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twentiethcenturymoviesandtv · 5 years ago

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The Wizard of Oz: Facets of Filmmaking

While The Wizard of Oz is often remembered as a magical experience, the making of this masterpiece was anything but.

Nothing went smoothly. Not screenwriting, not directing, not shooting, not casting, not even costuming went well, made even worse by the end result of box office bomb when it was released. It’s hard to imagine a timeless classic coming out of a production as big a wreck as this was.

You guessed it, today, we’re unpacking the behind-the-scenes story of The Wizard of Oz, taking a look at a brief history of events with plenty of trivia. Buckle up, this one is going to be rough.

Let’s dive in, shall we?

The problems in production started immediately with something rather important: the screenwriting. While there are three official writers, (Noel Langley, Edgar Allen Woolf, and Florence Ryderson) there is a whopping total of fifteen additional writers that remain uncredited. Everyone was contributing their own ideas and the end result had to be trimmed down considerably to be anywhere close the film we know now.

First, let’s talk about Noel Langley.

A writer of bestselling novels, it didn’t take long for Langley to get a job in Hollywood. By the time he was chosen to work on The Wizard of Oz, he already had multiple scripts under his belt. As scriptwriter, his other job was to adapt the original novel, and in so doing contributed some of the major changes that would go on to help define the film, such as the ruby slippers, the dream ending, and the idea of the Kansas Kounterparts.

Unfortunately, he also contributed a lot of other things that were decidedly less helpful, introducing new elements and characters that didn’t fit well with the overall story, such as the Cowardly Lion being originally a man turned into a lion. Other changes included adding a princess, prince and dragon, the Flying Monkeys being heroic, Aunt Em being a cruel, hard woman who was responsible for wanting Toto put down, and worst of all, a severe trimming of Dorothy’s screentime. (?!?)

Convinced he was finished, Langley turned in his script in June of 1938.

MGM had other plans.

Cue the damage control team: Edgar Allen Woolf and Florence Ryderson. Their job: cut away the weird stuff in Langley’s script, while retaining the dialogue.

Did it work?

Mostly.

Apparently Woolf and Ryderson got a little carried away with their editing, ending with another incongruous mess of a script. Getting desperate, MGM called Langley back to edit the edit of his original script. Langley immediately began to pull out as much of the Woolf and Ryerson edits as he possibly could before MGM announced that it was finished. The script was taken out of Langley’s hands again, and turned over to production. Revisions took care of the rest, slowly working the script into the story that we know and love today.

Casting didn’t go much better.

After failing to get Gale Sondergaard or Edna Mae Oliver as their Wicked Witch, MGM turned to Margaret Hamilton, who was an enormous fan of the original book. Hamilton, as a single mother, was concerned about working hours, and got into an argument with the studio over guaranteed work time, accepting the role of the Wicked Witch three days before filming was supposed to start. Her original contract of five weeks of work turned into a long, arduous three months, during which she suffered severe burns during the Wicked Witch’s fireball exit from Munchkinland. (Watch the scene in the movie, the smoke is a little early and the trapdoor a little visible; it’s the rehearsal footage.) After her recovery, she refused to do any more stunts. As a result, during the ‘Surrender Dorothy’ scene, her stunt double was seriously burned herself. On top of that, Hamilton couldn’t eat in costume due to the copper in her makeup, and her skin was tinged green for weeks after filming.

The problems didn’t stop with the villain. The original casting for the Scarecrow and Tin Man wasn’t easy either.

Buddy Ebsen was the original choice for the Scarecrow, and Ray Bolger was initially cast as the Tin Man. Bolger, a huge fan of the Scarecrow (Fred Stone) from 1902 stage adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, asked to trade roles. This went fine for Bolger, (clearly) but Ebsen? Not so much.

It turned out during filming that Ebsen had a severe reaction to the aluminum powder used in the makeup, landing him in the hospital. MGM scrambled for a new Tin Man and, after re-designing the makeup using less dangerous metallic greasepaint, ended up with Jack Haley. Even so, it was still a struggle. As the scenes were all shot on MGM lots in Hollywood, (not a single outdoor shot in the film!) it was beastly hot due to the intense stage-lighting, which also caused problems with costuming. Bolger, while being able to eat (liquids) in the makeup, had to wear a rubber mask that cut off moisture and air, causing his skin to crack and bleed. The mask left a pattern on his face that took over a year to fade after filming. Bert Lahr’s lion costume (made of real lion skin) was a problem as well. Costume designers made two identical suits for him due to the extreme heat; while he soaked one in sweat, the other suit was being dried. In-between shots, he had to remove his entire costume to stand in front of a fan just to avoid heatstroke. On top of that, he couldn’t eat anything except through a straw, as anything more involved would have meant more time in the makeup chair to work on the face appliances. Meanwhile, Jack Haley, their replacement Tin Man, was unable to sit down due to the makeup, being forced to lean to rest. He also suffered an eye-infection due to the makeup.

Even the main lead had it rough. MGM went through a few names before settling on Judy Garland (Shirley Temple and Deanna Durbin). 16 year-old Garland not only had her chest bound painfully tight to appear as a pre-teen girl, but also originally was put into a frumpier dress than seen in the final film, as well as being blonde for a short period of time. During production she was also put into tacky baby-doll makeup that was thankfully changed, and perhaps most unfortunately, the iconic ruby slippers were extremely painful to wear, to the point where Garland only wore them in shots where they would be visible. The rest of the time, she wore black shoes, which not only cut down on her pain, but also protected the slippers from wear and tear.

This was all made worse by the fact that hours were from 4 AM to 8 PM on a short day.

If you think that was a mess, wait until you hear about the director problems.

So The Wizard of Oz was obviously a little different than usual behind-the-scenes, and that extended to its director, or in this case, directors. During the course of production, MGM assigned no less than five total (main) directors to this movie. Let’s start with the first one, announced in June of 1938: Norman Taurog.

Taurog was a former child actor turned director, winning the Oscar for directing Skippy in 1931. He knew the game and how to play it, being the youngest man to ever win an Oscar for directing, and having over 180 movies to his name. He seemed like an obvious choice, right?

He was out in two months. During this time, the crew finished initial casting and set-construction, but no actual shooting was done. Taurog was replaced by a man named Richard Thorpe, under whom shooting began. Twelve days later, Thorpe was out too, and everything filmed during his tenure was scrapped and reshot later. (He was the one responsible for Judy Garland’s ludicrous baby-doll makeup.)

Next on the scene was George Cukor, whose job it was to get the film’s look closer to what we’d be more familiar with later. Cukor was a very famous and successful director with MGM, good with both musicals and adaptations. He re-designed Dorothy’s appearance, told Garland to ‘just be herself’, and was promptly removed from production after one week, sent to work on MGM’s other big project: Gone with the Wind.

Enter the best-known and most often credited director for this film: Victor Fleming.

Fleming was an experienced director, and turned out to be exactly what this movie needed to keep afloat. Despite the fact that most of the cast accidents happened during his three-and-a-half month tenure, Fleming miraculously calmed the storm, shooting from November 1st in 1938 to February 17th of 1939, until he too was shuttled off of the production: being moved to finish directing Gone with the Wind after the departure of former Oz director George Cukor. Fleming remains the only director credited on the actual movie itself.

