Oz News

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(I will update this page when there is news to tell. Any news older than a year is dropped at the next update. If you have news to report, please e-mail me.)

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(For more Oz news, check out The Daily Ozmopolitan. For the latest Oz not-quite-news, see the Rumor Control section of this page.)

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April 26, 2013: The Baum Bugle, Winter 2012 issue

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The latest issue of The Baum Bugle, the thrice-a-year journal of the International Wizard of Oz Club, is now back from the printers and making its way to members. It's a few months late (well, the streak couldn't last forever), but this is the final issue for members in 2012, and they will need to renew soon.


In this issue:

  • The front cover features an illustration of Dorothy in the poppy field, as seen in the 1903 Broadway stage production of The Wizard of Oz. The original drawing was by H. C. Edwards, and appeared in the March 7, 1903 issue of Leslie's Weekly. For this cover, it was newly colored by Marcus Mébès.
  • Former editor Sean P. Duffley returns as guest editor for this issue, and he talks about the 1902 play and how it helped to popularize Oz in "Letter from the Guest Editor".
  • In "Oz and Ends:
    • Two recent successful Kickstarter campaigns are highlighted, for the movie L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and the Oz/Wonderland graphic novel mash-up The Red Queen of Oz.
    • The then-forthcoming release of the movie Oz the Great and Powerful, and the anticipated release this year of Dorothy of Oz (which has since been pushed back to 2014 and renamed The Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return.
    • Recently sold at auction are what appear to be a transcription disc of two episodes of the 1933-34 Wizard of Oz radio show (which would be the first known recordings to emerge of that show), and one of Judy Garland's dresses from the famous movie version, going for $480,000 in November.
    • New books include Everything Oz: The Wizard of Oz Book of Makes & Bakes by Christine Leech and Hannah Read=Baldrey; Kohl's edition of The Wizard of Oz illustrated by Charles Santore and matching Toto plush, which were used to raise money for charity (and are no longer available); and the forthcoming autobiography of MGM Flowerpot Munchkin actress Margaret Pellegrini, tentatively titled From the Outhouse to Oz.
    • The results of the Canadian talent search show Over the Rainbow, which cast Danielle Wade as Dorothy in the Toronto (and forthcoming North American touring) production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage adaptation of The Wizard of Oz.
    • A production of the play Oz in Lexington, Kentucky.
    • The new {https://www.facebook.com/appcenter/wozgame Wizard of Oz game on Facebook].
    • The forthcoming theatrical rerelease of the famous film version of The Wizard of Oz in theaters for its seventy-fifth anniversary and subsequent new home video release, including, for the first time, 3-D, as well as new anniversary merchandise.
    • New Oz-themed music videos, created by Australian Club members Sam Milazzo.
    • The premature but necessary release of Dorothy of Oz make-up and other sundries to Dollar General stores.
  • Stephen J. Teller looks at various scripts, performances, and reviews of the 1902 stage play and how it evolved in "The Wizard of Oz and How It Grew".
  • An article from the August 1902 issue of the periodical The Philharmonic about The Wizard of Oz play and how it was made.
  • "Oz Under Scrutiny" looks at several contemporary reviews of the first stage adaptation of The Wizard of Oz.
  • Reviewed in "The Oz Bookshelf":
  • Susan Johnson is introduced as the Club's new online store manager.
  • Sean P. Duffley examines the life and career of Lotta Faust, who shot to fame at the turn of the century by singing "Sammy" in The Wizard of Oz in "Lotta's Luster Lost?"
  • "CuriOzity" looks at a late nineteenth century patent medicine, Hamlin's Wizard Oil, which indirectly led to The Wizard of Oz coming to the stage.
  • The rear cover reproduces a picture of Lotta Faust from the January 1905 cover of the magazine The Theatre.

