Ruth Duccini

Ruth Duccini
Ruth Duccini.jpg
Born
Ruth Leone Robinson

(1918-07-23)July 23, 1918
DiedJanuary 16, 2014(2014-01-16) (aged 95)
OccupationActress
Years active1936–2013
Known forLast surviving female adult Munchkin from 1939 film The Wizard of Oz; penultimate surviving Munchkin
Spouse
Fred Duccini
(m. 1943; died 1994)

Ruth Leone Duccini (née Robinson; July 23, 1918 – January 16, 2014) was an American actress.

Biography

Ruth is best known as the penultimate surviving Munchkin from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. Her role in the film as a Munchkin villager was not credited. Her most recent appearances were when she and the other surviving Munchkins were presented with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on November 21, 2007, and attending the premiere of the film's 75th anniversary at the Grauman's Chinese Theatre. She also was seen in Under the Rainbow (1981) and Memories of Oz (2001).

While Duccini could not recall in 2013 what she earned filming Oz, the Munchkin village actors were paid $50 a week during filming, plus room/board. She said of her World War II work:

The one thing that I'm most proud of, during the "Second World War, I worked on airplanes in a defense plant. I was a Rosie the Riveter. I'm really proud of that."

Duccini made the news again when Margaret Thatcher died, and critics of the former British premier tried to propel "Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead" onto the chart to celebrate her passing. Duccini and Jerry Maren (who would become the last surviving adult Munchkin) said the song was never to be used in such a way, stating:

"Nobody deserves to be treated in such a way. When we were filming the movie no one intended it to be used in that way. I am ashamed, I really am."

Death

Duccini died of natural causes in Las Vegas, aged 95, on January 16, 2014.

Filmography

Year Title Role Notes
1939 The Wizard of Oz Munchkin Villager Uncredited
1981 Under the Rainbow Hotel Rainbow Guest
1999 The Daily Show Herself 1 episode
2001 Memories of Oz
2013 The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz

This page was last updated at 2022-10-30 13:27 UTC. Update now. View original page.

All our content comes from Wikipedia and under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.


Top

If mathematical, chemical, physical and other formulas are not displayed correctly on this page, please useFirefox or Safari