According to the ex-husband of Judy Garland, those adorable munchkins who helped the then-teenage actress find her way home also helped themselves to a little something else. In Sidney Luft’s posthumous memoir, “Judy and I: My Life with Judy Garland,” the late producer alleges Garland was often molested on the set of the movie classic “Wizard of Oz” at the hands of Munchkins.
Luft, who was married to the actress for 13 years, stated in the book that some of the diminutive actors, who were over the age of 40, made her life unbearable by shoving their hands underneath her dress.
He wrote that the men believed they could get away with anything because of their size. Sidney Lumet, who was a producer and the father of Garland’s daughter Lorna Lumet, died in 2005. The book also details Garland’s struggles with several suicide attempts and drug addictions. She died in 1969 from an accidental barbiturate overdose.
Hollywood confidential
Widely known for playing the part of Dorothy in the classic musical, Judy Garland told Jack Paar in a 1967 interview that the actors were little drunks who got smashed every night and got picked up by butterfly nets. Rumors of Munchkin’s lewd behavior included prostitution and Caligula-like orgies and have been circulating Tinseltown for decades.
One source whose father used to work near the studio lot told NPR that 120-plus tiny actors had a really good time during filming and celebrated a lot because, for many of them, it was their first chance to interact with people like them. The source went on to say her father recalled seeing them pile into cars, even squeezing under dashboards because you could fit so many inside.
Beg to differ
Munchkin actors have come out to deny the claims over the years. In a 2009 interview with “The Independent,” Munchkin actress Margaret Pellegrini admitted that a lot of them did like to go out and drink, but things never got out of hand.
She added there was no rowdiness, everyone just enjoyed having a good time, and the stories were very upsetting. The last surviving Munchkin is Jerry Maren. The 97-year-old actor defensively posed the question, “How could they get drunk on $50 a week.”