Only the scenes in Kansas were left. Last, but not least, director King Vidor stepped up to the plate, filling in the remaining months until showtime. Vidor, another well-known Hollywood director with almost eighty movies under his belt, joined the team for the final stretch. He was responsible for the brown-and-white sepia look for Kansas, and in a way, having another director for those scenes worked out pretty well, as the sequences in Kansas and the sequences in Oz were supposed to be very different. (Miscellaneous other scenes were directed by producer Mervyn LeRoy, whose idea it was to make this movie in the first place. All total, we’re looking at around five or six directors for this movie.)

In the end, Fleming got the credit for both The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind, despite the revolving-door directing that both films experienced, but then again, that was a part of MGM.

In the 1930s, MGM was the undisputed king of the movies, and The Wizard of Oz came along at their peak. In fact, being made by MGM was probably the only thing that saved it. With a tagline like ‘More stars than there are in heaven’, they could afford to put rising star Judy Garland in center stage among an all-star cast. Their specialties were big-budget extravaganzas, movie experiences that often used the brand new way to make the visuals pop: Technicolor.

MGM was not only used to wowing audiences, it was good at it.

In the era of the Depression, escapism at the movies was the way to go, and this studio in particular knew how to use their methods: glamourous films filled with glamorous people, whose problems, if they had any, were far, far away from the problems actually dealt with by people at the time. The formula worked, and the studio generated film after film like this. With a decent success rate, MGM could afford to shuffle directors and screenwriters around. Only through MGM was The Wizard of Oz even possible.

In the end, despite the hardship and the close calls (Somewhere Over the Rainbow was almost cut from the final film!), The Wizard of Oz was released in August of 1939, and went on to be one of the most famous and well-loved films of all time, and deservedly so. Originally greenlit to try to follow in the footsteps of the first animated success at a little company run by Walt Disney, The Wizard of Oz became the most iconic movie of all time, standing on its own for eighty years. Not bad for a box office bomb and production nightmare.

Well, it’s almost time for curtains on our analysis of The Wizard of Oz. Join me one last time as we take one last look at this classic film: combining the facts with the feelings. Next time it’s our final thoughts.

Thank you so much for reading! Don’t be afraid to drop an ask, and I hope to see you in the next article!

#The Wizard of Oz #The Wizard of Oz 1939 #Film #Movies #PG #1939 #30s #Adventure #Fantasy #Judy Garland #Margaret Hamilton #Frank Morgan #Ray Bolger #Jack Haley #Bert Lahr #Billie Burke #Victor Fleming

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introvertguide · 5 years ago

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The Wizard of Oz (1939); AFI #10

The next movie up for review from the AFI Top 100 is the most watched film of all time and likely the film I have seen all the way through the most times, The Wizard of Oz (1939). This film opens with what is rated as the very best song in film history. It continues with what is rated as the most well known moment in movie history. It moves forward with what is rated as one of the most well known plot lines in movie history. The movie ends with one of the most well known quotes in movie history. The shoes worn by the lead actress are one of the most popular exhibits in the Smithsonian Museum and listed as the most valuable and treasured film memorabilia in movie history. I am proud to say I know and love this film and am happy to discuss why it is so great. In case you have lived in a cave or been in a coma for 75 years, I will very briefly go over the story. For once I am not doing a spoiler warning. This breakdown is very non-specific and if you don’t know the story of the most watched film of all time that has been around for 80 years, that’s on you.

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Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) lives with her dog Toto on a Kansas farm belonging to her Aunt Em (Clara Blandick) and Uncle Henry (Charley Grapewin). Toto bites neighbor Miss Almira Gulch (Margaret Hamilton) on the leg, leading her to obtain a sheriff's order to have the dog killed. Miss Gulch takes Toto away, but he escapes and returns to Dorothy; she decides to run away to save her dog. Not far from the farm, Dorothy runs into Professor Marvel (Frank Morgan), a fortune-teller who uses his crystal ball to make the young girl believe that Aunt Em is heartbroken. Dorothy rushes home as a tornado approaches. Aunt Em, Uncle Henry, and the farmhands take shelter in the storm cellar and lock it behind them. Dorothy has to seek shelter in her bedroom, where the window is blown in and hits her on the head, knocking her unconscious. The house is sent spinning into the air, and she awakens to see various figures fly by, including Miss Gulch, who transforms into a witch on a broomstick.

The house lands with a sudden bump and Dorothy goes out to find that the land outside her house is a world of very bright color. She has landed in Munchkinland in the Land of Oz. The switch from sepia tone to color might be the most famous moment in cinema history. Glinda the Good Witch of the North and the Munchkins welcome her as a heroine, as the falling house has killed the Wicked Witch of the East. The Munchkins sing to her and offer her many gifts as the Wicked Witch had long terrorized the country. Suddenly, her sister, the Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton again), arrives to claim her sister's ruby slippers, but Glinda transfers them onto Dorothy's feet. Enraged, the Wicked Witch swears revenge on Dorothy and vanishes. Glinda tells Dorothy to follow the Yellow Brick Road to Emerald City, where she can ask the Wizard of Oz to help her return home. On her journey, Dorothy meets the Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), who wants a brain; the Tin Woodman (Jack Haley), who seeks a heart; and the Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr), who desires courage. She invites them to accompany her and ask the Wizard for what they lack. Despite the Witch's attempts to stop them with sleeping spells and other magic, they reach the city. The group is stopped at the door by a guard (Frank Morgan again), let in and driven on a color changing horse (by a character played by Frank Morgan), and then taken by a soldier (again played by Frank Morgan) to see the Wizard (once again, played by Frank Morgan), who appears as a giant ghostly head. He agrees to grant their requests if they bring him the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West.

As they make their way to the Witch's castle, the Witch captures Dorothy and plots to kill her, as she cannot remove the slippers otherwise. Toto escapes and leads her three friends to the castle. They ambush three guards, don their uniforms, and free Dorothy. The Witch and more guards pursue and surround them. The Witch sets fire to the Scarecrow, causing Dorothy to toss a bucket of water on him, inadvertently splashing the Witch, who melts until only her black witch outfit remains. The guards rejoice and give Dorothy her broomstick. Upon their return, the Wizard stalls in fulfilling his promises until Toto pulls back a curtain, exposing the "Wizard" as a fraud operating machinery. Admitting to being a humbug, he insists he is "a good man, but a bad wizard." He gives the Scarecrow a diploma, the Lion a medal, and the Tin Man a ticking heart-shaped clock, helping them see that they already possessed the qualities they wanted. He offers to take Dorothy and Toto home in his hot air balloon, revealing that he is also from Kansas, and was originally a carnival showman before his balloon escaped the Earth and brought him to the Emerald City.

As Dorothy and the Wizard prepare to depart, the Wizard places the Scarecrow in charge of Emerald City, with the Tin Man and the Lion as his aides. Toto leaps from Dorothy's arms. As Dorothy pursues Toto, the balloon departs with the Wizard. Glinda then appears and tells Dorothy that she has always had the power to return home using the ruby slippers. After Dorothy bids the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion goodbye, Glinda instructs her to tap her heels together three times and say, "There's no place like home." When Dorothy does, she wakes up in her bedroom, surrounded by her family and friends. Everyone dismisses her adventure as a dream, but Dorothy insists it was real. She says she will never run away again and declares, "There's no place like home!"

