". She shows no interest in the death of the Eastern Witch, and all she cares about is obtaining the Silver Shoes which will increase her power. W. W. Denslow's illustrations for "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" depict her as a paunched old hag with three pigtails and an eye-patch. L. Frank Baum himself specified that she only had one eye, but that it "was as powerful as a telescope", enabling the witch to see what was happening in her kingdom from her castle windows. Other illustrators, such as Paul Granger, placed her eye in the center of her forehead, as a cyclops. Usually, she is shown wearing an eye patch, however some illustrations show her with two eyes.
Wicked Witch of the West
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The house lands in Munchkinland in the Land of Oz. Glinda the Good Witch of the North and the Munchkins welcome her as a heroine, as the falling house has killed the Wicked Witch of the East; only the witch's legs and the ruby slippers on her feet are visible. Her sister, the Wicked Witch of the West, arrives to claim the slippers, but Glinda transports them onto Dorothy's feet first. The Wicked Witch of the West swears revenge on Dorothy for her sister's death, then vanishes. Glinda tells Dorothy to follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City, where she can ask the Wizard of Oz to help her get back home.
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
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Dorothy and Toto discover that they are in Munchkinland, a small town part of the vast Land of Oz. After discussing her situation with the town's people, the Munchkins (played by Rizzo the Rat and the other rats), she learns that the land's ruler the Wizard, has the power to grant her wish of becoming a famous singer. She meets the Good Witch of the North (Miss Piggy), and receives a pair of magic silver slippers from the Wicked Witch of the East (Miss Piggy), the Witch of the North's sister who was killed when Dorothy's trailer fell on her. Soon after, she embarks on a journey with Toto on the yellow brick road to meet the Wizard of Oz, who lives in the Emerald City, the capital of Oz. On her journey, she meets three creatures: a Scarecrow (Kermit), a Tin Thing (Gonzo), and a Cowardly Lion (Fozzie). They are also seeking the Wizard of Oz to give them a brain, heart, and courage, respectively. The group meets various obstacles involving a deep gorge where the Kalidah Critics (Statler and Waldorf) are heckling them and a Poppy Field Club run by Clifford which nearly puts them to sleep. After arriving at the Emerald City and meeting the Wizard, Dorothy and her friends are sent to retrieve the Wicked Witch of the West's magic eye, a tool she uses to see anything she desires in the Land of Oz.
The Muppets' Wizard of Oz
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In Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1939 film, "The Wizard of Oz", the Wicked Witch of the West used a broomstick to fly over Oz. She also used it to skywrite "Surrender Dorothy" above the Emerald City. The Wizard commands Dorothy and her three traveling companions to bring the Wicked Witch's broomstick to him in order to grant their wishes. Dorothy carries it to the Wizard with the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion after the Wicked Witch's death.
Broom