‘Wizard of Oz’ fans shocked to learn Judy Garland was on drugs and actors nearly died in on-set incident – film and television

With Evil Fans now in theaters were eager to get a look at the original “The Wizard of Oz,” but then they realized the dark stories associated with the production.

The 1939 Wizard of Oz may be a classic beloved by many, but not everyone knows about the many problems the film went through.

While it’s hard to imagine how a film gets made today, it certainly sounds like it was an uphill battle in the early days of the industry.

Several actors in the film ended up with injuries, including the film’s lead actress, Judy Garland, who was only 16 when she brought Dorothy to the screen.

Some fans have even gone so far as to say that the film is actually “cursed” due to the numerous glitches.

In 1939 there was no SFX makeup and so Buddy Ebsen, who played the Tin Man, was painted with pure aluminum dust.

While this may not sound like such a big deal, there’s a reason why makeup artists or anyone for that matter doesn’t do this anymore.

He was practically poisoned by the so-called makeup and was hospitalized just nine days after filming began. To recover from the poisoning, he had to sit under an oxygen tent.

Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked Witch of the West, also had makeup problems.

There were several safety issues on the film’s set (Warner Bros.)

After artists used copper as part of her face paint, she suffered burns. Production had to rush to take it down to make sure it didn’t seep into her wounds.

While these issues can be attributed to shortsightedness or even ignorance, the issues surrounding Garland are less forgiving.

The actress claimed the studio forced her to take growth-retarding drugs to maintain her youthful, thin appearance and allegedly imposed weight restrictions on her.

The actress was strongly advised to take “cheer-up pills” to get through the long days of filming, which were essentially barbiturates and amphetamines.

Growing up, she struggled with an eating disorder and drug addiction. She also attempted to take her own life several times.

Judy Garland struggled with substance abuse in her adult life (Warner Bros.)

She tragically died of an accidental overdose on June 22, 1969, aged just 47.

Aljean Harmetz, a former Hollywood correspondent for the New York Times who wrote The Making of The Wizard of Ozexplained that “stars and minor players were indentured servants of the studios.”

Harmetz added: “If she were a normal child, she would be allowed to go to a normal school and only enter the industry as an adult.”

“I doubt the tragedy that became her life in her final years would have happened.”

Luckily, that has now completely changed… right?