In 1939, a house fell out of the sky, killing the Wicked Witch of the East. The local Coroner was called to the scene and announced:
As coroner, I must aver,
I thoroughly examined her.
And she’s not only merely dead,
She’s really most sincerely dead.
The actor playing the Coroner, Meinhardt Raabe, was a Marple resident for 32 years, living at 21 Hillside Road from 1954-1986. He had another familiar role, as Little Oscar, driving the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile around the country for over 30 years. He started that job near his home town of Watertown, Wisconsin, and it eventually brought him east to the Philadelphia area with wife, Marie.
While life had dealt him a difficult hand, he made the most of it. He attended college and then graduate school at the University of Wisconsin. In the 1930’s, a lot of different cities had World’s Fairs, and they all created “Midget Cities” staffed by little people like Meinhardt. While steady work, he later admitted that though enjoyable, he never cared to earn his livelihood by going on exhibition. He started work for Oscar Mayer as a bookkeeper, but the role as Little Oscar offered a chance to travel and interact with people. In 1939, he was one of over 100 little people cast as Munchkins in the Wizard of Oz. Only nine of them had speaking parts; the college- educated Meinhardt was chosen because of his clear enunciation. He later recalled working with Judy Garland as “the single most exciting thing in my life.”
During WW II, he offered to serve but was rejected. So he took flying lessons, became the second
smallest pilot in the country, and then helped the war effort by instructing in piloting and navigation in the Air Force Auxiliary. Living in Broomall, he obtained an M.B.A. degree from Drexel University. Fluent in German, he volunteered at the high school as a language tutor.
I heard this story from a long-time resident. Her son had come home from school raving about Mr. Raabe’s cookies. She told him to ask for the recipe. The son brought the recipe home. I asked, “Do you still have it?” She smiled, went to her recipe box and pulled it out. My wife made the cookies for the May program hosted by the Historical Society. Delicious!
Meinhardt Raabe retired to Florida in 1986, dying in 2010 at age 94. Truly a life well lived.
For the MUNCHKIN COOKIE RECIPE and more on the history of Marple, visit the Marple Historical Society website and Facebook page, and join the Society to keep up to date on coming events: www.MarpleHistoricalSociety.org