# WIZARD OF OZ--What happened to Miss Gulch? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 27, 2001, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948 "2001-10-27T09:33:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bossk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@Bossk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bossk)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2001, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/1 "2001-10-27T09:33:16Z")
Since it’s never mentioned in the movie, does the book say? Was she killed by the tornado while bicycling back to her home? Or will the Gales be paid another visit by her looking to take the doggie away again? * * * MODERATOR COMMENT: Please note that this thread is from 2001, until revived in Nov 2013 in Post #14. If you’re replying to one of the earlier posts, just be aware that they’re from 12 years ago. – CKDH ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2001, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/2 "2001-10-27T10:06:21Z")
There is a web page for everyting! [http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Hills/6396/msgulch.htm](http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Hills/6396/msgulch.htm) Her fate in the movie is a matter of opinion; I have to say that the analysis by that web site makes sense: She did die because all characters in the real world had their counterparts in the dream one. So: ding-dong the Gulch is dead! BTW, Miss Gulch never appeared in the original book: [http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/6188/oz-books.html](http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/6188/oz-books.html) She either was a Hollywood creation or she was created for the theater play first. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2001, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/3 "2001-10-27T10:48:04Z")
According to the play, a telegraph pole landed on her and broke her leg. Since her leg was in a cast, she was unable to bother Dorothy for a few weeks… but, ultimately (my prediction), Miss Gulch gets her way, takes the Gail’s farm, and Dorothy grows up to be a traumatized teenager living in the big city, and, ultimately, commits suicide in a bout of hopeless depression. I didn’t like working on that play. No, not one bit. ---
**Author:** ![riserius1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ab992/32.png) [@riserius1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/riserius1)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2001, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/4 "2001-10-27T11:23:37Z")
Ya know, I never could figure out why Dorothy wanted to go back there so bad. Knowing Miss Gulch died in the twister would make it worth the trip, though. Chris W ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2001, 11:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/5 "2001-10-27T11:28:42Z")
> [@](#): > > Ya know, I never could figure out why Dorothy wanted to go back there so bad. Because, ultimately, Dorothy was an absolute and total imbecile. ---
**Author:** ![Sweet\_Sota\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@Sweet\_Sota\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sweet_Sota_Girl)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/6 "2001-10-29T12:08:43Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SPOOFE \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > Ya know, I never could figure out why Dorothy wanted to go back there so bad. > > Because, ultimately, Dorothy was an absolute and total imbecile. \*\* She missed her Auntie Em, people… ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/7 "2001-10-29T12:53:08Z")
This came up during the weekend. MilliCal asked for **The Wizard of Oz** to be put on for the zillionth time, and it hit me. CalMeacham: Hey! Why is everyone happy at the end? Toto’s still under a Sentence of Death! Pepper Mill: No, he isn’t. Miss Gulch gets killed. CM: They never say that, though. PM: She did. Remember when she’s in the tornado? CM: That’s just a dream. PM: It doesn’t matter. She’s dead. It’s the only way to have a happy ending. I guess it’s true, at least as far as the movie logic goes. There’s no way you could leave that end dangling (“Welcome home, Dorothy! Here comes the sheriff for your dog!”), and you don’t want to make your audience do a moral doubletake at the Happy Ending (“Oh, and by the way, Miss Gulch is dead!” “Yay!!!”). Technically, though, I still don’t think this would save Toto – the paper work had already gone through. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/8 "2001-10-29T14:25:35Z")
Damn! Don’t you people know anything? She went on to sell Maxwell House coffee - didn’t you see the commercials. Some people - you have to hit them over the head with everything. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/9 "2001-10-29T15:36:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SmeelMeel \* > \*\* > She missed her Auntie Em, people… \*\* Speaking of which, Clara Blandick _did_ commit suicide in 1962. Not to hijack, but here’s an oddity I’ve never had explained to me: After the Wicked Witch of the West disappears in a cloud of red smoke in Munchkinland, Glinda sez: “It’s all right. You can get up. She’s gone. It’s all right. You can all get up. Pooh – **what a smell of sulphur!** ” **What’s with the “sulphur” line?!?!** I’ve probably posted this a dozen times over the past years, and have never received a good answer… ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/10 "2001-10-29T16:33:19Z")
