It's like seeing The Wizard of Oz for the first time!- Page 3

[folkyboy]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 12:14pm

yeah a lot of this is all in the Wizard of Oz boxed set thats out. it's very cool to read all about it :) this movie is extremely magical

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 12:31pm

I really love the Wizard of Oz, as weird as my friends think that is. I even own ruby slippers that look just like the ones from the film (really they're not 'slippers'-- they're more like pumps.) One of the first shows I ever did was Wizard of Oz-- I played the Wicked Witch (this was before Wicked came out, so it was before the Wicked Witch was considered 'cool'), and it was one of the most ridiculously fun experiences of my life. My sister was the Tin Man one year for Halloween, I was once a Flying Monkey, and my family has a Wizard of Oz themed Christmas tree.

I used to be REALLY scared of those guards who guard the witch's castle, though. I think they're called Winkies? The ones that sound like they're saying, "Oreo, yoho?" Yeah, I had nightmares about them until my cousin played one of them in a production.

Neil Cicierega, the guy who made Potter Puppet Pals and the Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny, made a weird but wonderful remake of Wizard of Oz with a bunch of his filmmaker friends. "Dorothy" is a drunken hobo named Tom, and I'm pretty sure the witch is supposed to be a David Bowie ripoff. It's not appropriate for small children, but it's one of my favourite things on the internet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHV9TnvHo2A

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 12:40pm

What a wonderful story, Besty!

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:01pm

b12b, what a beautiful story.

When Dorothy and the Scarecrow come upon the Tin Man, has anyone else noticed someone (possibly a crew member) walking in the background between a couple of trees? Keep an eye out the next time you see the movie. I remember seeing this when I was younger, and always make sure to look when this particular scene comes on.

[Biff AKA Levi]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:03pm

Rumor has it that its the swinging body of a dead Munchkin, but I've read that its a wild ostrich running around the set. I don't know if that's true, though.

I never realized the body double!

Margaret Hamilton sounds like a wonderful lady!

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:13pm

My daughter kept asking me what my favorite part of the movie is and I had to say the moment when the film goes from B&W to color. Seeing it for the first time last night, my six-year-old son went, "WHOOOOAAAAA!" at that point in the movie.

I realized, however, that it's not just about the transition from B&W to color. It's also because the whole time she's in the house -- landing, opening her bedroom door, walking through the parlor to the front door -- there's complete silence. No music.

Then, she opens the door and we hear that lush and magical score, see all the colors and see Dorothy's face as she discovers this new world. Her eyes are our eyes, and the enormity of the fantasy and its beauty is transferred to each and every person watching it as Dorothy experiences it.

John Waters said, "I was the only kid in the movie theater who wanted Dorothy to stay in Oz rather than go home. I couldn't understand why she would want to leave all that color to go back to dull ol' Kansas."

My husband and I immediately responded to that remark by saying, "No! I felt that way too!"

Updated On: 9/28/08 at 01:13 PM

[Biff AKA Levi]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:17pm

Let the moment go...
Don't forget it for a moment, though.
Just remembering you've had and "and",
When you're back to "or",
Makes the "or" mean more
Than it did before.
Now I understand-

And it's time to leave the woods.

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:32pm

Biff-- yeah, it was the ostrich, pecking the ground. Did you read that from that column called The Straight Dope?

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:37pm

I've heard the rumor as a member of the stage crew hanging himself. But it's clearly a big bird stretching its feathers. I always saw a bird, never a suicide! It's like "I buried Paul."

But it's clarified in every reference book and website I've read, even IMDB.

[tommyboy]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:39pm

Biff -- let's you and I go tell Mr. Sondheim it is NEVER time to leave the woods.
Oh, and Schnerg is quickly becoming one of my least fav posters. Would you please just go away? Updated On: 9/28/08 at 01:39 PM

[Melicus]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 1:59pm

A couple of weeks ago, I went down to the Starlight Theatre in Kansas City to see Les Miserables. My aunt was jokingly trying to convince me not to go, because my uncle was out of town that night, and I'm always on call when she's at home alone.

As a scare tactic, she said, "They have tornadoes down there. Didn't you see that movie about Dorothy?" LOL!

Wrong state since I was going to Kansas City, MO. :)

Best12Bars: Once again, you've captivated my attention with your knowledge of this topic, and your heart touching story about Margaret Hamilton.

Miss Pennywise: I love the following quote from your post. You summed it up beautifully!

"Then, she opens the door and we hear that lush and magical scoring, see all the colors and see Dorothy's face as she discovers this new world. Her eyes are our eyes, and the enormity of the fantasy and its beauty is transferred to each and every person watching it as Dorothy experiences it."

[StockardFan]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 2:09pm

Oh, I haven't seen the Wizard of Oz in ages!!!!

I'm glad your kids liked it Miss P!

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 2:18pm

You should see it again, SF. It's still one of the best movies ever made.

[StockardFan]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 2:20pm

My son has never seen it.......I think I'll have to rent it this week for sure!

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 2:21pm

How old is your son, SF?

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:12pm

NEWS FLASH! My son just walked in and asked, "Can we watch THE WIZARD OF OZ again?"

How can I say, "No"?

Updated On: 9/28/08 at 03:12 PM

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:20pm

I don't know if I feel sad or jealous that kids today can watch it any time. It was so "special" to have to wait for that one night a year to see it on TV.

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:39pm

Joe, I think it's better this way, actually.

First of all, no commercials! Second, we can stop it and they can ask questions. Third, I can watch it with them...as opposed to it being shown on a night when I have to be away for work. (I would hate to have missed watching this with my son the first time he's ever seeing it!)

But I completely know what you mean about the anticipation. All I can tell you is that no matter how it's viewed, children still see it as being extremely "special."

Right now my two are thoroughly mesmerized!

[StockardFan]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:42pm

Miss P, my son is 5. How old is your son? For some reason I was thinking they are around the same age aren't they?

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:43pm

This one has to be seen to be believed.

I like Swiss Miss Dorothy... and the Werewolf Witch thingy at the end. Wow.


(I can just picture husk ordering this DVD right now!)

Turkish "Oz" from 1971

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 3:54pm

Yes, you're right, SF. My son is 6. I would have had him watch it at 5, but his sister (who is 6 years older) kept saying, "No, it's scary!" (She was OBSESSED with the movie when she was little. I think I calculated that we watched it 53 times over the course of 6 months!) Then she got older and grew more cautious, as children often do.

So we've been on an "Oz sabbatical" for the past 3 or 4 years. For some reason, this past Friday she started requesting that we watch it. My son was like, "No! No! Let's watch something that's not scary!" I told him him he could leave the room at any parts he thought were frightening, but he never moved, not once!

So I think 5 is the perfect age to introduce a child to it...of course every child is different. My daughter fell in love with it when she was 2! (She didn't have an older sibling putting the fear of the wicked witch in her!)

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 4:01pm

I just found this randomly...


Afghan Children Reacting to the Wizard of Oz

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 4:05pm

Besty, that's making me cry. (I know, I'll rust.)

My kids look just like that right now. It's so wonderful how art is truly the universal language.

[StockardFan]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 4:09pm

Besty, that made me cry too!!! (Miss P we are such saps....LOL)

I love the boy laughing at the munchin voices!

Well, that settles it! I'm going to Blockbuster tomorrow and getting it!

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 9/28/08 at 4:11pm

SF, I defy you to keep from crying (and laughing out loud) while you watch it with the kids!