The Wizard of Oz actress Valerie Lee has passed away aged 94, almost nine decades after she appeared as a Munchkin in the iconic 1939 film. The mother of three died in LA on Sunday, April 12, according to Stephen Cox, who authored the 1996 book The Munchkins of Oz.
Valerie was just six years old when she was cast as a Munchkin in The Wizard of Oz, a role that saw her dance alongside the film’s star, Judy Garland, in Munchkinland.
She attended the Bud Murray Dance School in LA before being cast alongside her dance friends to play Munchkins. “I remember one day Bert Lahr was on the set, but not in his Cowardly Lion costume,” Valerie once recalled in an interview. “He plopped one of the [little people] on his lap and [started] doing a ventriloquist dummy routine for all of us.”
After her turn in The Wizard of Oz, the actress landed roles in several Our Gang shorts, including Time’s Out for Lessons, Ye Olde Minstrels, Doin’ Their Bit, Benjamin Franklin Jr., Election Daze and Dancing Romeo.
Following the end of her acting career, Valerie landed a managerial job in a bookstore in LA, where she worked for more than two decades. She is survived by her three children, Elise, Sharon and Larry, whom she welcomed with her late husband, Robert Haynes.
Her final onscreen appearance was in the 2024 documentary Mysteries of Oz: 85 Questions Answered.
© InstagramValerie’s colleague and fellow dance school alum, Elaine Merk Binder, died in September 2025, aged 94, making her one of the final cast members to pass away. She shared insight into the casting process before her death, and revealed she was just eight years old on set.
“I tried out for The Wizard of Oz Munchkins. I was relieved when Bud told the dance director, ‘She’s okay,'” Elaine explained. “I did not have to perform like the others did. For me, it was scary. It was my first big call for girls from a major studio. And they selected me as one of the eight who would both dance and sing.”
© Instagram“We learned later that they had added girls to the little people because they had the mistaken impression that the little people were not athletic.” Actresses Priscilla Montgomery Clark and Caren Marsh Doll are two of the last remaining cast members, with Caren having celebrated her 107th birthday on April 6, 2026.
© Getty Images“Happy 107 Caren! Another year of laughter and love from an inspiring lady who makes it all look easy,” the caption on her Facebook post read.
The star was Judy Garland’s body double in the film, and can be seen clicking her heels together in the iconic ruby red shoes. Meanwhile, Priscilla was another child star selected from the Bud Murray Dance School to appear in the film.
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