Actress. She was best known for her legendary role as "The Wicked Witch of the West" in the 1939 MGM classic "The Wizard of Oz," which was fourth on the American Film Institute's villains list of The Greatest Screen Heroes and Villains. She had a long career on stage and screen, often playing spinsters and nosy neighbors with names like Aunt Huddy, Mrs. Klopplebobbler and Hester Crabwell. In the 1970s she gained fresh fame as "Cora," in a memorable series of commercials for Maxwell House coffee. A former schoolteacher, she remained passionately interested in education and served on school boards and in children's therapy groups. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 9, 1902, the youngest of four children. She earned her teaching certificate in 1923 from the Wheelock Kindergarten Training School in Boston. On June 13, 1931, she married Paul Boynton Meserve, a landscape architect. They had one son, Hamilton Wadsworth Meserve. The marriage ended in divorce in 1938 and she raised her son alone in California. Hamilton Meserve is now the publisher of a chain of newspapers in Dutchess County, New York. When she was first hired to play a part in a Broadway show it was just a fluke. She had helped a friend try out for a part and ended up being hired herself. The play was a success and one thing led to another. Over her lifetime she made over 70 motion pictures and performed in at least that many stage plays. She was active in many projects that were geared for children and often at her own expense. For nearly fifteen years, she lived in Los Angeles, California before establishing permanent residence in New York City in 1951. Wherever her home was, she regularly traveled back and forth between coasts to perform in both movies and the theatre and later in television. Among her other accomplishments, she was an honorary trustee of the Cleveland Play House and was the recipient in 1977 of the Governor's Award of the State of Ohio. She was also a member of the Veterans Hospital Radio and TV Guild. She would visit hospitals to work with disabled veterans interested in the theatre and broadcasting. Some other memorable films that she appeared in included "My Little Chickadee," "The Oxbow Incident," "Guest in the House," "George White's Scandals," "State of the Union," "The Red Pony," "The Beautiful Blonde," "Bashful Bend," "13 Ghosts," and "Brewster McCloud." She died from a heart attack in a nursing home in Salisbury, Connecticut. She was cremated at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery and her ashes were scattered over her property in Amenia, New York.
Actress. She was best known for her legendary role as "The Wicked Witch of the West" in the 1939 MGM classic "The Wizard of Oz," which was fourth on the American Film Institute's villains list of The Greatest Screen Heroes and Villains. She had a long career on stage and screen, often playing spinsters and nosy neighbors with names like Aunt Huddy, Mrs. Klopplebobbler and Hester Crabwell. In the 1970s she gained fresh fame as "Cora," in a memorable series of commercials for Maxwell House coffee. A former schoolteacher, she remained passionately interested in education and served on school boards and in children's therapy groups. She was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 9, 1902, the youngest of four children. She earned her teaching certificate in 1923 from the Wheelock Kindergarten Training School in Boston. On June 13, 1931, she married Paul Boynton Meserve, a landscape architect. They had one son, Hamilton Wadsworth Meserve. The marriage ended in divorce in 1938 and she raised her son alone in California. Hamilton Meserve is now the publisher of a chain of newspapers in Dutchess County, New York. When she was first hired to play a part in a Broadway show it was just a fluke. She had helped a friend try out for a part and ended up being hired herself. The play was a success and one thing led to another. Over her lifetime she made over 70 motion pictures and performed in at least that many stage plays. She was active in many projects that were geared for children and often at her own expense. For nearly fifteen years, she lived in Los Angeles, California before establishing permanent residence in New York City in 1951. Wherever her home was, she regularly traveled back and forth between coasts to perform in both movies and the theatre and later in television. Among her other accomplishments, she was an honorary trustee of the Cleveland Play House and was the recipient in 1977 of the Governor's Award of the State of Ohio. She was also a member of the Veterans Hospital Radio and TV Guild. She would visit hospitals to work with disabled veterans interested in the theatre and broadcasting. Some other memorable films that she appeared in included "My Little Chickadee," "The Oxbow Incident," "Guest in the House," "George White's Scandals," "State of the Union," "The Red Pony," "The Beautiful Blonde," "Bashful Bend," "13 Ghosts," and "Brewster McCloud." She died from a heart attack in a nursing home in Salisbury, Connecticut. She was cremated at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery and her ashes were scattered over her property in Amenia, New York.
Bio by: Edward Parsons
