Wicked Witch of the West Wicked Witch of the West The Wicked Witch of the West is a fictional character created by American author L. Frank Baum as the most significant antagonist in his classic children's novel "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" (1900). In Baum's subsequent "Oz" novels, it is the Nome King who is the principal villain; the Wicked Witch of the West is rarely even referred to again after her death in the first book. The witch's most popular depiction was in the classic 1939 film based on Baum's novel, where she was portrayed by Margaret Hamilton. Hamilton's characterization introduced green skin and
The Wicked Witch of Oz & Lee cancelled the project, since the Oz books were no longer selling well. The book remained unpublished until the International Wizard of Oz Club brought out the first edition in 1993, with illustrations by Eric Shanower. The club declared it book 45 in the series. In the documentary, "", Payes states that she refused all requests to read her manuscript with "not 'til it's a book." The Wicked Witch of Oz is followed by The Emerald Wand of Oz, a 2005 book by Sherwood Smith which was commissioned by the Baum Family Trust. The title character is Singra, the