A dress worn by Judy Garland in the classic film The Wizard of Oz was found in a trash bag at a Washington DC university. The Wizard of Oz, released in 1939, has become a classic in the film world for its tale of a young girl who visits a magical world after being hit on the head by a piece of falling debris during a twister. There she meets several characters who represent the most important things in her life and some that depict its not-so-nice elements. This fantasy film used sepia tones to introduce moviegoers to Dorothy. The film later changed to technicolor as Dorothy's house landed in Munchkin Land and killed the Wicked Witch of the East, causing the ire of her sister, the Wicked Witch of the West.
The Wizard of Oz was a vehicle for Judy Garland to show off her skills as both an actress and singer. Just 16 when she filmed the movie, Garland was told to look and act younger than her years. The studio reportedly made Garland wear a corset to trim her waist and wraps around her chest to flatten her curves and kept her on a strict diet to keep her slim throughout filming. However disturbing these claims are, Garland shone as both an actress and singer, with her song "Over the Rainbow" becoming a timeless classic.
According to a story published by Smithsonian Magazine, a lecturer at Catholic University discovered the rare costume wrapped in a trash bag in a drama department office. For years, the drama department of the university was rumored to have in its possession. The dress was reportedly donated to the University in the 1970s and had since gone missing. One of the university's employees was cleaning out a building ahead of renovations when he found a trash bag on top of the faculty mail slots. In the bag was a shoebox and in the box, was the missing dress. The blue and white gingham dress had a tag within it that had the actress' name written in pen along the back of the neckline. Matt Ripa, Lecturer and Operations Coordinator at the Drama Department, was the one who finally located the piece of film history. The University's library interviewed Mr. Ripa who told his story below.
"I had looked in our archives, storage closets, etc. to no avail. I assumed it was a tall tale (of which many exist for Father Hartke). Our building is in the process of renovations and upgrades, so I was cleaning out my office to prepare. I noticed on top of the faculty mailboxes a trash bag and asked my co-worker to hand it to me. On the trashbag was a note for our former chair stating that he had found ‘this’ in his office and that he must have moved it when he moved out of the chair’s office. I was curious what was inside and opened the trash bag and inside was a shoebox and inside the shoebox was the dress!! I couldn’t believe it. My co-worker and I quickly grabbed some gloves and looked at the dress and took some pictures before putting it back in the box and heading over to the archives."
The iconic blue-and-white garment that was worn by the beloved character of Dorothy was composed of two pieces. One was a cotton blouse with elastic sleeves, which gave them a ruched effect, with a blue taped trim at the collar. Over it, Garland wore the iconic gingham print dress in a pinafore style. The color and print of the dress were intentional, so it would pop out against the green and yellow background colors present throughout the film. The same went for Garland's ruby red, sparkling slippers which now reside in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.
The Wizard of Oz continues to bring joy to moviegoers, 82 years after its initial release. The bulk of its tale is a dream about escaping, to leave a world that may cause strife and find a better place. In the end, the protagonist finds, there is no place like home and Dorothy realizes the peace she always looked for was inside of her all along. This lesson resonated with adults and children alike and continues to allow the film to hold a special place in the hearts of moviegoers for generations.
Source: Smithsonian Magazine
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