Here’s a marvelous behind-the-scenes shot of movie history in the making. Some intrepid photographer climbed up into the rafters of Stage 27 at MGM during the production of “The Wizard of Oz” when they were filming Judy Garland’s Dorothy talking to Billie Burke’s Glinda on the munchkin village set. The photographer was close enough for us to see the set but far back enough for us to take in the technical goings-on behind the camera. “The Wizard of Oz” shot from October 13, 1938 to March 16, 1939. If anyone knows when this specific sequence was shot, I’d love to hear from you!
Rick S says: “This would be when the wicked witch appears. Margaret Hamilton was burned during the exit on December 23, 1938 so this was probably sometime that week.”
Maybe it’s a sign of the times, but when I first read your subject line on this post, I was thinking it meant someone was shot by a gun!
OH GOD! I hadn’t thought of that! Thanks, Paula. I’ve changed “shooting” to “filming.”
It’s sad that that’s where my mind went. ?
To be honest, I’m surprise mine didn’t!
I had the same thought when I read it.
My first thought was, “Hey, maybe Marcus Adler took this shot!”
Ha! Yes! Let’s go with that thought until proven otherwise.
Of course, that might not be Judy herself but, rather, her stand in. Depends on the actual shot angle or whether her voice must be recorded in that one particular take. If it’s over the shoulder, the substitute may be there as long hours and many takes can wear down the primary actors who may better be off studying their lines, doing make-up/costume adjustments, or just plain relaxing. God help those who made an extraneous sound or nudged a set feature with the camera rolling or the voice equipment being reset. If they had to unlock that door to kick you out, it would have been permanent and maybe with an escort off the lot and out the gate.
This movie was so so magical to me as a young boy and I was always so curious as to how and where it was made. So thanks for these behind the scenes photos cause 60 years later I was still curious. Just wondering if there are anymore pics than the ones shown here? I would love to see from any movie or television show.