Wicked Witch of the East facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Wicked Witch of the East |
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| Oz character | |
The Wicked Witch of the East as pictured in The Tin Woodman of Oz—illustration by John R. Neill (1918)
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| First appearance | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) |
| Created by | L. Frank Baum |
| Portrayed by |
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| Aliases |
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| Species | Human (witch) |
| Gender | Female |
| Occupation | Ruler of the Munchkin Country (at time of death) |
| Title | The Wicked Witch of the East |
| Nationality | Ozian of Munchkin descent |
The Wicked Witch of the East is a made-up character created by American author L. Frank Baum. She is very important to the story but only appears for a short time in Baum's famous children's book series, the Oz novels. Her most notable appearance is in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900).
This Wicked Witch was a mean, middle-aged woman who took over the Munchkin Country in the eastern part of Oz. She forced the local Munchkin people to work for her day and night. Her special Silver Shoes (which became the famous magic ruby slippers in the 1939 movie musical) had many secret powers and were her most prized possession. The Witch died when Dorothy Gale's farmhouse landed on her. This happened after the house was carried away by a powerful cyclone. Her old body turned to dust, leaving behind the magical shoes. Dorothy then became their new owner.
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The Wicked Witch in Classic Oz Books
In the original Oz books, many believed the Wicked Witch of the East was stronger than the Good Witch of the North. However, she was not as powerful as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South. She also seemed stronger than Mombi, the Wicked Witch of the North. This is because the Good Witch of the North could defeat Mombi, but she could not overthrow the Witch of the East to free the Munchkins.
The Wicked Witch of the East was not related to the Wicked Witch of the West. This is different from how they are shown in some movies and plays. But she did team up with the Wicked Witch of the West, the Wicked Witch of the North, and the Wicked Witch of the South. They worked together to conquer Oz and divide it into four sections. This story is told in Baum's fourth Oz book, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (1908). After the last mortal King of Oz, Pastoria, was defeated, the old witch took over the eastern part of Oz. She kept the Munchkins as her prisoners for many years.
How She Ruled the Munchkins
The Wicked Witch of the East lived in a simple house deep in the woods of the Munchkin Country. She sometimes helped Munchkins with her witchcraft, but usually for a price. For example, an old woman who owned a beautiful Munchkin maid named List of Oz characters#Nimmie Amee bribed the witch. Nimmie Amee worked for her as a full-time servant and fell in love with a woodsman named Nick Chopper. The old woman gave the witch two sheep and a cow. In return, the witch promised to stop Nimmie Amee from marrying Nick and leaving her service.
The Wicked Witch of the East decided to enchant Nick Chopper's axe. This curse sadly caused him to chop off his own limbs one by one. He replaced each part with a hollow tin one until he was completely made of tin. Once he was a man of tin with no human heart, Nick Chopper believed he could no longer feel the emotions needed to love Nimmie Amee. This made the Wicked Witch very happy.
A year later, the witch was in the Munchkin meadows looking for herbs and spices for a new spell. It was then that Dorothy's farmhouse, carried by a cyclone from Kansas, unexpectedly fell from the sky. It accidentally crushed the Wicked Witch to death. The Good Witch of the North explained to Dorothy: "She was the Wicked Witch of the East... She has held all the Munchkins in bondage for many years, making them slave for her night and day. Now they are all set free, and are grateful to you for the favor."
Besides enchanting Nick Chopper's axe, she also cursed Captain Fyter's sword. This curse caused him to turn into the List of Oz characters#Fyter the Tin Soldier. These actions show how cruel she could be.
The Wicked Witch in Movies and Shows
In most movies and shows, the Wicked Witch of the East is usually shown only by her feet sticking out from under a house. But there are some recent exceptions, like The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005) and Disney's Oz the Great and Powerful (2013).
The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
The Wicked Witch of the East appears in the film The Wizard of Oz (1939). In this movie, she is the sister of the Wicked Witch of the West. Just like in the book, she dies when Dorothy's house lands on her. The Wicked Witch of the West was very angry with Dorothy for killing her sister. Before the Wicked Witch of the West could take the magic shoes, the Wicked Witch of the East's feet curl up and disappear under the house. The shoes then magically appear on Dorothy's feet. In the original book, the Wicked Witch of the West did not care about her counterpart's death. She was also not related to her. She was only interested in the magic footwear, which were "Silver Shoes" in the book and "Ruby slippers" in the 1939 film.
