10 Woefully Troubled Film Shoots That Derailed Major Movies

2. Judy Garland Went Through Hell For The Wizard Of Oz

Stories have persisted for years that the universally beloved family film The Wizard Of Oz had a very troubled shoot. Oz may look like a wonderful place to us viewers, but creating it was far from easy and - if certain claims are true - made for a very dark experience. Some say that Judy Garland was force-fed barbiturates so she could sleep, therefore getting enough rest to keep up with her heavy shooting schedule as Dorothy. It€™s even said that MGM€™s studio heads spied on Gardland during her time off, molested her repeatedly, and perceived the young actress as their property. Nobody don€™t know how much of this is true, but it's disturbing all the same. Elsewhere in The Wizard Of Oz€™s cast, the original Tin Man actor Buddy Ebsen was hospitalised by a near-fatal reaction to his silver body paint. And Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked With of the West, was severely burned by malfunctioning explosives. Both occurrences surely delayed the movie. If these stories are true, it€™s truly shocking that The Wizard Of Oz is still so widely loved by audiences around the world. In a time gone by, it seems that executives and filmmakers could get away with anything.
Contributor
Contributor

Film & TV journo. Quite tall.