We Represent the Lollipop Guild (The Wizard of Oz 1939)

The Wizard of Oz, much like Gone With the Wind is a movie that is tough to write anything new about.  I certainly do not need to write a synopsis for it because anyone who can read has likely seen it by now.  Although, that may not be the case for this generations children, because it is not as a big deal on television as it was when I was a child.

Lets start with the cast which is probably well known by many.  Judy Garland as Dorothy, Frank Morgan as Professor Marvel, The Wizard, Ray Bolger as Hunk/Scarecrow, Bert Lahr as Zeke/Cowardly Lion, Jack Haley as Hickory/Tin Man, Billie Burke as Glinda, Margaret Hamilton as Miss Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West, Charlie Grapewin as Uncle Henry, Pat Walshe as Nikko, and Clara Blandick as Auntie Em.

There are a few musicals out there that I can tolerate, this is one of them.  I can still recall the excitement when I first saw the commercial each year announcing when The Wizard of Oz would be aired.  Perhaps it is because my first appearance on "stage" was as a munchkin/flying monkey in a production that some of the adults staged at the condominium complex I lived in a the time.  I would later star as Sneezy in a production of Snow White, but that was a year away.

I can still remember being terrified of the flying monkeys as a child and recall having recurring nightmares that involved blood red flying monkeys chasing me home from the playground near my house.  I could never outrun them, I was always stuck in mud and the door to my house was always locked.  I am sure I had other nightmares as a child, but this is probably the only one I recall so vividly 37 years later.

Judy Garland was probably the first girl I had a crush on, well maybe I had a crush on Marie Osmond too.  At least Marie was alive, Judy had long since settled down for her dirt nap by the time I had first seen The Wizard of Oz.  I was young and innocent and had no idea of her drug and alcohol problems.

I am sure many movie buffs know all the trivia there is to know about this movie, but I will mention some things here anyway.  First, I was unaware until I watched Broadway Melody of 1936 that Buddy Ebsen was originally cast in the movie.  My wife shared this with me.  My wife told me he was originally supposed to be the Tin Man, but after I did a bit of searching, I found that isn't wholly accurate.  He was originally cast as the Scarecrow but agreed to switch with Ray Bolger as the Tin Man.  Ebsen inhaled some of the aluminum dust from the paint and had a very severe reaction to the paint and became seriously ill.  Jack Haley then came in to replace Ebsen.  Apparently in the 50th Anniversary DVD release there is some Buddy Ebsen footage that was included in the additional content.

This may not qualify as trivia, but it is interesting to me how many people think that The Wizard of Oz was completely black and white and was later colorized.  It was filmed in both sepia and Technicolor, but it was on TV annually.  Most people who grew up watching it on TV only had black and white TV's so they did not get to see the movie in its original format.  Now I had always heard that the reason for the black and white and color recording was because of the tornado footage.  I remember hearing that it was to be all in color, but there was no stock tornado footage in color and that is why the beginning and end is in black and white.  I have been unable to confirm this.  I think it is more likely that the switch is to make Oz; the land that Dorothy is swept off to, appears more magical by filming it in color.

Oz was nominated for 6 Academy Awards, but Best Picture is what put it on my radar.  As I mentioned in my Gone With the Wind blog, 1939 was a good year, a very good year.  It did not win Best Picture and it did not deserve to beat out Gone With the Wind.  That is not taking away what a great movie it is, but it give you a good idea of how much quality was out there that year.

The other nominees for Best Picture that year were.

• Dark Victory
• Gone With the Wind
• Goodbye, Mr. Chips
• Love Affair
• Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
• Ninotchka
• Of Mice and Men
• Stage Coach
• Wuthering Heights

I already mentioned the winner, but I think in any other year it would have most likely won the Best Picture award.  I give the movie 5 out of 5 stars and despite the fact that I have seen it one hundred times and am all grown up, would watch it if I saw it was on TV tonight.

I know this isn't your typical review, and I mentioned in the beginning this blog wouldn't be so much a review site.  Despite this movie being such a classic, I find myself thinking of another movie now when I think of The Wizard of Oz.  Thanks to Quentin Tarrantino and his disturbingly violent scene in Reservoir Dogs, whenever I hear or think about the Scarecrow, I picture "hey Scarecrow want some fire?"  and Steeler Wheels Stuck in the Middle with You.