Posted on 05/07/2009 8:08:14 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Mickey Carroll, one of the last surviving diminutive "Munchkins" in the 1939 movie "The Wizard of Oz," died of natural causes on Thursday in Missouri at age 89, a newspaper reported.
Carroll, who stopped growing at a young age, was an entertainer early in life and befriended actress Judy Garland, leading to a role alongside her in classic "The Wizard of Oz," the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
He was a violin-playing Munchkin "Town Crier" in the movie, dressed in purple with a yellow flower in his vest. There were dozens of Munchkins in all.
In 2007, Carroll and a few other surviving Munchkins attended a ceremony to dedicate a Munchkin star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Mickey was well known here in St. Louis. We met him at a local restaurant a few years ago when my daughter was little. Mickey was little too.
RIP.
Anyway, I used to hang out at a Holiday Inn bar in Miami. Eddy the Munchkin (or Midget) was holding court with his showbiz stories. Apparently a lot of Midgets (or Munchkins) are in showbiz.
Back then I was in really good physical shape with more hair on top and less weight on the belly. Well, the hotel manager comes up, points in our direction, and says he wants me (or Eddy) in a commercial for the Holliday Inn. Actually he meant ME but Eddy, being in Showbiz, assumed it was him. When the manager corrected Eddy by indicating me, he flew in a RAGE. I mean he went completely NUts to the extent of assaulting me with vicious kicks. And, despite his diminutive size, they were PAINFUL!
So I get the hell out of the bar and dash to my car. All the way, Eddy the "Munchkin" was screaming angrily and kicking me in the legs. Okay, so you are wondering why I wouldn't just punch out Eddy the Munchkin? Well, that thought did occur to me but I envisoned the next day's headlines in the newspaper: "Monster Man Assaults Helpless Midget."
About a week later I did the commercial which eventually aired locally. It was just me diving into the hotel swimming pool, swimming to the other side, and some blonde pulling me out.
And the whole time I was being filmed, I was in dread fear the Monster Munchkin would come out of nowhere to attack me again. And that is something I certainly didn't want to be on film.
So I've had my fill of "Munchkins" in my life.
I noted he wasn't the Coroner/Undertaker. They're always the last to go anyway...
I had a similar thing happen to me, except they wanted me to star in a porn movie with Kirsten Dunst and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, and it was Keanu Reeves, Robert Downey Jr., and Brad Pitt that were mad about it.
LMAO!!
You shoulda punched a munch!
Man, that is hilarious (sorry about your sore shins)!
Thanks for sharing that story.
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