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Let me mention the one and only thing that bothered me about the story and that is the fate of Toto. The dog is not cleared of biting Gulch and would still be scheduled to die. Whether or not the victim is dead, the sheriff would still have his order to kill the dog. I would have liked a throw away line saying that the dog was pardoned. I imagine that the dog was given a reprieve, but there is no evidence of this and falls squarely to my own imagination.

Although not listed as the greatest American movie, the AFI has put this movie on more top lists than any other film. The Wicked Witch of the West was the #4 villain, “Over the Rainbow” was the #1 song, “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore” is the #4 quote, the movie is #43 in thrills and #26 in cheers, and it is the #3 musical and the #1 fantasy. In the last 30 years, the movie was in the inaugural 25 movies to go on the National Film Registry, listed on UNESCO’s Memory of the World, and placed as one of the top 100 movies by the BFI, Total Film, Sight and Sound, Entertainment Weekly, Bravo, Rolling Stone, and The Village Voice. There really is no question as to the value of this film and its iconic place in film history.

Like many other films, however, this film had a lot of problems in production. Famously so. Wicked Witch actress Margaret Hamilton was burned very badly with pyrotechnics during the fiery exit from Munchkinland. The Tin Man was supposed to be played by Buddy Ebsen, but the original paint used for the costume was toxic and Ebsen was rushed to the hospital and had to leave the project completely. The opening song was set to be cut for time, but the director fought for it. Speaking of directors, the film started out with Norman Taurog, who was replaced by Richard Thorpe, who was replaced by George Cukor briefly (who eventually became an advisor), who was finally replaced by Victor Fleming. The direction of the film that is now known and loved was mostly the idea of Cukor despite Fleming getting the credit.

The actors also had a difficult time with the shoot because of the whole studio system of the 30s and 40s. The producers did not recognize the toxic effects of the makeup on the actors until one of them was hospitalized. Most of the main actors had dual roles (this includes the witch, the lion, the tin man, the scarecrow, and the man playing the wizard had 5 speaking roles) and were constantly exhausted. The little people that played the munchkins were famously mistreated and were payed less than the dog. Because of this, it is reported that many of the little people actors behaved poorly on set.

The child actors who portrayed Munchkins that are still alive today (there are still a few) say that everything was hectic with a constant sense of urgency, but it was because everyone seemed to know they were making something great. What had originally seemed like a hokey fairy tale was truly becoming magical, and everyone on set wanted to be a part of it. I know that thinking everyone was treated well and were glad to be there in a Hollywood production from the 30s is very naïve, but the product is so perfect and beautiful that I have to believe.

The performance of Margaret Hamilton was so over the top and perfect. Her ability to do an evil laugh is what nailed the part, and she used this to terrify viewers into believing her to be murderous. She never kills anyone, but she sure likes to play with fire around the scarecrow. Hamilton worried that she would be typecast as an evil character and scare children (which she was and did). It did not stop her from getting into the part and she did it so well that children ran away from her in real life. I found her face in the crystal ball to be especially terrifying.

It is very difficult to separate the beauty of the film and the beauty of the music. Most of the songs are quite whimsical and used to introduce the characters. The sound is like an extra character as it reveals mood changes and gives away character traits. The witch’s theme gives the feel of something hunting you down. The wizard is wonderous and awesome. Dorothy is melancholy but at the same time hopeful. The traveling music, called “We’re Off to See the Wizard,” might be the most descriptive sound for feeling and speed ever put to film. The score keeps the film constantly moving and tells the story when the characters aren’t able. And of course there is the opening. My mom used to sing this to me at bedtime and I thought she sounded just like Judy Garland. This comparison is likely not objectively true, but I love my mom and I loved hearing her sing so it was subjectively even better.

One last thing that I am noting as the movie plays as I type: the sets are amazing. The entire movie was shot on gigantic sound stages and the back drops are hundreds of giant murals. Some of the sets must have been massive because the characters go in so deep towards the background. Even the shots of Kansas with the plains in the background are giant sets. It is fun to try and figure out where the stage stops and the backdrop begins. It is hard to tell in some cases which trees are on the set and which trees are painted.

The question that I always answer at the end of my AFI film reviews do not even really need to be asked on this occasion, but I will do it for consistency and posterity. Does this film deserve to be on the AFI list? Of course. There is no movie that currently exists that deserves it more. It is an allegory for the American dream and a simple tale of the American state of mind at the turn of the 20th century. This film will always have a place on this list. Would I recommend it? Simply yes. There is no film that I would recommend more. It does not matter the age or background of the person asking, I would 100% freely recommend this film. Please watch it if you haven’t. If you have, watch it again.

I try and stay away from topical notes while making these reviews, but we are almost a year into the pandemic and it is likely going to be a terrible winter of loss. There are few things that make me happier when stuck inside than a great movie and there is no better movie for a time like this than The Wizard of Oz. It is the kind of thing that keeps us hopeful in the most simple and beautiful way. Due to travel bans and health issues, I am missing a Christmas with my mom for the first time that I can remember (I think in my life) and I felt a little better after watching the film. For a feeling of joy and love for that home you love most, watch the movie and feel good, even if just for a little bit.

#stay at home #feel good movies #the wizard of oz #american classic films #fantasy movies #judy garland #musicals #introvert #introverts

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velvet4510 · 1 year ago

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#lotr #jrr tolkien #lotr books #lord of the rings #samwise gamgee #rosie cotton #frodo baggins #primula brandybuck #primrose gardner #ruby gardner #ruby bolger #hobbit families #lotr theories #frodo x sam x rosie #sam x rosie #frodo x sam #lotr poll

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crimsoncityhq · 4 years ago

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mwf?

alexandra grey (trans)**, **chloe bailey, **halle bailey, **abigail cowen, **caitlin stasey,aja naomi king**, natalie dormer**, laura dern, britt robertson, jamie chung**, keke palmer, ariana grande, victoria justice, jurnee smollet,han hyo-joo**, nadia hilker, logan browning, madison iseman**, kristen stewart, **arden cho, issa rae, diane guerrero, jackie cruz, bae suzy**,krystal jung**, reese witherspoon**, laura harrier**, bang min-ah**, sophie turner**, jessica chastain, adeline rudolph**, Chloe Bennet, Elizabeth Lail, ashleigh murray**, Jessica Parker Kennedy, park shin-he**, Kim Raver, Lauren Graham, hunter schafer(trans)**, laverne cox (trans)**, Lauren German, jang seungyeon**, Lesley-Ann Brandt,nyara shahidi**, claire holt, vanessa morgan, alycia debnam-carey, tiana tolstoi**, kat graham, alisha boe**,madelyn cline, lana candor, elizabeth lail, Meghan Ory**, nicole kidman, madison bailey, sophia bush, lee sunmi**, tati gabrielle,lulu antariksa**, amy adams, choi ri**, samantha logan**, angela bassett, jaz sinclair**, charlize theron, kim seul-gi**, angelina jolie, taraji p. henson**, ruby rose, gabrielle union, saoirse ronan, evangeline lily, ming-na wen**, thandie newton, krysten ritter, kerry washington, awkwafina, melora hardin**, shelley hennig, meagan goode, jessica lange, Barrett Doss, kim hye-yoon**, Jaina Lee Ortiz, Natacha Karam, Sierra A. McClain,rachel weisz**, eliza taylor, dichen lachman, alycia-debnam carey,lupita nyong'o**, gugu mbatha-raw**, jazzy jones**, aisha hinds, emmy-raver lampman, dua lipa, emmy rossum, stella maeve,lucy liu**, normani, mj rodriguez, china anne mcclain, emma stone, brittany snow, rebel wilson, anne hathaway, cate blanchett, olivia dudley, jade tailor, dilan çiçek deniz, renee elise goldsberry, nichole beharie**,jeri ryan**, winona ryder**, hayley law, scarlett byrne, bianca lawson, bianca santos, sarah bolger, brittany o'grady, shantel vansanten, viola davis, & sofia black-d'elia

