Dona Massin
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Dona Massin, film choreotrapher for The Wizard Of Oz was born on February 18, 1917 in Winnipeg, Canada. Her family moved to Los Angeles when Dona was 8.
Dona started her show business career as a child. She sang My Man at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles and got a standing ovation at the young age of 8. She then was discovered by Maurice Kosell and was given free dancing lessons, because of her natural talent.
At the age of 14, Dona was signed to MGM Studios and worked on many of the musicals. She also worked at 20th Century Fox, Universal, Warner Bros. and Columbia.
In 1939 at the age of 21 she was signed to do The Wizard Of Oz, where she worked as a Choreographer assisting Bobby Connolly in 1932. The film took 6 months to complete and Dona was also the first to sing "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". It was she, who pushed for the song to be in the film. She also originated the skip that was performed down the yellow brick road. She can be seen grooming the Lion in the scene at the beauty shop. Mervyn Leroy put her in that part to bring luck to the film.
All together Dona appeared in over 100 films.
Dona Married Don Carn and had one daughter, Jodie Carn, who is a talk show host on The Eclectic Mind and Jodie, L.A. She gave up show business at the age of 30 to be a wife and mother to her only child.
In Dona's later years she and daughter Jodie would go to the Wizard of Oz Festivals in Chesterton, Indiana, Wisconsin and Chicago. With Dona were some of the little people from the film.
Towards the end of her life, she gave interviews for books, and television.
In 2001 she taped Memories of Oz, playing herself. Also in 2001 she taped the special Last Days of Judy Garland TV episode playing herself and "The E! True Hollywood Story.
Dona passed away on May 26th 2001 from natural causes. She resided in Malibu, Ca. with her daughter Jodie.
