In the original novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum did not give the Wicked Witch of the West a proper name, or describe her as having green skin. In the first Oz film, made in 1910, she was named "Momba," possibly a variation of "Mombi," who was a different character in one of the later Oz novels. The Witch's green complexion was MGM's invention for the 1939 film, in which she was portrayed by actress Margaret Hamilton - and her depiction has since become iconic. The eyepatch is a nod to Baum's own description; he writes that she only had one eye, but that it "was as strong and powerful as a telescope."