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( sandra oh, cisfemale, 53 ) I hear that DEIJI "DAISY" RAU-BYRNE is looking for their MIDDLE CHILD Word on the street is they look like AHN HEE-YEON, BAE SUZY, BANG MINAH, KRYSTAL JUNG, PARK SHIN-HYE, SYDNEY PARK, JANG SEUNGYEON, TIANA TOLSTOI, ADELINE RUDOLPH,LEE SUNMI, CHOI-RI, KIM HYE YOON, KIM SEULGI, FIVEL STEWART, UTP (25-30, MUST BE KOREAN IF BLOOD)and that the last time they saw them wasYESTERDAY. DEIJI HAS HIGH EXPECTATIONS WHEN IT COMES TO HER CHILDREN. THE MIDDLE CHILD IS LIKELY THE ONE SHE WOULD HAVE GONE HARDER ON TO SUCCEED. THE KIDS LIKELY ALL BELONG TO THE WALSH MAFIA. MSG ME AND WE CAN HASH OUT THE DEETS OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP. IT'S UTP IF THE CHILD NOTICES THE TENSION BETWEEN THE PARENTS. You SHOULD reach out to CRIMSONFAUX. ( sandra oh, cisfemale, 53 ) I hear that DEIJI "DAISY" RAU-BYRNE is looking for their SPOUSE Word on the street is they look like JOHN CHO,LAVERNE COX,IDRIS ELBA,LUCY LIU,JERI RYAN,REESE WITHERSPOON,JAVIER BARDEM, PAUL RUDD, WINONA RYDER, MING-NA WEN, JASON BATEMAN, ADAM SCOTT, MELORA HARDIN, JOSH DUHAMEL,JOHN LIGHT,RACHEL WEISZ,JULIAN MCMAHON, TARAJI P HENSON, WILL YUN LEE, MICHAEL EALY, DAVID LEE MCINNIS,LORNE CARDINAL, ANY FC 45+ PREFand that the last time they saw them wasLAST NIGHT. YOUR CHARACTER HAD ARRIVED IN CHICAGO MONTHS BEFORE DEIJI LANDED WITH THE REST OF THE COUNCIL. TO BE HER EYES, AND BECAUSE SHE HAD MANIPULATED YOUR CHARACTER IN BELIEVING SHE WOULD SIGN THE DIVORCE PAPERS. THEIR RELATIONSHIP HAS BEEN VOLATILE, WORSE WITHIN THE LAST FEW MONTHS SHE HAS BEEN IN CHICAGO. THE COUPLE HAVE 3 KIDS.You SHOULD reach out to CRIMSONFAUX. ( jamie dornan, male, thirty-four ) I hear that LIAM O'SHEA is looking for their EX-GIRLFRIEND/HIGH SCHOOL SWEETHEART. Word on the street is they look like NICOLE BEHARIE, MEGHAN ORY, AJA NAOMI KING, PRIYANKA CHOPRA, NATALIE DORMER, ARDEN CHO, UTP, and that the last time they saw them was THE SUMMER AFTER SHE GRADUATED HIGH SCHOOL; LIAM NEVER FINISHED SCHOOL BUT THEY STAYED TOGETHER DESPITE HER BEING BUSY WILL SCHOOL AND APPLYING TO COLLEGES AND HIM BEING BUSY WITH THE FAMILY. LIAM TRULY THOUGHT SHE WAS GOING TO BE HIS FOREVER AND WAS FINE WITH DEALING WITH THE LONG DISTANCE BECAUSE OF HER GOING TO SCHOOL AND WAS EVEN PLANNING TO PROPOSE BUT A MONTH BEFORE SHE LEFT FOR SCHOOL, SHE BROKE UP WITH HIM IN A LETTER LEAVING HIM HEARTBROKEN AND WITH COMMITMENT ISSUES. HE STILL HOLDS ANIMOSITY TOWARDS HER FOR ENDING THINGS THE WAY SHE DID BUT HE STILL LOVES HER DEEP DOWN THOUGH HE WON’T EVER ADMIT IT. You SHOULD reach out to CRIMSXNSINS. ( lucien laviscount, cismale, 29 ) I hear that ZANE WASHINGTON is looking for their EX GIRLFRIEND(S).. Word on the street is they look like FC UTP ( CIS OR TRANS FEMALES AGED 23 - 40 ), and that the last time they saw them was (0/4) SPORADIC DATES. ZANE OFTEN TRAVELED THE WORLD BEFORE HE GOT STUCK TAKING CARE OF THE FUNERAL HOME. HE HAD A HABIT OF BRINGING HIS GIRLFRIEND AT THE TIME WITH HIM TO CHICAGO AND THEN DUMPING HER SOON AFTER. HIS LAST GIRLFRIEND HE WOULD HAVE LAST SEEN ONE MONTH AGO AND WOULD HAVE CAME BACK TO CHICAGO WITH HIM IN 2019 TO RUN THE FUNERAL HOME. THESE CHARACTERS CAN'T BE A CHICAGO NATIVE. ALL OTHER DETAILS ARE UTP. . You SHOULD reach out toCRIMSONFAUX. ( chance perdomo, cismale, 25 ) I hear that AUDRIC NOIRE is looking for their ELDER SIBLING. Word on the street is they look like LAKEITH STANFIELD, REGÉ JEAN PAGE, JEFF PIERRE, BJ BRITT, WUNMI MOSAKU, ALEX NEWELL, ALEXANDRA GREY, LUPITA NYONG'O, NATHAN STEWART-JARRETT, BRIAN MICHAEL SMITH, GUGU MBATHA-RAW, YAHYA ABDUL-MATEEN II, JAZZY JONES, ASHLEIGH MURRAY, ANY BLACK POC FC , and that the last time they saw them was IN A PHOTO WITH HIS FATHER. AUDRIC IS UNAWARE OF HIS FATHER'S SIDE OF THE FAMILY, ANY SIBLINGS ETC, AND HIS FATHER HAS SINCE PASSED. You SHOULD reach out to CRIMSONFAUX. ( emma watson, cis female, 26 ) I hear that KATERINA VASILE is looking for their RADIO COHOST. Word on the street is they look like DANIEL RADCLIFFE, BOO BOO STEWART, MADISON ISEMAN, LAURA HARRIER, REALLY ANY FC 25+,, and that the last time they saw them was TODAY.THE PAIR STARTED OUT WORKING FOR THE RADIO STUDIO SIX YEARS AGO. TOGETHER THEY MANAGED TO BUILD FROM A LITTLE EVENING SHOW TO ONE OF THE BIGGEST BREAKFAST SHOWS IN THE CITY. THEY’RE REALLY CLOSE FRIENDS AND KNOW THAT THEIR FRIENDSHIP IS WHY EVERYTHING WORKS SO WELL FOR THEM. THIS MEMBER WOULD HAVE TO BE A CIVILIAN OR VASILE AFFILIATED. You SHOULD NOT reach out to ROSESJUSTDIE. ( zendaya, female, 22 ) I hear that DIAMOND WASHINGTON is looking for their PERSONAL ASSISTANT. Word on the street is they look like UTP ANY GENDER, and that the last time they saw them was A DAY AGO, WHEN THEY CAME OVER TO CHECK ON DIAMOND - CHECKING ON HER WAS A NEARLY DAILY THING…IF IT WASN’T FOR HER ASSISTANT, DIAMOND’S LIFE WOULD BE CHAOS. SHE LITERALLY DEPENDS ON THEM FOR EVERYTHING. THEY HAVE BEEN DIAMOND’S PERSONAL ASSISTANT FOR THE PASSED FOUR YEARS, AND THE TWO OF THEM HAVE BECOME EXTREMELY CLOSE. THEY TAKE THEIR JOB SERIOUSLY AND MAKE SURE THAT DIAMOND’S DAILY SCHEDULE IS RUNNING SMOOTHLY. THEY’VE VERY MUCH BECOME LIKE AN OLDER SIBLING / BEST FRIEND TO DIAMOND. THE TWO MEET UP NEARLY DAILY FOR WORK AND NON-WORK RELATED HANGOUTS. OUT OF EVERYONE ELSE IN DIAMOND’S LIFE (EVEN HER FAMILY), HER PA IS THE ONLY ONE THAT REALLY KNOWS OF THE STRUGGLES DIAMOND IS GOING THROUGH, MENTALLY. THIS WC CAN BE ANY GENDER, ANY FC, SO LONG AS THEY’RE 25+ IN AGE You SHOULD NOT / BUT CAN reach out to SILVERNCRIMSON. ( lauren cohan, cisfemale, 33) I hear that EDITH COHEN is looking for their SOBER COACH. Word on the street is they look like ANY FC (25+), and the last time they saw them was I HAVE A FEW IDEAS TO BOUNCE AROUND ABOUT THEM. I DON’T PLAN ON THIS BEING A SHIPPY CONNECTION. THIS PERSON WILL HELP BRIDGE HER SOBRIETY SO SHE CAN START TO FLY AGAIN. You SHOULD reach out to CRIMSONFAUX. . ( luke pasqualino, cismale, 36 ) I hear that OLIVER FAUST is looking for their PSEUDO CHILD.. Word on the street is they look like TOM HOLLAND, YARA SHAHIDI, SOPHIE TURNER, ALEX WOLFF,TAYLOR HICKSON, JEREMY SHADA, JOEL COURTNEY, KATHRYN NEWTON, ALISHA BOE, BENJAMIN WADSWORTH,NICK ROBINSON, JACK MULHERN, FROY GUTIERREZ, ELLIOT FLETCHER, DYLAN SPRAYBERRY,GIORGIA WHIGHAM, JOACOB ELORDI,LIANA LIBERTO, DIANA SILVERS,SAMANTHA LOGAN, LULU ANTARIKSA, DYLAN MINNETE, MADISON PETTIS, HUNTER SCHAFER, JAZ SINCLAIR, FC UTP, GENDER & ETHNICITY UTP. CHARACTER AGE PREF TO BE 21-25, and that the last time they saw them was UTP GOOD WITH EITHER YESTERDAY OR END OF 2020.OLIVER TOOK YOUR CHARACTER UNDER HIS WING WHEN HE WAS TEENAGER AND YOUR CHARACTER WAS AROUND 5-7. YOUR CHARACTER SEES HIM AS A PARENTAL FIGURE AFTER YOUR CHARACTER WAS ORPHANED. THEY WOULD BE A PART OF THE FAUST CRIME FAMILY. PLS REACH OUT TO BRAINSTORM! . You SHOULD reach out toCRIMSONFAUX.