> [@](#): > > After the Wicked Witch of the West disappears in a cloud of red smoke in Munchkinland, Glinda sez: “It’s all right. You can get up. She’s gone. It’s all right. You can all get up. Pooh – what a smell of sulphur!” > > What’s with the “sulphur” line?!?! I’ve probably posted this a dozen times over the past years, and have never received a good answer… Really? I never noticed this! After all these years we’re still finding little odd bits in this movie. I’ll have to check our copy of it and see. If she does say it, it’s because sulphur (actually Hydrogen Sulfide) has a very bad odor, usually described as “rotten eggs”, but also similar to intestinal gas. It’s the odor of biblical “brimstone”, and is associated with the Devil. Demons and devils are often said to disappear in a cloud of brimstone, but whether that’s a genuine legend or only the recent addition of fantasy writers I do not know. In any event, it’s wholly in keeping with the Wicked Witch of the West. Of course, the audience of TWOO couldn’t smell this, so Glinda or someone has to give the impression, probably by holding their nose (I’ll have to check the film for that, too), or by making comment. The comment is as subtle as a sledgehammer, though, and probably going overboard. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2001, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/11 "2001-10-29T17:38:42Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by CalMeacham \* > \*\* > If she does say (the sulpher line), it’s because sulphur (actually Hydrogen Sulfide) has a very bad odor, usually described as “rotten eggs”, but also similar to intestinal gas. It’s the odor of biblical “brimstone”, and is associated with the Devil. Demons and devils are often said to disappear in a cloud of brimstone, but whether that’s a genuine legend or only the recent addition of fantasy writers I do not know. In any event, it’s wholly in keeping with the Wicked Witch of the West._\* Hmmm. Well, I suspect that’s as good a theory as any. When compared with the rest of the script (and I practically know it by heart, though not voluntarily), this particular line seems most odd. Perhaps it was an inside joke. ---
**Author:** ![Katisha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bcef8e/32.png) [@Katisha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Katisha)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2001, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/12 "2001-10-30T06:16:48Z")
[QUOTE] \*Originally posted by Crafter\_Man \* \*\* > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SmeelMeel \* > After the Wicked Witch of the West disappears in a cloud of red smoke in Munchkinland, Glinda sez: “It’s all right. You can get up. She’s gone. It’s all right. You can all get up. Pooh – **what a smell of sulphur!** ” > > **What’s with the “sulphur” line?!?!** Never mind that – what’s Pooh doing in Oz? :eek: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Redboss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8baadc/32.png) [@Redboss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Redboss)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2001, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/13 "2001-10-30T07:20:10Z")
Sulphur and brimstone, traditionally associated with Hell or Satan. As in “there’s a whiff of brimstone about that plan…” etc Of course, she might have farted as she died… Oh - did I say that out loud? Redboss ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2001, 9:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/14 "2001-10-30T09:52:22Z")
> [@](#): > > She missed her Auntie Em, people… Even absolute and total imbeciles miss their Aunt Em. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/15 "2013-11-22T20:58:52Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > This came up during the weekend. MilliCal asked for **The Wizard of Oz** to be put on for the zillionth time, and it hit me.[…] > > There’s no way you could leave that end dangling (“Welcome home, Dorothy! Here comes the sheriff for your dog!”), and you don’t want to make your audience do a moral doubletake at the Happy Ending (“Oh, and by the way, Miss Gulch is dead!” “Yay!!!”). Hah! It took me until the zillionth time watching before this struck me as well. Just now, my two youngest were watching the movie and it occurred to me. I guess there is no satisfactory definitive answer or someone on the SDMB would have figured it out. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/16 "2013-11-22T21:42:24Z")
> [@SPOOFE](#): > > Because, ultimately, Dorothy was an absolute and total imbecile. Far worse than that if you read the books, which are batshit insane. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/17 "2013-11-22T21:47:48Z")
To be fair, though, Book-Dorothy is like 7. ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/18 "2013-11-22T23:04:10Z")
These days Miss Gultch has a taste for BRAIIIIIIIIINS or she would if she hadn’t been melted by Dorothy. She was the WWotW. You even see her change forms during the twister. All a dream, feh, yeah right. ---
**Author:** ![Greg\_Charles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Greg\_Charles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greg_Charles)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/19 "2013-11-23T01:33:49Z")
> [@riserius1](#): > > Ya know, I never could figure out why Dorothy wanted to go back there so bad. You and the Scarecrow both: > [@L. Frank Baum](#): > > ``` > The Scarecrow listened carefully, and said, "I cannot understand why you should wish to leave this beautiful country and go back to the dry, gray place you call Kansas." > > "That is because you have no brains" answered the girl. "No matter how dreary and gray our homes are, we people of flesh and blood would rather live there than in any other country, be it ever so beautiful. There is no place like home." > > The Scarecrow sighed. > > "Of course I cannot understand it," he said. "If your heads were stuffed with straw, like mine, you would probably all live in the beautiful places, and then Kansas would have no people at all. It is fortunate for Kansas that you have brains." > > ``` ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2013, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948/20 "2013-11-23T01:38:43Z")
Miss Almira Gulch was riding a bicycle through the Kansas countryside when a tornado came ripping up the path she was riding down. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wizard-of-oz-what-happened-to-miss-gulch/89948.md?page=2)