March 20, 2013: Risë Stevens

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Risë Stevens, the acclaimed mezzo-soprano who brought opera to the masses in the 1940s and '50s, died today at her home in New York City. She was 99 years old. Although she performed all over the world, Stevens was best remembered for her twenty-three seasons performing at the Metropolitan Opera. She was considered by many to be the definitive Carmen of her time, but also performed many other roles as well. For those who couldn't make it to see her in person, Stevens became known through records and radio and television appearances. She also acted in three movies: opposite Bing Crosby in Going My Way, with Nelson Eddy in The Chocolate Soldier, and as the voice of Glinda the Good in the animated feature Journey Back to Oz. Stevens is survived by her son and granddaughter.

(Information courtesy Scott Hutchins, Wikipedia, and The New York Times. Picture from Journey Back to Oz courtesy of The Everything Oz Club on Facebook.)

November 27, 2012: The Baum Bugle, Autumn 2012

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This year's Autumn issue of The Baum Bugle, the journal of the International Wizard of Oz Club, has now been published and is making its way to members' mailboxes now. This issue celebrates the centennial of Sky Island, L. Frank Baum's major fantasy story of 1912, and also the life of Martin Gardner, one of the founding members of what was originally called The Wizard of Oz Fan Club.

In this issue:

Also included were notices sure to be of interest to all kinds of Oz fans:

Anyone interested in becoming a member of the International Wizard of Oz Club — membership includes all three issues of The Baum Bugle for the year — is encouraged to go visit http://www.ozclub.org/Quadling_Country_Join.html. (And hey, current members, it's also time to think about renewing!)

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August 17, 2012: The 2012 L. Frank Baum Memorial Award winner

Tonight, the International Wizard of Oz Club bestowed its highest award, the L. Frank Baum Memorial Award, to Atticus Gannaway. Gannaway is a published author of several books, notably The Silver Sorceress of Oz. But his greatest contributions to Oz and the Club were as the editor in chief of the Club's journal, The Baum Bugle, for many years. It is a well-deserved honor!

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July 28, 2012: The 2012 Winkie Award winner

During the awards ceremony at the Winkie Convention this evening, the Winkies gave their highest honor to Laura Gjovaag, for her editorship of the convention newsletter. Although she's not much of an Oz fan, she helps the Winkies out with the convention and communication throughout the year. It was a popular win!

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Rumor Control

(Because of the many questions I am asked about possible forthcoming Oz projects or other bits of pseudo-news, I have added this section to answer some of these inquiries.)

Okay, yes, word has leaked out that Warner Bros. tried to talk Robert Zemeckis into directing a remake of The Wizard of Oz, using the same screenplay as the famous 1939 Judy Garland version. Zemeckis already rejected the idea. This probably puts the idea on the back burner for a while, and based on the extreme negative reaction the idea got, I suspect it will stay there. Rumors of this have surfaced again, but appear to be the result of someone finding the old story and running it again.

It's getting harder and harder to keep up with all of the currently planned Oz movie projects. Bear in mind that at this stage, most of it is speculation and/or not even in pre-production, or possibly even a game of "Telephone". But here are some of the current Oz movies that could be coming to your local theater in the next few years:

