From Oz to Beverly ... Hills, That Is

Ebsen was set to play the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz until a reaction to his makeup affected his breathing and nearly killed him. He was replaced, and it seemed his career was over.

A studio memo drafted in January of 1938 said Ebsen would play the Scarecrow and Ray Bolger would be the Tin Man. By this time, Ebsen had already appeared in seven films, including Broadway Melody of 1938 with Judy Garland.

Tall and lanky, Ebsen was a talented dancer and physically resembled a scarecrow, but Bolger was not happy with his assigned role. He fought to switch parts, and the studio eventually gave in. According to The Making of The Wizard of Oz by Aljean Harmetz, Ebsen didn’t care which role he had, as long as he was involved with the movie in some way.

Ebsen went through four weeks of rehearsal, completed all of his grueling wardrobe and makeup tests, and pre-recorded all of his songs. In fact, his voice can still be heard on the movie’s soundtrack in "We’re Off to See the Wizard."

The movie began production October 12, 1938. Nine days later, Ebsen "took a breath and nothing happened." He was rushed to the hospital and spent the next two weeks in an oxygen tent.

Aluminum dust in Ebsen’s Tin Man makeup had coated his lungs, causing a nearly fatal allergic reaction. While he lay in Good Samaritan Hospital turning blue and struggling to breathe, MGM replaced him with Jack Haley, who was on loan from 20th Century Fox. According to Harmetz, Haley was never asked if he wanted to be the Tin Man; he simply did what the studio commanded.

Haley and the rest of the cast were never told what had happened to Ebsen. As actor replacements were common at MGM during early days of filming, it was simply assumed that Ebsen had been fired. One modification was made to the Tin Man’s makeup, however. The aluminum was now applied as a paste, rather than a powder, and Haley’s only trouble was an eye infection that kept him away from the set for four days.

After losing his place in Oz, Ebsen virtually disappeared from the Hollywood scene until the mid '50s, when he had regular roles in Disney’s "Davy Crockett" movies. In 1962, Ebsen became known to millions when he landed the role of Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies. In the mid ‘70s, he was best known as TV private eye Barnaby Jones.

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