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The Evolution of the Wizard of Oz

By NatalieHolcomb

  • The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Book)

    The first of 14 Oz-set fantasy books, by L. Frank Baum.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Stage Musical)

  • The Land of Oz (T.V. Episode)

    This was the first hour-long episode of The Shirley Temple Show on NBC-TV. It was based on Baum's second Oz book The Marvelous Land of Oz published in 1904. Characters included: Shirley Temple (Tip/Ozma), Jonathan Winters (Nikidik), Ben Blue (Scarecrow), Sterling Holloway (Jack Pumpkinhead), Gil Lamb (Tin Woodman), and Agnes Moorehead (Mombi).

  • The Wizard of Oz (Silent Film)

  • The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Short Film)

    Based of the 1902 Musical

  • The Patchwork Girl of Oz; The Magic Cloak; His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz (Silent Films)

    All three 1914 silent films, each five reels in length, were produced by Baum's own short-lived Oz Film Manufacturing Company. The last one was the closest to Baum's original book and the only one directed by him.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Film)

    Directed by Ray C. Smallwood. Never completed.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Film)

    The first full-length film version, seven reels in length. A silent slapstick comedy film from Chadwick Pictures and producer-director-star-writer Larry Semon, with comedian Oliver Hardy of Laurel and Hardy fame portraying the Tin Woodsman. Dorothy Dwan was Dorothy and Charles Murray was the Wizard.

  • The Scarecrow of Oz (FIlm Short)

    Virtually unknown. Featured a troupe of child stars known as Meglin Kiddies. The fantasy short was based on the Scarecrow from Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Film Short)

    A Canadian black and white feature with no dialogue, and with some Technicolor animations. Directed by Ted Eshbaugh. About 9 minutes in length

  • The Wizard of Oz (Film)

    Judy Garland starred in MGM's Technicolor classic.

  • Off to See the Wizard (TV series)

    An animated version for a weekly ABC-TV broadcast. Ran for about a year from the fall of 1967 to the fall of 1968. Produced by Chuck Jones.

  • The Wonderful Land of Oz (Film)

    Low-budget children's color version, based on Baum's The Marvelous Land of Oz. Directed by Barry Mahon.

  • Journey Back to OZ (Animated Film)

    Official sequel to the 1939 feature film. Filmed in the 1960s, but finally released in the US in 1974. Liza Minnelli was the singing voice of Dorothy. An ABC-TV version shown in 1976 featured live-action segments starring Bill Cosby as the Wizard. 88 minutes.

  • The Wiz (Film)

    Director Sidney Lumet's and Universal's Afro-American urban updated film of the Broadway musical, with New York City substituting for Oz, and singer Diana Ross in the lead role as Dorothy; also with Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow, Richard Pryor as the Wizard, and Lena Horne as Glinda the Good.

  • The Muppet Movie (Film Homage)

    Resemblances included the voyage by Kermit to Hollywood (Oz), his meeting with Lew Lord (the Wizard), the avoidance of the temptations of Doc Hopper (the Witch), and the song The Rainbow Connection - a variation of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

  • Under the Rainbow (Film)

    A tasteless comedy, directed by Steve Rash, set in 1938 during the filming of Oz that starred Chevy Chase, Carrie Fisher, and Eve Arden. The back-story behind the chaos and confusion created by the many Munchkin extras was strangely and improbably documented.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Animated Film)

    By director Takayama Fumihiko. With Bonanza's Lorne Greene as the voice of the Wizard.

  • Return to Oz (Film)

    Disney's and director Walter Murch's live-action, non-musical, unofficial sequel of the fantasy, with Fairuza Balk as Dorothy.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Stage)

    The Royal Shakespeare Company's stage production.

  • The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Animated TV Series)

    Short-lived for one season, with 52 half-hour episodes.

  • The Wizard of Oz (Animated TV Series)

    With 13 half-hour cartoon episodes, premiered on ABC-TV in the fall of 1990.

  • Wicked (Stage Musical)

    Stephen Schwartz' musical, opening in late 2003, was based on Gregory Maguire's 1995 unauthorized prequel novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. The series continued with Son of a Witch (2005), A Lion Among Men (2008) and Out of Oz (2011). The Tony-winning Broadway musical told the back story of Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West (Elphaba: derived from the name of the author L. F(rank) B(aum), L-F-B = Elphaba). The initial cast starred Kristin Cheno

  • The Muppets' Wizard of Oz

    Dorothy was portrayed by Ashanti, while Miss Piggy starred as all four witches. Gonzo played the Tin Man, Fozzie Bear was the Cowardly Lion, and Kermit the Frog was a green Scarecrow.

  • Tin Man (TV Mini-Series)

    A Sci-Fi channel three-part miniseries, with Alan Cumming, co-starring with Zooey Deschanel (as Kansas waitress DG).

  • Oz the Great and Powerful (Film)

    Disney's blockbuster prequel, with a budget of $200 million, starring James Franco as the Oz Wizard, and three witches: Theodora (Mila Kunis), Evanora (Rachel Weisz), and Glinda (Michelle Williams). Directed by Sam Raimi.