Paving the Yellow Brick Road

Production #1060

Kyra Wheatley
LIBR 1120
OCTOBER 27, 2017
 Paving the Yellow Brick Road

Every so often a movie is released that stands the test of time, and it becomes a classic
that the whole world enjoys. These movies are watched year after year by adoring fans, and have
a timeless magic that film lovers everywhere appreciate. The Wizard of Oz is a perfect example
of this, as it has become a motion picture legend since its release 78 years ago. The creation of
this film coursed over many months, and endured numerous ups and downs. It is a testament to
the wonder of this picture that it has survived as long as it has, with new fans falling in love
every year. The Wizard of Oz has a rich history that many people are unaware of, spanning from
the writing of the original novel to the numerous spin offs being made year after year.
The mastermind behind the world of Oz is L. Frank Baum, who was born on May 15,
1856 in Chittenango, New York. His children’s book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was
illustrated by W. W. Denslow, originally published on May 17, 1900 by the George M. Hill
Company in Chicago. This novel has since been reprinted many times, usually under the title The
Wizard of Oz. It was originally entitled “The Emerald City”, and then briefly before publication
was “From Kansas to Fairyland”. W. W. Denslow earned more praise from critics for his work
on this novel than the author. Baum himself wrote thirteen more books set in the Land of Oz, and
29 more novels were written by others following his death on May 6, 1919. In 1902 a Broadway
musical adaptation of The Wizard of Oz came to life, which included a script and lyrics written
by L. Frank Baum. This musical ran for 293 performances and was well received. The first film
adaptation was a one-reeler shot by the Selig company in 1910, followed by a silent film version
in 1925. (See Appendix A for more early adaptations) Neither of these were particularly
successful, which is lucky as that may have hindered the creation of the version we all know and
love.
Adapting The Wonderful Wizard of Oz into a film was a difficult task that took many
months and a considerable amount of money. It is debated who persuaded Louis B. Mayer of
MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer) Studios to purchase the rights to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
Either the film’s producer Mervyn LeRoy or the assistant producer Arthur Freed took on this
task in the fall of 1937. Regardless of whoever convinced him, Mayer purchased the story from
Samuel Goldwyn for $75,000 on June 3, 1938. His was the highest of five offers, which was a
great amount for Goldwyn who originally purchased the story for $40,000 in 1933. Years later
Walt Disney Productions purchased the rights to the other 13 Oz stories L. Frank Baum wrote, in
November of 1954. There are many differences between this production and the original novel,
however some elements of the book were too difficult or expensive to recreate back in 1938.
Some elements changed purely because that was the will of the writers. Regardless, it has
survived as the most well known and loved adaptations to this day. (See Appendix B for details
on the differences)
The Wizard of Oz has been referred to as one of the most perfectly cast films ever to be
made. However, the final cast is far from who was supposed to be starring in this picture. Most
of the principal players were second, or even third choice for their roles. Maybe the most drastic
change from the original planned cast is that of the switch from Shirley Temple to Judy Garland.
MGM had made a deal with 20th Century Fox to loan Clark Gable and Jean Harlow out, and in
return have Shirley Temple star in The Wizard of Oz. However, this deal was called off following
Harlow’s sudden death by uremic poisoning at the young age of 26. After this Deanna Durbin
was considered, but then cast aside for the final choice of Judy Garland. Arthur Freed was the