#appless rp #town rp #crime rp #oc rp #mature rp

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bearsthering · 5 years ago

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nicole maines; trans female; she/her — welcome, traveler, to rivendell, ROWAN BAGGINS. you are THE RING-BEARER, no? lord elrond is waiting for you. you look young for a HOBBIT. you can’t be older than 30. are you from THE SHIRE? you’ve come a long way. please, rest now.

stats.

name: rowan baggins.

alias(es)/nickname(s): ro; roro; miss underhill.

age: 30.

birthday + zodiac: september 22nd / virgo.

pronouns: she/her.

gender identity: trans female.

species: hobbit.

sexual orientation: panromantic, asexual.

hair color + style: brown, long and curly, typically tied back or pulled up somehow.

eye color: blue.

family: drogo baggins (father, deceased); primula baggins née brandybuck (mother, deceased); bilbo baggins (second cousin ‘uncle’, adopted parental figure); gorbadoc brandybuck (maternal grandfather; deceased); mirabella brandybuck née took (maternal grandmother; deceased); fosco baggins (paternal grandfather; deceased); ruby baggins née bolger (paternal grandmother; deceased). rowan has no siblings, but she has a lot of aunts and uncles and probably even more cousins -- far too many to name !!

mbti: infp.

history.

rowan is the only child of her parents, drogo and primula baggins. for the majority of her childhood, she grew up in brandy hall in buckland.

however, when she was 12 years old, her parents drowned in a boating accident on brandywine river, leaving her an orphan.

not long after this, rowan was adopted by her second cousin ( once removed? i think? it’s hard to keep track of this stuff lol ), though she would call him uncle bilbo. she moved to bag end to live with him after this.

because bilbo was raising her, she took after him a lot, growing up with his stories and becoming incredibly curious, longing for the chance to go out and adventure and see the world.

this behavior is, of course, unusual for hobbits -- but most attributed this to her took ancestry and her time spent around bilbo.

though she always wanted to explore outside the shire, she never strayed far from home.

she was curious of it all, sure, but not enough to actually leave her friends and family in the shire.

plus, it wasn’t like she was exactly well equipped to go out and do such a thing.

so while this quest has that sense of adventure she’s always longed for, she knows how serious this is, and she knows it’s not going to be some fun adventure. she’s worried about what’s to come, but she tries at the same time to not think too much on it.

she knows this is what she has to do, and she wants very badly to save the fate of everyone in the shire, and, of course middle-earth in general. she struggles with doubting herself but doesn’t want that side of her to show.

#꒰ 𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙖𝙣; 𝙙𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙜𝙤 . ˗ˏ 💍 : intro ˎ˗#dunedainintro

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universityofstorybrookerp · 6 years ago

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In search for:

Mary Margaret Blanchard David Nolan Ruby Lucas Emma Swan Regina Mills Henry Daniels August Booth Belle French Killian Jones Will Scarlet Zelena West Robin Hood Jacinda Vidrio Lucy Vidrio Tiana Sabine Andrew Whale(Victor Frankestein) Abigail Griffith Billy Jarod(Gus) Ashley Boyd Aurora Bolger Mulan Chung Phillip Morris William Smee

STAFF: Mr. Gold(Rumplestiltskin)- Headmaster Archie Hopper- Head of Psychology Department Graham Humbert- Head of Criminal Justice Victoria Belfrey- Head of Business Department Tom Clark(Sneezy)- Pharmaceutical Department Paul Grove(Doc)- Head of Medical Department Jeffery Coleman(Dopey)- American Sign Lauguage Beverley Lucas(Granny)- Head of Culinary Keegan Ghorm(Blue Fairy/Mother Superior)- Head of Veterinarian Department Marco Amendola(Geppetto)- Head of Arts Department Sidney Glass- Head of Journalism Cora Mills- Head of Literature Department Leroy Arenberg(Grumpy)- Maintance Walter Bauda(Sleepy)- Security Faustino Macario(Bashful)- Cook Mike Kaiser(Happy)- Librarian

