Jerry Maren, last surviving Wizard of Oz munchkin, dies at 98

Jerry Maren.
(Image credit: Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images)

Actor Jerry Maren, the last surviving munchkin from the 1939 classic Wizard of Oz, died last month in San Diego. He was 98.

Maren was one of the 124 munchkins who made up the Lollipop Guild in the Wizard of Oz, and was known for handing Judy Garland's Dorothy a lollipop during one scene. He told The Independent in 2009 that working on the movie was "the greatest fun I ever had in my life," and Garland was "an angel." In 2007, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in honor of all of the munchkins.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.