Betty Ann Bruno Dies: ‘Wizard of Oz’ Munchkin & Veteran Local TV Reporter Was 91

Martin Holmes August 1, 2023, 8:21 am

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Betty Ann Bruno, a veteran TV producer and reporter who played a munchkin on The Wizard of Oz, has died. She was 91.

The passing was confirmed by KTVU, the news network where Bruno served as a reporter for over 20 years. According to her family members, she died on Sunday, July 30, in Sonoma, California.

“I am so sorry to have to tell you Betty Ann’s heart left us today,” her husband Craig Scheiner posted on Facebook. “We were at the kanikapila in Sonoma and she had just finished dancing Pua Mana. She developed a sudden, splitting head ache and I drove her to Emergency. She made it to the from desk and collapsed on the floor with a massive heart attack. We were together 46 years. I am devastated.”

Bruno was born on October 1, 1931, in Wahiawa, Hawaii, but grew up in Hollywood, California. She started her career as a child actress, appearing in an uncredited role in John Ford’s 1937 film The Hurricane before playing one of the munchkins in the iconic 1937 movie The Wizard of Oz alongside Judy Garland.

Producer Mervyn LeRoy, star Judy Garland and director Victor Fleming posing with actors, on set of Wizard of Oz

Everett Collection

As an adult, Bruno began a career in journalism, starting out as a political talk show producer and host before becoming an investigative reporter. She spent over two decades at KTVU, covering various stories about political corruption or corporate wrongdoing, in addition to the 1991 Oakland Hills fire that destroyed over 3000 homes, including her own.

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The Stanford graduate also won three Emmy Awards during her tenure at KTVU for breaking news, news-feature series, and investigative series.

In 2020, Bruno released her memoir, The Munchkin Diary: My Personal Yellow Brick Road, detailing her time working on The Wizard of Oz and her wide and varied career that followed, including a stint as a secretary for the CIA.

“Other reporters would try to get [interviews, and] those same people they would say ‘no, no, no way.’ Betty Ann was always able to get the interview,” said retired reporter Rob Roth in an interview with KTVU. “She really did care about the community, cared about reporting. She was just a real treasure, a joy to know.”

Bruno is survived by her husband and three sons.