Other Adaptations
- In Alexander Melentyevich Volkov's The Wizard of the Emerald City, the Witch's name is Gingema. Like in the 1939 movie, the two Wicked Witches are sisters. Gingema tries to create a magical hurricane to destroy all humans. However, the Good Witch of the North changes the spell so it only affects one house and drops it on Gingema's head.
- In the 1974 Broadway musical The Wiz and its movie version (1978), the Wicked Witch of the East is named Evvamene. This name means "Ever mean." She terrorizes the Munchkins before Dorothy's adventure in Oz begins.
- In the novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire and its musical version, the Wicked Witch of the East is a beautiful but disabled young woman named Nessarose Thropp. Nessa is the sister of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. Her legs are paralyzed. The silver shoes, a gift from their father, were enchanted by Galinda to help Nessarose walk.
- In the novel The Unknown Witches of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the East is called Old Sand-Eye.
- In Roger S. Baum's Lion of Oz and the Badge of Courage, the Wicked Witch of the East is the main villain. She forces the Cowardly Lion to find the magical "Flower Of Oz." This flower is the only thing stopping her from taking over Oz completely. She is again the sister of the Wicked Witch of the West. She gets very angry when people mistake her for her sister. She is shown as a green-skinned old woman with brown hair and a black cloak. She does not have the silver shoes or ruby slippers, but she controls the Winged Monkeys. This book was made into the 2000 animated film Lion of Oz.
- In The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, Miss Piggy plays the Wicked Witch of the East (and all the other witches). She manages to lift the house just long enough to threaten the Munchkins before it falls back on her, killing her. Her silver shoes are then taken by the Good Witch of the North for Dorothy.
- In the 2013 Disney film Oz the Great and Powerful, the Wicked Witch of the East is named Evanora. She is played by Rachel Weisz. In this movie, Evanora is the older sister of Theodora, the Wicked Witch of the West (Mila Kunis). She is fighting against Glinda, the Good Witch of the South (Michelle Williams), for control of Oz. Evanora pretends to be a Good Witch. She was an adviser to the former king of Oz, whom she secretly murdered. She wanted to be in charge of the Emerald City herself. Evanora tricks Oscar Diggs by blaming Glinda for the murder. She tells him that Glinda is the Wicked Witch, not herself. This causes Glinda to be banished from the Emerald City. Evanora also manipulates her sister, Theodora, who is in love with Oscar Diggs (James Franco). This eventually turns Theodora into the Wicked Witch of the West. Evanora is later fooled by Oscar's illusion tricks and banished from the Emerald City. Before she leaves, Evanora fights Glinda in a magic duel. Glinda crushes Evanora's emerald necklace, which is the source of her power. The Wicked Witch's young and beautiful look quickly changes into that of a hideous old woman. Glinda believes this is a reflection of Evanora's true nature. Evanora is then carried away by two of her flying baboons. She swears revenge on Glinda for stopping her plans. The magic red shoes are not seen or talked about in this film. Also, she does not officially become the Wicked Witch of the East during the story. This is a big difference from L. Frank Baum's original books. In the books, the Wicked Witches of the East and West were already ruling their lands when the Wizard first arrived in Oz.
- In the comic book series Oz Squad, the Wicked Witch of the East is called Rebecca Eastwitch.
- In the comic book series Grimm Fairy Tales presents Oz, the Wicked Witch of the East is named Zinna.
- In the graphic novel How the Wizard Came to Oz, the Wicked Witch of the East is named Malvonia.
- In the TV series Once Upon a Time, there is a Witch of the East (played by Sharon Taylor). But she is not evil, and Dorothy's house does not fall on her. The Witches in this series are a kind group who watch over Oz. However, they are later defeated by Zelena, the Wicked Witch of the West (played by Rebecca Mader). Zelena was very jealous of Dorothy. In this version, the sister of the Wicked Witch of the West is the Evil Queen from the story of Snow White.
- In the TV series Emerald City, the Witch of the East (played by Florence Kasumba) appears as a guest. In this version, she was one of the last main witches of Oz. She was known as the Witch of the East, "the Mistress of the Eastern Wood, the Most Merciful and Stern." When Dorothy (Adria Arjona) arrives in Oz, she first thinks she killed the Witch of the East. This is because the police car she was in during the tornado hit the Witch. But it is later revealed that the Witch survived. She then confronts Dorothy and her new friend Lucas. She refuses to believe Dorothy's explanation that her arrival was an accident. The Witch threatens to torture Dorothy until she gets the answer she wants. Dorothy then tricks the Witch into pointing a gun at herself and pulling the trigger, which kills her. After the witch's death, Dorothy gets her ruby-covered golden 'gloves'. These give her access to the Witch's raw magic power.
