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Wicked Witch of the West
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Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion, Jack Haley as the Tin Man, Ray Bolger as the Scarecrow, Judy Garland as Dorothy, and Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch in a stone-walled room from The Wizard of Oz.
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Wicked Witch of the West

fictional character
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Bert Lahr as the Cowardly Lion, Jack Haley as the Tin Man, Ray Bolger as the Scarecrow, Judy Garland as Dorothy, and Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch in a stone-walled room from The Wizard of Oz.
scene from The Wizard of Oz (From left) the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr), the Tin Man (Jack Haley), the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), Dorothy (Judy Garland), and the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton) in The Wizard of Oz (1939).

The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character from L. Frank Baum's beloved children's book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. In the story, she is the primary antagonist who rules over the Winkies and seeks to obtain Dorothy's magical silver shoes. She attempts to stop Dorothy and her companions, the Scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and Cowardly Lion, from reaching the Emerald City to see the Wizard. Ultimately, Dorothy defeats the Wicked Witch by accidentally melting her with a bucket of water.1

The character has been reimagined in various adaptations, most notably in Gregory Maguire's novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which inspired the successful stage musical Wicked. These retellings often explore the witch's backstory and motivations, presenting a more complex character than her portrayal in Baum's original work.2

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3 Britannica Sources
  1. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
  2. Wicked
  3. Dorothy

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