Profile of Margaret Hamilton on Famous Like Me

Margaret Hamilton (December 9, 1902 – May 16, 1985) was an American film actress.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Hamilton was a schoolteacher who turned to acting, making her screen debut in 1933 in Zoo in Budapest. She appeared in such films as These Three (1936), Saratoga and Nothing Sacred (both 1937), and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938).

In 1939, she played the role of the Wicked Witch of the West opposite Judy Garland's Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and created not only her most famous role, but one of the screen's most memorable villains. Hamilton's effective and frightening portrayal during audition eventually secured her the role over the originally cast, but more glamorous, Gale Sondergaard. During the actual filming, Hamilton suffered severe burns when the trapdoor elevator she was riding on the soundstage malfunctioned during her fiery exit from Munchkinland. Hamilton had to recuperate in a hospital and at home for six weeks after the accident before returning to the set to complete her work on the now-classic film, albeit refusing to have anything to do with fire, requiring a stand-in. Whatever ill she may have felt toward the role quickly disintegrated; later on in life she would comment on the role of the witch in a light-hearted fashion. For instance, shortly before her death, Hamilton reminisced about the casting process for the witch. She recalled a colleague who had suggested her to audition for a role in the "Oz" film adaptation. Anxious to oblige, Hamilton immediately asked what the role was only to have her friend reply with a smirk, "The Witch, who else?"

She appeared regularly in supporting roles in films until the early 1950s, and sporadically thereafter. Hamilton starred in a now-forgotten film noir from one of the "poverty row" studios, entitled Bungalow 13 (1948), which co-starred Richard Cromwell. During the 1960s and 1970s she appeared on television, and had a small role in the made-for-TV film The Night Strangler (1973). She continued acting regularly until 1979, and was often asked about her experiences on the set of The Wizard of Oz. Hamilton said she sometimes worried about the effect that her monstrous film role had on children. It should be noted that in real life Hamilton dearly loved children and gave generously to charities benefitting them. She often joked about children coming up to her and asking her why she had been so mean to poor Dorothy. She appeared on an episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, where she explained to children that she was only playing a role.

Hamilton was married briefly in the 1930s and had one son, whom she raised on her own.

Throughout the 1970s, Hamilton lived in New York City's Gramercy Park neighborhood and appeared on local TV ads for organizations promoting the welfare of companion animals. She eventually moved to Salisbury, Connecticut and died there in 1985 from a heart attack at the age of 82.

Trivia

While Hamilton was a teacher in Cleveland, two of her students were William Windom and Jim Backus.

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