In the beloved film The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy Gale, a young Kansas farm girl, is famously asked, "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?" For generations of fans, this question has defined the timeless characters of Glinda the Good Witch, portrayed by the radiant Billie Burke, and the terrifying Wicked Witch of the West, brought to life by the incomparable Margaret Hamilton. These actresses weren’t just playing roles; they were creating icons that would live on in our hearts forever.
Back in the day, neither Billie nor Margaret could have predicted how iconic their performances would become. Margaret once joked about her role, saying, "It's not a particularly difficult role. You just wring your hands, roll your eyes, rant, rave, and shriek a bit." Little did she know that her portrayal would become one of the most memorable villain performances in cinematic history.
From Different Worlds, Yet United by Their Love for Acting
Billie Burke, a legendary beauty of her time, and Margaret Hamilton, a dedicated single mother, came from vastly different backgrounds. Billie was the daughter of a circus mime and had been groomed for the stage from a young age. By the time she was dazzling audiences on Broadway, she had caught the attention of literary giants like Mark Twain and J.M. Barrie, and even the legendary Italian tenor Enrico Caruso, who famously proposed to her. "He made love and ate spaghetti with equal skill and no inhibitions," Billie once quipped.
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Her life took a dramatic turn when she met Florenz Ziegfeld Jr., the creator of the Ziegfeld Follies, at a New Year's Eve party in 1913. Despite warnings that Ziegfeld wasn’t wealthy, Billie eloped with him anyway. "She always said Flo Ziegfeld was the only man she’d ever loved," explains Grant Hayter-Menzies, author of Mrs. Ziegfeld: The Public and Private Lives of Billie Burke. However, their marriage wasn't without its challenges. "Flo adored Billie, but he was a serial philanderer. He also used her considerable fortune to fund his extravagant stage productions," Hayter-Menzies reveals.
The stock market crash of 1929 further strained their financial situation. When Ziegfeld passed away in 1932, he left Billie deeply in debt. At 48, the once-luminous star, who had pampered her red hair with French champagne, moved to Hollywood to reinvent herself as a character actress.
Margaret Hamilton, on the other hand, discovered her passion for theater early in life, but her father, a prominent Cleveland attorney, insisted she pursue a more stable career. "She taught kindergarten for a number of years but remained active in theater productions," explains William Stillman, coauthor of The Road to Oz: The Evolution, Creation, and Legacy of a Motion Picture Masterpiece.
By the 1930s, Margaret was a steady character actress in films, often typecast as the "New England biddy." Her son, Hamilton Meserve, recalls, "She was what they called a repertoire actress. She did over 70 films before the war." Despite her demanding career, she was a devoted single mother after her divorce in 1938.
The Making of an Iconic Film: Challenges and Triumphs
Playing Glinda in The Wizard of Oz allowed Billie to revisit the glamorous roles of her early career, albeit with some challenges. At 54, she wore "facelifts" to maintain her youthful appearance. "Makeup artist Jack Young glued small pieces of chiffon in front of each ear and pulled them tight with attached string. The strings were concealed under her wig," reveals Stillman.
Margaret, meanwhile, faced an even more grueling routine. She arrived at the studio every day at 6 a.m. for makeup sessions that lasted nearly three hours. Removing her green makeup after shooting took another hour. "You wanted to get it off quickly because the green makeup contained copper, and copper can damage your skin," explains Hamilton.
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During filming, Margaret suffered first-degree burns on her face and second-degree burns on her hand due to a mistimed explosion as she was dropped through a trapdoor out of Munchkinland. "They were literally clawing at her face because it would have scarred her for life," recalls Hamilton. Margaret spent six weeks recovering, her face bandaged "like a mummy."
A Legacy That Grew Over Time
Contrary to popular belief, The Wizard of Oz wasn’t a flop when it premiered in August 1939. "It was ranked among the top-earning films of the year," says Stillman. However, its massive budget of nearly $3 million prevented it from turning a profit initially.
The film's true legacy began when CBS acquired its television rights in 1956. Watching The Wizard of Oz late at night became a cherished annual tradition for generations of children. TV broadcasts brought Billie and Margaret newfound recognition, though it didn’t significantly alter their already successful careers.
By the time Billie passed away in 1970 at age 84, she had over 90 film credits. "The fact that Billie persevered and succeeded in creating a new career at midlife is a considerable triumph," says Hayter-Menzies.
For Margaret, who passed away in 1985 after a 50-year career in film and theater, the popularity of the film's telecasts helped her land a few more roles later in life. However, it didn’t make her wealthy. "If there were residuals covering The Wizard of Oz," jokes Hamilton, "my mother would own the restaurant we were having dinner in."