#open #once upon a time #once upon a time roleplay #once upon a time rp #ouat #ouat rp #ouat roleplay #storybrooke #universityofstorybrooke2019-rp #universityofstorybrooke #universityofstorybrooke2019 #university #university rp #university roleplay #college #college rp #college roleplay

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ao3feed-merlinarthur · 6 years ago

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by TaylorWillcocks

High Queen Mirana, Champion Alice I, Prince Taylor, Princess Elsa and Princess Alice II visited Kingdom number 6 – Middle Earth and attended the coronation of King Aragorn II and Queen Arwen, during the coronation Taylor met Galadriel and was instantly taken with her Elven beauty, they spend the rest of Taylor’s time in Middle Earth in blissful passion together, unknown to Taylor Galadriel conceived a child naming her Lady Catherine of Lorien, Celeborn knows the child is not his but does not say and raises Cate as his own, Taylor will meet Cate soon after she demands to know her real ‘father’ because Celeborn won’t put her in the Elf line of succession. Will it be a happy or cold reunion?

Words: 1680, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of The Adventures of TRH Crown Prince Taylor I of Marmoreal aka Heir to the throne of Underland

Fandoms: Alice in Wonderland (Movies - Burton), The Lord of the Rings (Movies), Merlin (TV), Chronicles of Narnia (Movies), Game of Thrones (TV), Once Upon a Time (TV), The Inheritance Cycle - Christopher Paolini, Eragon (2006), Descendants (Disney Movies)

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/F, F/M, M/M

Characters: Original Female Character(s), Galadriel | Artanis, Alice Kingsleigh, Mirana of Marmoreal, Gandalf | Mithrandir, Aragorn | Estel, Arwen Undómiel, Eldarion (Tolkien), Celebrían, Elrond Peredhel, Elladan (Tolkien), Elrohir (Tolkien), Gimli (Son of Glóin), Legolas Greenleaf, Thranduil (Tolkien), Bilbo Baggins, Frodo Baggins, Sam Gamgee, Rosie Cotton, Diamond Took, Pippin Took, Merry Brandybuck, Estella Bolger, Evil Queen | Regina Mills, Sansa Stark, Morgana (Merlin), Lucy Pevensie, Emma Swan, Arya Stark, Eragon Shadeslayer, Red Riding Hood | Ruby, Merlin (Merlin), Dorothy Gale (Once Upon a Time), Mal (Disney), Prince Charming | David Nolan, Arya Dröttningu, Caspian (Narnia), Ben (Disney: Descendants), Gwen (Merlin), Orik (Inheritance Cycle), Hvedra, Celeborn (Tolkien), Glinda (Once Upon a Time), Edmund Pevensie, Nasuada (Inheritance Cycle), Wicked Witch of the West | Zelena, Daenerys Targaryen, Belle (Once Upon a Time), Jadis | The White Witch, Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Snow White | Mary Margaret Blanchard, Roran Garrowson, Henry Mills (Once Upon a Time), Elanor Gamgee, Neal Nolan, Original Male Character(s), Original Evil Queen | Regina Mills/Emma Swan Child(ren)

Relationships: Galadriel/Original Female Character, Alice Kingsleigh/Mirana of Marmoreal, Aragorn | Estel/Arwen Undómiel, Celebrían/Elrond Peredhel, Rose Cotton/Sam Gamgee, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Estella Bolger/Merry Brandybuck, Diamond Took/Pippin Took, Jadis | The White Witch/Lucy Pevensie, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Gwen/Morgana (Merlin), Arya Stark/Daenerys Targaryen, Dorothy Gale/Red Riding Hood | Ruby, Arya Dröttningu/Eragon Shadeslayer, Hvedra/Orik (Inheritance Cycle), Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants), Celeborn/Galadriel | Artanis

Additional Tags: Short One Shot, Flashbacks, Fluff and Smut, Characters don't stay together, One Night Stands, The Past, Twenty-three years ago, Main character is 17 (they are 40 now)

#AO3 works tagged 'Merlin/Arthur Pendragon'#ao3feed #merthur #ao3feed merthur #ao3feed merlinarthur

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ao3feed-inheritancecycle · 6 years ago

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Secret Love Child

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/31w0qmr

by TaylorWillcocks

Words: 3960, Chapters: 2/?, Language: English

Series: Part 1 of The Adventures of TRH Crown Prince Taylor I of Marmoreal aka Heir to the throne of Underland

Rating: Mature

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/F, F/M, M/M

Additional Tags: Short One Shot, Flashbacks, Fluff and Smut, Characters don't stay together, One Night Stands, The Past, Twenty-three years ago, Main character is 17 (they are 40 now)

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/31w0qmr

#ao3feed #fanfic #inheritance cycle #the inheritance cycle #eragon

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onceuponaseriesrewatch · 6 years ago

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Once Upon a Series Rewatch Press Release--5x9 The Bear King

5x9 The Bear King

Synopsis: Zelena and Arthur journey to DunBroch on a mission to retrieve an enchanted relic that will provide the advantage they need to vanquish Emma and the heroes. Their path will cross with Merida’s who is on a journey of her own to pay a debt that her father, King Fergus, owed to the witch when he died. Merida enlists the help of Mulan and Ruby, but, in order to satisfy the witch and save DunBroch, she first must discover the identity of the knight who killed her father. In flashbacks, Merida learns about bravery and honor as she trains for combat and rides alongside Fergus into the infamous battle that claims his life.

Written by: Andrew Chambliss

Directed by: Geofrey Hildrew

Starring: Ginnifer Goodwin (Snow White / Mary Margaret Blanchard); Jennifer Morrison (Emma Swan); Lana Parilla (Evil Queen / Regina Mills); Josh Dallas (Prince Charming / David Nolan); Emilie de Ravin (Belle French); Colin O’Donoghue (Captain Killian ‘Hook’ Jones); Jared Gilmore (Henry Mills); Rebecca Mader (Zelena); Sean Maguire (Robin Hood); Robert Carlyle (Rumplestiltskin / Mr. Gold)

Guest Starring: Jamie Chung (Mulan); Beverley Elliott (Granny Lucas); Liam Garrigan (King Arthur); Amy Manson (Merida); Meghan Ory (Ruby Lucas); Glenn Keogh (King Fergus); Lily Knight (witch); Caroline Morahan (Queen Elinor); Paul Telfer (Lord Macintosh); Marco D’Angelo (Lord Macguffin); Josh Hallem (Lord Dingwall); Richard Stroh (Edgar); Colton Barnert (brother #1); Jordan Olson (brother #2); Matthew Olson (brother #3); Lee Arenberg (Leroy); David Avalon (Doc); Eoin Bates (Macintosh clansman); Sarah Bolger (Aurora); Thomas Brungardt Esq (peasant); Faustino Di Bauda (Walter); Jeffrey Kaiser (Dopey); Gabe Khouth (Mr. Clark); Mig Macario (Bashful); Tom MacNeill (peasant); T. Michael Morris (background performer); Keegan Connor Tracy (Mother Superior)

The Bear King airs September 29 at 8:00 pm EST

#ouasr #once upon a series rewatch #ouasr press release #5x9 the bear king

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twentiethcenturymoviesandtv · 5 years ago

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The Wizard of Oz: The Story

At first glance, the plot of The Wizard of Oz seems pretty simple and chock full of clichés. A girl from Kansas and her dog find themselves in a wonderful land, and meet a Cowardly Lion, a Tin Man, and a Scarecrow, traveling on a feel-good journey to find the titular Wizard of Oz, the only person who can send Dorothy home.

