By now, the characters in The Wizard of Oz and the actors who played them are iconic. What you might not know is many people came close to working on the film, including actors and other filmmakers. Here’s why the film you know was almost very different. The example that most people … Read more
Of all of the wonderful elements that made The Wizard of Oz shine, one of the most memorable is its clever use of color. While the 1939 film was not the first to be shot in color, its bright production design and saturated palette made it stand out. So why did the … Read more
This month we dispel one of the most common Wizard of Oz “myth” understandings. Myth: Dorothy keeps the Ruby Slippers. Many fans of The Wizard of Oz retain a false memory of how the film ends. It seems there are legions of people who remember that once Dorothy awakens back in Kansas and exclaims, … Read more
In 1938, Frank Morgan was one of Hollywood’s “featured players,” that is, an actor who was not a major star in terms of box office draw and revenue, but was a reliable and competent performer who was an audience favorite. Morgan was born Francis Phillip Wuppermann on June 1, 1890, in New … Read more
“For me, the best memory of watching the Wizard of Oz was a bit over a year and a half ago, when I was hospitalized. I hadn’t been long at Navy boot camp when I got sick – even now I don’t really know what it was I came down with, some … Read more
“As I was growing up in St. Louis, MO., the oldest of four kids every year we would gather around our TV and watch the Wizard of Oz. But, first, we prepared by popping popcorn on the stovetop and coating it with real butter and pouring big glasses of 7Up to go … Read more
“I loved watching this movie with my dad. He would always tell us it was his favorite movie when he was a kid. He saw it when it first came out and he would talk about how when Dorothy would open the door and go from black and white to color and … Read more
“I watched the annual broadcast of “The Wizard of Oz” with my mother since before I can remember. Being the youngest of five kids it was one of the few things just she and I did together. We watched every year, before and after cable TV. I tune in to this day … Read more
“I was probably five years old the first time I saw the Wizard of Oz and it was amazing. Every year I would wait and count the days until it came on again. It was like Christmas for me, and still today I believe the greatest movie ever made. But the most … Read more
Back in the day, the Wizard of Oz only came on TV once a year. My sisters, mother & I waited for it to come on and we all watched it together. It was a special time for us all to be together. When my daughter was old enough to watch, she … Read more