Fascinating photos of the replacement cast of the iconic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz have emerged online, including photos of the actress understudying Dorothy.
Judy Garland, whose Academy Juvenile Award-winning portrayal of Dorothy Gale stole America’s hearts, got a stand-in actress.
Bobbie Koshay served as Garland’s body and stunt double for the more action-oriented scenes in the classic film.
For example, Koshay is the one who fell into the pigsty at the beginning of the film, while Garland was balancing on the wooden fence.
Koshay is the one who opened the doors to Oz, while Garland walks through the gates into Munchkinland, turning the film from black and white to technicolor. Koshay was also lifted from The Haunted Forest by the flying monkeys.
Pictured: Judy Garland’s stand-in on set during the filming of The Wizard of Oz
Pictured: Stafford Campbell and Bobbie Koshay replacing lighting and camera tests in The Haunted Forest
Pictured: Judy Garland sitting with her understudy Caren Marsh Doll and a munchkin on the set of The Wizard of Oz
Most notably, Koshay is the one who taps her heels together three times at the end of the film and repeats the iconic phrase “there’s no place like home” as she and Toto are transported back to Kansas.
Garland also had Caren Marsh-Doll as a stand-in, but she was used less often.
Stand-ins are common in filmmaking. They are often used to help the camera department light the set and adjust blocking while the actor is away.
The blurred effect of the vintage cameras used in filming made the actors’ facial details somewhat indistinguishable from certain angles, allowing the stand-ins to blend seamlessly into the film.
Koshay was not only her body double, but also Garland’s personal trainer. She was instructed to put the 17-year-old child star through rigorous physical training to lose weight, including badminton, swimming, walking and tennis.
Garland was forced to diet and was watched by a staff member every time she ate.
She was even prescribed Dexedrine for weight loss, a drug newly introduced in 1937 and typically given to treat narcolepsy, depression and obesity.
Garland wasn’t the only actor with a body double in the film.
Pictured: Judy Garland on the film set of The Wizard of Oz with producer Mervyn LeRoy and director Victor Fleming, along with ToTo and the munchkins
Pictured: Director Victor Fleming adjusts a munchkin’s blocking on set
Margaret Hamilton, who played the Wicked Witch of the West double, had a body double named Betty Danko. Danko filled in for Hamilton during that character’s first appearance in Munchkinland.
The body double for Bert Lahr, who played The Cowardly Lion, emerges from the woods and scares Dorothy and company.
A stunt double was also used when the Lion charges through the palace corridor in The Emerald City and jumps through a huge ‘glass’ window.
As he makes his way through The Haunted Forest, The Tin Man, played by Jack Haley, is magically lifted into the air.
However, his body double fell with his back facing the camera.
Three stand-ins were used as the Scarecrow, Lion and Tin Man climbed a mountain to reach The Witch’s Castle. During their ascent, the actors are seen in the scene where the Lion says, “I hope my strength holds out,” and the Tin Man, holding his tail, responds, “I hope your tail holds out.”
However, the scenes filmed before and after this two-part dialogue exchange were all replacement actors.
Pictured: Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, entering Munchkin land for the first time
Pictured: Dorothy, played by Judy Garland, discovers the Tin Man outside his cottage