Pretty straightforward and obvious, right?

Well, there’s a bit more to it than that. (Spoilers below, so on the off chance you haven’t seen the movie, go check it out and come back when you’ve seen it!)

Here’s the setup:

The film opens with Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland) and Toto running along a road in the dull, brown land of Kansas. They are running just ahead of their bike-riding, witch-like neighbor, Ms. Gulch, who is trying to have Toto put down for biting her.

Dorothy, in an understandable panic, tries to tell her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry (who she lives with) about the situation, but they blow her off. She turns for advice instead to three farm hands, who express sympathy and interest in the problem. It is here where Aunt Em tells Dorothy to find somewhere where she won’t get into trouble, and here where Dorothy sings the most famous song in all of cinema.

Now, we’re already looking at quite a lot of setup that will be hugely important later.

First, the templates for the future characters of Oz. Ms. Gulch and the three farmhands are introduced immediately with clear personality traits that will be echoed in their Oz counterparts later on. Ms. Gulch is appropriately antagonistic and witch like. The three farm hands quietly display the traits upon which their dopplegangers will be fixated: brains, heart, and courage.

Then there’s that song. Somewhere Over the Rainbow, while being a song with seemingly little to do with the story has a lot to do with Dorothy’s character. Feeling pushed aside, ignored, and helpless, Dorothy’s famous song is a window into her desires: leaving and finding a place where her dreams will come true.

Long story short, there’s a lot of foreshadowing in this scene.

Ms. Gulch (Margaret Hamilton) arrives on the scene with a sheriff’s order to put Toto down. When her aunt and uncle do nothing to stop it, Dorothy takes Toto and attempts to run away from home.

She doesn’t get far.

She is stopped in her tracks by a kind, traveling con-artist fortune teller (Frank Morgan). The fortune teller, by looking through Dorothy’s things to surmise enough about her situation, uses his crystal ball to cause Dorothy to believe that her aunt is in serious trouble. Worried, Dorothy races home just in time for a cyclone to strike, knocking her on the head and carrying her, Toto, and the house, into the skies, along with Ms. Gulch, who transforms into a witch aboard a broomstick.

When the house lands, it’s in an entirely different place. Gone are the brown-grey tones of Kansas, replaced with bright color and vivid imagery of Munchkin land. Dorothy emerges from the house to be greeted and hailed as a hero by both the Munchkins and Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. Dorothy has slain the Wicked Witch of the East when her house fell atop her, and freed the inhabitants of Munchkin land. Cue song.

Dorothy is understandably confused, especially when the dead witch’s sister, the Wicked Witch of the West (Also Margaret Hamilton) turns up to claim the powerful ruby slippers that belonged to her sibling and are currently sticking out from underneath the house.

Glinda transports the slippers onto Dorothy’s feet instead, enraging the Wicked Witch of the West, and causing her to swear vengeance for her sister. Not powerful enough to hurt Dorothy in the presence of Glinda the Good, the Wicked Witch vanishes in a flash-bang of smoke.

All Dorothy wants is to get home.

Glinda assures her that she can get home by going to see the most Powerful Being in All of Oz: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz of the Emerald City. She can do this, of course, by following the Yellow Brick Road.

Cue another song as Dorothy skips her way out of town, down the road, and towards her goal: getting home.

Already we’re seeing some irony here. Not fifteen minutes ago, Dorothy’s goal was to get Somewhere Over the Rainbow, to be in a magical place. Oz is as magical as they come, and Dorothy was immediately beloved and befriended, and yet, worried for her family (especially her aunt) the goal seems to have flipped; now her desire is to return home. This is unusual for both a fantasy movie and a coming of age story, and The Wizard of Oz is both.

Even stranger, throughout the story, Dorothy never wavers from this goal, leading directly to the lesson at the end. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

Dorothy comes to a fork in the Yellow Brick Road by a cornfield, where she meets an unusual figure: a scarecrow (Ray Bolger), stuck on a pole. Dorothy immediately goes to his aid, helping him down and listening to his woes: he has no brain, which he explains through song. (Aren’t musicals wonderful?)

Dorothy has a solution. She suggests that he joins her, so that he may ask this Wonderful Wizard for some brains. He agrees, and they continue along into a grove of apple-trees. Dorothy, being hungry, goes to pick an apple, only to realize that the trees are alive, and aren’t happy about having their children ripped from them and eaten in front of them.

They don’t word it like that, but that’s the gist of it.

The Brainless Scarecrow takes action, enraging the trees to instead pelt them with the apples, no doubt breaking the hearts of several parents who witnessed their children used as ammunition.

Mission accomplished, Dorothy moves to collect the apples when she stumbles on something else interesting: a man made of tin, rusted nearly solid.

Sensing another opportunity to help, Dorothy uses an oilcan to restore mobility to the Tin-Man (Jack Haley), who thanks them and expresses his own problem: he has no heart, and this just about moves him to tears.

It moves him to song, anyway.

In the end, Dorothy suggests that the Tin Man join them in their journey to Oz, so that he may ask the Wizard for a heart, and he agrees. The Wicked Witch appears again, this time as a more sincere threat, revealed through a demonstration of her fireball-hurling abilities. She disappears in another puff of smoke, and the Scarecrow reveals that fire is his only fear, as it is the only thing that can truly destroy him.

The group continues on into a deep forest, full of ‘lions and tigers and bears’ (oh my!), and are suddenly jumped by a Lion (Bert Lahr). They scatter in terror before his might, all except for little Toto. Faced with this challenge of a tiny dog, the Lion pounces after him, to the outrage of Dorothy, who viciously slaps the Lion on the nose and scolds him. The fierce Lion responds to this attack by bursting into tears.

The Lion explains, in a song, that what he wants most in life is courage, sealing out our rule of three. He too joins the group in the desperate hope that the Wizard will give him the courage he desires, and the three emerge from the forest, across a field of poppies. There is a brief and pointless attack by the Witch, deflected by Deux Ex Glinda, and the group merrily makes their way to the Emerald City.

The guy at the gate briefly stops them, but lets them in after seeing Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers and hearing that they know Glinda the Good. Cue another song, this time describing the joy it is to live in Oz, however they are cut short by the main conflict kicking into high gear: The broomstick-riding Wicked Witch of the West blazes a smoke trail in the sky that says simply: Surrender Dorothy.

The lack of comma is a little confusing as to whether Dorothy is to surrender, or if the people of the Emerald City are supposed to surrender her, but either way, the idea comes across pretty clearly. In the face of this danger, the message returns from the mighty and wise Wizard of Oz: he won’t see them, due to the danger Dorothy has brought.

In desperation, Dorothy starts to cry, mourning her situation, which, despite three new friends, is pretty bleak. Her outburst convinces the Wizard’s guard to let them in, where they meet the famed Wizard.

He’s pretty scary, all right. He insults the group for a few minutes as the group stutters out what they want (a brain, a heart, a home, the nerve), and then lays down his deal: He’ll give them what they want if they bring back the Wicked Witch of the West’s broomstick.