  • Dark Oz 3-D, based on the old Caliber comic book.
  • A non-musical, faithful adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz from New Line and Temple Hill.
  • Dorothy of Oz, an animated musical sequel based on the book by Roger S. Baum. Although some merchandise (notably a prequel comic book series) already came out under that name, a new distributor means that it has acquired a new name, Legends of Oz: Dorothy Returns. The release has now been announced for some yet-to-be-determined date in 2014.
  • The Oz Wars, which would have the witches fighting for control of the Emerald City while the Wizard leads the resistance.
  • John Boorman's animated adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz seems to be on track for release — in France. Once it's released, an English-language release will likely come out soon afterwards. (However, in a recent interview, Boorman admitted that the project has stalled due to lack of funding.)
  • Oz: Return to the Emerald City was one of two possible competing projects at Warner Bros. This original sequel may now be shopped around to other studios, or turned into a novel.
  • The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, a low-budget independent production from Barnyard Studios and Used Productions. This is very much a shoestring production, which is looking for money and actors. But its Kickstarter campaign to raise the last money it needed was a success, so it may be finished soon.
  • Legend of Oz, a modern retelling of The Wizard of Oz from Valley Wind Productions in Ottawa.
  • Yes, it looks like a film version of Wicked is currently in pre-planning at Universal. But this is a long way off, and a lot can happen. However, the success of the play most likely means that there will be a film version some day. Winnie Holzman, who wrote the book for the play, has already been tapped to write the script.
  • Oz, a new telling of The Wizard of Oz.
  • A still unnamed horror movie set in the 1920s with Dorothy meeting Alice in Bedlam Asylum.
  • Red Brick Road, a television series continuation of The Wizard of Oz in the style of Game of Thrones.
  • A Wicked television miniseries, based on the original book (not the stage musical). Salma Hayak was attached to this as a producer. When last heard of, it was under development at ABC.

No, Peter Jackson is not producing or directing a billion-dollar all-CGI remake of The Wizard of Oz for Warner Bros. How do stories like this get started? Oh, maybe in stories like this...

It seems the Hash, Inc., animated production of The Tin Woodman of Oz was successful enough that they're going ahead with their next production, The Scarecrow of Oz. This one even has test footage on YouTube, which looks something like this:

A computer animated production of Baum's 1902 book The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus is currently in the works. The producers are Hyde Park Entertainment, Toonz Entertainment, and Gang of 7 Animation. As with all movie projects, a lot can happen before release, which could cause them be delayed, or not to appear at all. Keep an eye on this website's news and events pages for details if they get closer to actually coming out.

In recent years, there have been proposals for other Oz or related projects, none of which now appear that they will get off the ground. Among them:

  • Lost in Oz, a series that was to feature Melissa George as a Kansas university student who is whisked to Oz sixty years after the events of The Wizard of Oz (The Movie) and helping to spearhead a rebellion against the new Wicked Witch of the West. Although developed for the WB and a pilot film produced, it was never picked up, nor the pilot shown. (But keep an eye out on auction sites, as a bootleg DVD sometimes shows up…)
  • A telelvision miniseries based on Gregory Maguire's novel Wicked, with Demi Moore in the title role. (There are stories that the people developing this version later pushed their involvement into the musical version now playing on Broadway and elsewhere.)
  • The O. Z., a hip-hop flavored re-telling of The Wizard of Oz for Fox. Among the rumored Dorothy's at one point were Brandy, Mya, and the late Aaliyah. Justin Timberlake, John Leuizamo, and Little Richard were mentioned for other parts.
  • Surrender Dorothy. Drew Barrymore as Dorothy's great-granddaughter coming to Oz, and battling the Wicked Witch of the West's granddaughter. (Rumors of this recently resurfaced, but were quickly squelched. This project is dead.)
  • Somewhere starring Elizabeth Taylor as Dorothy, now a grandmother, returning to Oz. The deaths of both Taylor and developer Rod Steiger means this is unlikely to ever happen.
  • Pamela West, where the Wicked Witch is the innocent victim and Dorothy (with Toto as a pit bull) is the evil interloper.
  • The Land of Oz (not based on the book of the same name), produced by Hallmark for NBC. This eventually became the basis for the Sci Fi Channel miniseries Tin Man.
  • The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus from Circa Pictures. It's no longer listed on their website.
  • A Bollywood adaptation of The Wizard of Oz in India.
  • A movie version of American McGee's (later cancelled) Oz video game.
  • Geoff Ryman's Was.

If progress is made on any of these projects, such as actually going into production or a release date announced, the news will be posted as quickly as possible on this page. But at this stage, any of these going into production is very unlikely. (However, Tin Man was part of this list for some time before its eventual completion and broadcast on the Sci-Fi Channel.)

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