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driving force behind this choice, as he kept pushing for the young star to have the role until
everyone finally agreed.
Along with Dorothy, the Tin Woodman was set to be played by someone else. Buddy
Ebsen was cast in this role and even rehearsed for twelve weeks, pre-recording all the songs and
filming for the first wo weeks. Unfortunately, due to a health issue stemming from his silver
make-up, he was hospitalized and replaced by Jack Haley. (See Appendix C for more dangers of
this film) Lucky for Ray Bolger, who was originally the Tin Woodman, Buddy Ebsen agreed to
trade roles with him for the Scarecrow early on in the process. Ray Bolger was an uncontested
choice to star in this picture, along with Bert Lahr as the Lion and Charley Grapewin as Uncle
Henry. The Wizard however took a few tries to get right. W.C. Fields was the first choice for this
role, but he made the mistake of turning it down. Following this Ed Wynn was chosen, but he
thought the part was too small. Wallace Beery also tested for the role, but the producers believed
his personality was too extravagant. As the fourth and final choice, Frank Morgan landed the
role.
The Wicked Witch of the West took three tries to find the right fit. Edna May Oliver was
the first thought for the role, but was quickly ruled out. The next choice, Gale Sondergaard, got
as far as testing and having costumes made, but was dismissed as the producers believed she was
too beautiful to play such a character. (See Appendix D for info on costumes) Finally, Margaret
Hamilton, an ex-schoolteacher, got the part. She had the advantage as performing as the Witch
twice before onstage, and therefore was much better suited than the first two choices. Hamilton
thought she had lost the role to Gale Sondergaard following her audition, but then ran into
Mervyn LeRoy at a football game and was offered the part. On the other side of the spectrum,
the Good Witch of the North was originally set as Helen Hilbert. Unfortunately for her, she was
suspended from the studio shortly after this choice was made, and Billie Burke was chosen as her
replacement. Auntie Em was the last major character who took a few tries to cast. May Robson
was picked for this role, but backed out as she thought the role lacked substance. Janet Beecher
was also considered; however, she was ruled out because the role didn’t suit her well enough.
The last and final choice for this role was Clara Blandick, who had the good fortune of becoming
a part of this film.
The Wizard of Oz was a very large production in a number of ways. The final cost of this
film was $2,777,000, and the shooting schedule was a total of 22 weeks- including a week off to
change directors. The average MGM film back then cost around $1.5 million and took about
eight weeks to film, which is far less time and money than this production needed. Despite how
much was invested into this picture, it was actually “intended as a prestige picture that would
more or less break even” (Harmetz 19). The Wizard of Oz was Production #1060, and was one of
41 movies made by MGM in 1939. It was filmed on their Culver City lot, with scenes in Kansas
shot in sepia and Oz shot in technicolor. A few scenes ended up being cut from the film,
including two songs and a scene with a rainbow bridge. (See Appendix E for details) It ran
through four directors during the weeks it was made, although in the end full credit for direction
was given to Victor Fleming. The first director, Richard Thorpe, was dismissed after the first two
weeks of filming, with the next director George Cukor following after only a few days. The main
director for this picture was Victor Fleming. He was on set for the bulk of shooting, which was a
definite advantage for the production of this film as he was known for his talent at handling
technically difficult productions. George Cukor had moved on to work on Gone with the Wind,
but was fired. This caused the final change of directors for this picture. King Vidor was initially
going to replace Cukor, but felt unprepared and traded with Victor Fleming. Fleming then went

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on to direct Gone with the Wind and Vidor, who refused credit, finished off the last three weeks
of shooting for The Wizard of Oz.
There are bound to be negative reviews of any film, but for the most part The Wizard of
Oz was very well received by the public and critics alike. It was not as successful as it could have
been upon release, as opening night was only a week before the commencement of World War
II. However, it still managed to gain enough support and recognition to be a key player in the
Oscars in 1940. The Wizard of Oz was nominated for three awards they did not win. These
include Best Picture (known then as Outstanding Production), which was lost to Gone with the
Wind, along with Art Direction (Cedric Gibbons and William A. Horning) and Special Effects
(A. Arnold Gillespie and Douglas Shearer). This film was the winner of Best Song for “Over the
Rainbow” (Harold Arlen (music) and E.Y. Harburg (lyrics)), and Best Original Score (MGM
musical director Herbert Stothart). Judy Garland also received a Special Award from the Motion
Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences for being 1939’s outstanding juvenile. This was a
miniature Oscar presented by Mickey Rooney, another young star of the time.
The Wizard of Oz has been known throughout its 78 years as a truly legendary picture. Its
magic has warmed the hearts of fans of all ages, and these fans have contributed to the
continuation of its success. While many versions of the film have been created since its release,
The Wizard of Oz has stood its ground as the most memorable and highly regarded adaptation.
(See Appendix F for details on later adaptations) It has been adored for decades, and will
continue to be watched for many years to come, cementing its place in movie history.

Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney at the 1940 Oscars

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 Bibliography

Harmetz, Aljean. The Making of the Wizard of Oz. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1977.
Langley, Noel, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf. The Wizard of Oz: The Screenplay.
New York: Dell Publishing, 1989.
McClelland, Doug. Down the Yellow Brick Road: The Making of The Wizard of Oz. New York:
Pyramid Books, 1976.
Rushdie, Salman. The Wizard of Oz. London: British Film Institute, 1992.
"THE 12TH ACADEMY AWARDS | 1940." 2015. Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture
Arts and Sciences. Picture. 10 October 2017.
<https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1940>.
The Wizard of Oz. Dir. Victor Fleming. Perf. Judy Garland, et al. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. 1939.

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 Appendices

Appendix A- Adaptations of the novel before 1939:

 1902 Broadway musical adaptation “The Wizard of Oz”
o Ran for 293 performances
o Script and lyrics by L. Frank Baum
 First film adaptation- a one-reeler by the Selig company in 1910
 Baums’ “radio-plays”
o One of the earliest examples of mixed media performances
o Read his Oz stories on a stage while picturizations shot by the Selig company
were shown on the large screen beside him (did they show the one-reeler??)
 1913- Baum formed the Oz film company in LA
o Lasted 2 years
o Made 3 five-reel, silent Land of Oz photoplays- all failed
 1925 silent film version
o Dorothy was older and was hurled to Oz with 3 farm hands, who the wizard then
turned into the Scarecrow, Tin Woodman, and Lion

Appendix B- Differences between the movie and book:

 There is no suggestion in novel of Oz being a dream.
 Only first two pages and last 2 lines of the book are about Kansas, and the Tin Woodman,
Scarecrow, and Lion don’t have farm hand counterparts in Kansas.
 The ruby slippers from the film are silver shoes in the book. What was then known as the
final “DO NOT MAKE CHANGES” script (4th script, May 14 1938) is where it changed
to Ruby slippers.
 Land of Oz is surrounded by a Deadly Desert in the book, which is why Dorothy must
find the Wizard to tell her how to get home.
 They encounter Kalidahs (bear/tiger hybrids), gaps in the yellow brick road, and more
dangers on the way to The Emerald City in the book.
 After they fall asleep in the poppy field, the characters are woken by the field mouse
Queen and her mice in the novel. This would have been very difficult to film and was
replaced in the movie.
 The four travelers also have to wear green glasses in The Emerald City to protect their
eyes from the glittering emeralds.
 The Wizard appears as something different to each character in the novel: Dorothy sees
him as a giant head, the Scarecrow sees him as a beautiful lady, the Cowardly Lion sees
him as a ball of fire, and the Tin Woodman sees him as a horrible beast.
 The Witch tries to kill them while they approach her castle by sending 40 crows, 40
wolves, and a swarm of killer bees their way. This mention of bees may be why the
Witch threatens to turn the Tin Woodman into a beehive in the film.
 The Lion was taken to the Witch’s castle with Dorothy and Toto in the novel, while the
Scarecrow and Tin Woodman were incapacitated by being unstuffed and horribly dented.

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  The Witch locks the Lion in a cage and forces Dorothy to do housework upon their
capture. A scene from the film’s script included Dorothy being forced to scrub all of the
Witch’s floors, but it was part of a much larger area that was deleted for various reasons.
 The Witch’s death in the film follows her stealing one of Dorothy’s silver shoes, who
then in anger throws a bucket of water at her. The use of water to kill the witch was kept
in the film, however the lead up was different. Dorothy tossed a bucket of water at the
Scarecrow after the Witch sets him on fire, but it hits the Witch and causes her to melt.
 The Witch summons her power from a magic Golden Cap in the novel, which Dorothy
and her friends use to return to The Emerald City after her death.
 The Wizard is from Omaha in the novel, unlike the movie where he is from Kansas as
Dorothy is.
 The gifts the Wizard gives are also different in the movie. In the novel the Scarecrow
receives a head full of bran, pins, and needles, the Lion receives a potion of courage, and
the Tin Woodman receives a silk heart stuffed full of sawdust.
 The Wizard and Dorothy sew a hot air balloon with green silk in the novel, and just as in
the film Dorothy gets left behind as she runs to get Toto.
 In the novel Dorothy and her friends must travel to find the Good Witch of the South in
order for Dorothy to return home. They encounter more dangers on their way including
the fighting trees (which are seen in the film), and armless Hammer-Heads. Upon
arriving the give Glinda- The Good Witch of the South- the Golden Cap, who then gives
it to the flying monkeys so they will never be put under its power again.

