A MUNCHKIN TURNS 93!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO KARL SLOVER!

From Wikipedia:
Slover was born as Karl Kosiczky on September 21, 1918 in Prakovce, Slovakia (than Prakfalva, Kingdom of Hungary ). Diagnosed at an early age with pituitary dwarfism, Slover was barely two feet tall by his eighth birthday. Dwarfism was not a family trait; his father stood six feet six inches, and his mother was just a few inches shorter. Slover's father went to great lengths to make Slover taller including taking him to Hungary where doctors fixed stretchers to his arms and legs.

When Slover was just nine years old, his father sent him to work for a traveling midget show based out of Berlin, Germany. After working with the show for several years, Slover moved to the United States where he joined another traveling show.[2] It wasn't long before Slover began appearing as midgets in films like The Terror of Tiny Town, Block-Heads, Bringing Up Baby, and They Gave Him a Gun.

Slover was working in Hawaii when his circus manager sent him to Hollywood, where "little people" were needed for an upcoming film called The Wizard of Oz. At the age of 21 and standing just 4 feet 4 inches (making him the smallest of the Munchkins), Slover played the parts of four munchkins in the movie; the first trumpeter, a soldier, one of the sleepy heads, and was among those who sang 'Follow the Yellow Brick Road'.
After filming 'Oz', Slover began working for the 'Original World Famous Singers Midget Show' where he sang and danced throughout the United States. When the show ended in 1942, Slover joined the Royal American Carnival in Tampa, Florida. It was at this time that he took the last name, Slover; the last name of his stage manager.

Slover has remained very active in his later years and has participated in several celebrations related to the Wizard of Oz. Every June, Slover attends festivities celebrating Judy Garland's birthday at the Judy Garland Museum & Birthplace in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.[6] In November 2007, Slover joined seven other surviving munchkins in Hollywood where honorary mayor Johnny Grant unveiled a star dedicated to the munchkins on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Slover