Margaret Pellegrini
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Pellegrini in 2006
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| Born | Margaret Williams (1923-09-23)September 23, 1923
Tuscumbia, Alabama, U.S.
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| Died | August 7, 2013(2013-08-07) (aged 89)
Glendale, Arizona, U.S.
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| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1938–2013 |
| Spouse | Willie Pellegrini |
| Children | 2 |
Margaret Pellegrini (née Williams; September 23, 1923 – August 7, 2013) was an American actress, vaudeville performer and dancer, best known for playing one of the Munchkins from the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz.[1][2] Until her death in 2013, she was one of the three surviving munchkins, the other two being Jerry Maren and Ruth Robinson Duccini.[3]
Pellegrini was born Margaret Williams in Tuscumbia, Alabama. When she was helping a relative in a potato chip booth at the Tennessee State Fair, a group of little people came by and asked if she wanted to join their show, Henry Kramer's Midgets. "At that time I didn't think I was a midget," says Pellegrini (who then stood about 3 ft 4 in (1.02 m)). In the film, Pellegrini played a "sleepyhead" flower pot and Munchkin villager. After the film, she married Willie Pellegrini (an average-sized ex-fighter) and had two children. Through the years, Pellegrini frequently appeared at surviving Munchkins of Oz festivities.
Pellegrini was present on November 21, 2007, when the remaining Munchkins were given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She was also named the Grand Marshal of that year's annual "Oz-Stravaganza" parade in Chittenango, New York, but health issues prevented her from attending. Near the time of her death, she was described as a widowed great-great-grandmother living in Glendale, Arizona, with a room in her house devoted to her treasured Oz collectibles.
Pellegrini died on August 7, 2013, in Glendale, Arizona, due to complications from a stroke she had two days earlier. She outlived every major cast member of The Wizard of Oz.[3] She was 89.[4] Her burial is at Holy Cross Cemetery in Avondale, Arizona.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | The Wizard of Oz | Munchkin Villager/Sleepyhead | Uncredited |
| 1971 | Johnny Got His Gun | ||
| 1990 | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: 50 Years of Magic | Acknowledgement credit | |
| 1993 | We're Off to See the Munchkins | ||
| 1994 | I Married a Munchkin | Sleepyhead | |
| 1997 | Biography | Herself | 1 episode |
| 2001 | Memories of Oz | ||
| 2005 | Entertainment Tonight | 1 episode | |
| Because of the Wonderful Things It Does: The Legacy of Oz | |||
| 2009 | The Yellow Brick Road and Beyond | Herself/Munchkin | Also special thanks credit |
| Hollywood Celebrates Its Biggest Little Stars! | Herself | ||
| 2013 | The Making of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz |
