The Wizard Of Oz Turns 75!

The Wizard of Oz was released in theaters on this day back in 1939.  Growing up in the days before cable television (yeah, I guess I'm old), there were always movies that would come on television every year, usually at around the same time.

The Wizard of Oz typically came on during the fall, in November if I recall correctly.  As kids, we couldn't wait for it to come on, we counted down the days and became increasingly more excited when the trailers would run on TV.

We couldn't wait to hear again the story of Dorothy and her dog Toto and how she was carried off to the land of Oz where she meets the munchkins after she accidentally lands her house on the Wicked Witch of the East.

I recall a friend of mine making the statement when Toto made his way up the mountain to rescue Dorothy from the clutches of the Wicked Witch of the West, he said "There is no way that dog could climb up that mountain like that".  My reply was "but up to this point, the talking lion, scarecrow, and tin man, is completely believable, right?"

Pre-movie preparations consisted of making sure there were enough cold drinks in the fridge, pop enough popcorn for everyone (9 including mom and dad), and bathroom visits were taken care of at least for the time being.  For years, this classic entertained us at home and maybe even a couple of times when our local theater has a showing.

Hard to believe it has been 75 since this gem graced the big screen for the first time.  Since 1939, Dorothy, Toto, Scarecrow, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, and all the others, have been re-done, remastered, enhanced, re-edited, deleted scenes added, on Laser Disc, VHS, DVD, and Blu-Ray.

Here are a few fun facts about the Wizard of Oz:

1.  Bert Lahr’s Cowardly Lion costume weighed almost 100 pounds and was made with real lion pelts.

2.  In L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s slippers were silver. They were changed to “ruby” in order to take advantage of the Technicolor wow factor.

3.  Remember the different colored horses?  Originally, Jello powder was used to color them.  Why did that fail?  The horses would always lick themselves clean.

4.  Shirley Temple, 11 at the time, was the frontrunner for the part of Dorothy, but producers didn't feel she had the vocal ability for the part.

5.  Buddy Ebsen (aka Jed Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies) was the first choice for the Tin Man, but the actor suffered from an extreme allergic reaction to the aluminum dust in his makeup.

6.  The Wicked Witch’s makeup was toxic, so actress Margaret Hamilton lived on a liquid diet to avoid accidental ingestion. Her face stayed green for weeks after shooting finished due to the copper-based ingredients.

7.  3,210 costumes were created for the movie.

8.  Many of the scenes featuring the wicked witch, were cut because they were considered too frightening for children.

9.  The Wicked Witch’s death certificate is dated May, 6 1938, which marked the 20th anniversary of L. Frank Baum’s death.

10.  MGM paid L. Frank Baum a whopping $75,000 for the film rights to his book, which was big money in those days.

I absolutely love the movie.  My kids like it, but I don't see the excitement in their eyes like I had when I was a kid!