Appendix C- Issues/dangers with making the movie:

 The snow used to wake the characters up in the poppy field was asbestos
 When the Witch set the Scarecrow’s arm on fire, the section of his costume that was set
on fire was made of asbestos so he wouldn’t be burned
 The primary element of Buddy Ebsen’s facial make-up was an aluminum dust spray, and
inhaling so much of this caused a breathing impairment first thought to be aluminum
poisoning
o After this issue, the make-up for Jack Haley was made into a paste of the
aluminum dust
 Toto was stepped on by a crew member, and took a two week leave
 The Witch’s hand was badly burnt while filming the scene where she writes “surrender
Dorothy” in the sky, and then her stunt double was burnt even worse in the reshoot
 When the Witch left Munchkindland she was lowered on an elevator, with smoke
released as she stepped on the elevator and fire released once she had been lowered
o This was shot once and went perfectly, however during a second take the fire
released early, setting her broom and hat on fire
o Margaret Hamilton’s make-up had copper in it, which meant this was very
dangerous; alcohol had to be poured onto her burnt face to remove the make-up
and she was out of filming for six weeks

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Appendix D- Costumes:
 The Tin Woodman’s costume made it so he was unable to sit, and the crew had to devise
a special leaning board for him to rest against
 The Lion’s costume was made of actual lion pelt, and weight 50 lbs
 The Lion’s tail was worked by a stagehand, who would stand on a catwalk and move it
around with a fishing pole
 The Witch’s hair had to be in a bun in order to pin her large hit in place, and her shoes
were high laced and her dress short in order for her to use the stairs easily
 At 16 Judy Garland was starting to look to old to play Dorothy, so a special haute corset
was designed to bind her breasts and her hair was put in pigtails
o Originally Judy Garland was supposed to be wearing a blonde wig, and there was
an attempt to change the shape of her nose with putty
 The Scarecrow’s thick make-up left lines on his face for months following production

Appendix E- Cut scenes:

 Two songs were cut from the film throughout the process:
o Over the Rainbow reprise- this song was part of a much longer scene that did not
make the cut (the Rainbow Bridge); it was sung by Dorothy was she was being
held captive by the Witch
o The Jitterbug- this song was sung by the Tin Woodman, Lion, Scarecrow, and
Dorothy as they traveled to the Witch’s castle. In this scene a “jitterbug” bites the
characters, and they become overwhelmed by song and dance. A lead in to this
song remained in the film; it was said by the Witch as she instructed her monkeys
to go get Dorothy and Toto:
 “I’ve sent a little insect on ahead to take the fight out of them!” (Fleming)
 Four scenes were also cut from the film:
o The Scarecrow’s Dance- this scene was an extended dance section during the
Scarecrow’s song when Dorothy found him.
o The Beehive- in this scene the Witch has made the Tin Woodman a beehive,
filling him with bees. He opens his mouth and a swarm of bees flies out.
o The Triumphant Procession- this scene is a parade in the Emerald City after the
Witch is killed, and it includes a reprise of Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead
o The Rainbow Bridge- in this scene the Witch tries to get Dorothy’s friends to trick
her into crossing a rainbow bridge between two towers, where she would fall
through to her death in the middle. She crosses the bridge, with her ruby slippers
allowing her to walk over the gap in the middle.

Appendix F- Adaptations of the novel after 1939:

 The Wiz (film, 1978)
o With Michael Jackson and Diana Ross
 The Wicked Years (novel, published 1995-2011) - revisionist version

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 o Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
o Son of a Witch
o A Lion Among Men
o Out of Oz
 Wicked (musical)
o Based on the 1995 novel
o Premiered May 28, 2003
o Currently Broadway's second-highest-grossing show, behind the Lion King
o 8th longest running Broadway show with 5,819 performances
o Nominated for 10 Tony Awards in 2004
 Idina Menzel won the award for Best Actress
 The show won the award for Best Scenic Design and Best Costume
Design
 The Wizard of Oz (musical, 2011)
o Opened March 1, 2011 in the West End
o British reality show “Over the Rainbow” auditioned and chose the actress who
would play Dorothy
 There was a Canadian version in 2012 for the Toronto production
 Oz the Great and Powerful (film, 2013)
 Emerald City (TV show, 2017)

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