Left with no other option, Dorothy and Co. head into the forest after the witch, and here I want us to pause for a moment and look at where we are in the story.

For one thing, this is kind of a weird structure for a movie. The setup is fine, a girl finding themselves in a magical world is a normal fantasy format. The main antagonist was introduced quite some time ago, but she hasn’t really been too much of a threat until now. We got a few reminders to let us know she’s still in the movie, but we’re really just now getting to see the main ‘conflict’, Dorothy vs. the Witch, and we’re really close to the end of the movie.

It almost seems like we’re just now entering third act climax after a very long first act of rising tension/inciting incident. It feels as though we’ve skipped right over a second act. The quest to defeat the witch, which in other stories would be starting at the end of the first act, is at the beginning of the third.

The ‘quest’ wasn’t even for Dorothy’s own sake. She’s doing this because the Wizard is giving her no other choice. Dorothy isn’t a fantasy hero in the normal sense. She just wants to get home, and there’s no sense of ‘good vs. evil’ struggle in this film.

So where are we in the story? Where we are right now is a scared, but determined, little girl doing whatever it takes to get home, with three friends and her dog at her side, marching into the woods to kill the Wicked Witch of the West, a powerful woman who’s been trying to get at her this whole movie.

The Witch’s horde of flying monkeys arrives in the forest, carrying Dorothy and Toto off, mauling the Scarecrow, and subduing the Lion and Tin Man.

Once in the Witch’s castle, threatened with her dog’s death, Dorothy agrees to let the Witch have the slippers, but wouldn’t you know it, the slippers won’t come off her feet. Enraged, the Witch locks Dorothy in a tower with an hourglass that is counting down time until the Witch kills her. (The reason she didn’t do it right away is that ‘these things must be done delicately’. Maybe she needed a spell or something to do it with the Ruby Slippers on her.) During her imprisonment, she is shown images of her aunt, worriedly calling out for her.

Meanwhile, Toto gets away and rushes to fetch help: the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lion. After putting the Scarecrow back together and surmising what must have happened, the trio immediately decide to go rescue Dorothy.

In a display of brainlessness, heartlessness, and gutlessness, they sneak into the Witch’s castle to save their friend, beating up three guards and taking their uniforms in the process. Seconds before the hourglass runs out, the Tin Man finally gets to use his axe and chops down the door to the room Dorothy is locked inside. Their reunion is cut short, however, by the Witch and her guards, who, after a brief chase, manage to corner them.

The Witch gleefully informs Dorothy that the Witch intends to kill them all, one by one, saving Dorothy for last. Making good on her promise, she sets the Scarecrow on fire, which, as previously stated, is the one thing that can really kill him.

Horrified, Dorothy grabs a nearby Deus Ex Bucket of Water and douses the Scarecrow, putting him out and saving his life. In the process, the Witch gets soaked too, and let’s be honest, you all know what happens next.

“You cursed brat! Look what you’ve done! I’m melting! Melting! Oh, what a world! What a world! Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness…”

So the Witch vaporizes away, leaving Dorothy and Co. stunned and surrounded by the Witch’s guards, who thank Dorothy profusely for murdering their leader. They gladly give them the broomstick they were sent after, and the gang immediately heads back to the Emerald City, full of joy and confidence.

Once they arrive back in the Wizard’s presence, however, he immediately begins wavering on his deal, telling them to come back tomorrow.

Dorothy, having recently (if accidently) vanquished the most feared person in all of Oz, is having none of it. She stands up to the Wizard and is just setting in on giving him a piece of her mind before Toto rushes to an ignored corner of the room, pulling back a concealing fabric and revealing a scared little man behind the curtain, working frantically at his machinery in an attempt to draw their attention away from him.

The man (also Frank Morgan) admits the truth: he is the Wizard of Oz, and has no wonderful powers whatsoever, but he does stave off their anger with a few items from our world, where he is apparently from. To the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion, he bestows gifts that officially grant them the traits they were ‘lacking’.

A diploma, medal, or clock won’t get Dorothy home, however, but the Wizard has an idea. He arrived in Oz several years ago by a decidedly less fantastic way than Dorothy had: he had come by hot air balloon, and it just so happens that it is in perfect condition. The Wizard decides that it is time for him to go home as well, and offers to take Dorothy with him. Of course she accepts.

However, while the departure is taking place, there is a scuffle involving Toto and a cat, and the balloon takes off with the Wizard, but not Dorothy. The girl is now in complete despair about ever getting back to Kansas, and even though she’d be welcome in the Emerald City, she’s coming to the realization that there’s no place like home.

Cue Deus Ex Glinda.

The Good Witch arrives in their midst and tells Dorothy something that probably would have been helpful before if not for The Plot: The Ruby Slippers that Dorothy has been wearing could have taken her home any time she wanted, simply by clicking her heels and saying ‘There’s no place like home’.

(I wish I had a pair of those. That’d make social gatherings much less uncomfortable.)

Dorothy tearfully wishes her friends goodbye and with Toto in tow, follows Glinda’s instructions and wakes up in familiar, gray Kansas, surrounded by her aunt, uncle, farmhands, and Professor Marvel. It was all Just A Dream.

Contrived? Maybe. Or maybe not.

A lot of people have quite a few problems with the ending of the Wizard of Oz (besides the Scarecrow’s math slipup, which we aren’t addressing today). For example, if Glinda knew the slippers did that this whole time, why send Dorothy on this dangerous adventure and have her murder a Witch?

(Or maybe it was Manslaughter. It was accidental, after all.)

For a while, I subscribed to the theory of it just being an easy way to end the story. In the original book, the Good Witch who sends Dorothy off and the Good Witch who helps her get home are two different people. I just assumed that the scriptwriters just crammed them into one person, didn’t realize the Adaptation Induced Plothole, and just hoped no one would notice. (I didn’t like this movie for much of my childhood, and I was rather cynical towards it.)

However, when I watched it again, I had another thought.

First off, this entire adventure was a dream, and if we can accept talking lions, scarecrows, and men made out of tin, we can sure as heck accept the fact that Dorothy’s subconscious wasn’t thinking of a plot-sensible way to get home.

Secondly, and more important thematically, this way home matters to Dorothy’s journey. In the beginning of the first act, we see Dorothy’s desperation to be elsewhere, somewhere where her dreams come true, somewhere brighter and Better than Kansas. And then she gets her wish.

For any other fantasy hero, this would be amazing. She immediately is hailed as a hero and makes three good friends, defeats a villain, and has the opportunity to stay behind in this magical land where she has learned so much. But what does Dorothy say at the end?

“If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, l won’t look any further than my own backyard, because if it isn’t there I never really lost it to begin with.”

Right from the beginning, as we’ve mentioned, all she wants is to go back home, to be with her family and friends, and to be content with the life she had. Her ‘Hero’s Journey’ isn’t learning to strike out on her own and be Independent. Her ‘Hero’s Journey’ is gaining the same things her friends did: brains, heart, and courage.

She proves her own intelligence, her own caring, and most importantly, her own bravery. She learns agency. In the beginning of the story, she is helpless, running away from her life because the adults in her life are unable to help her. The story of Dorothy is of being able to affect where you are in life, not by escaping, but by dealing with your problems yourself.

By initially going to the Wizard to be sent home and finding out she had the ability to do it herself, Dorothy realizes that she has power and agency in her own life, and that she can’t, and shouldn’t, totally rely on others to fix her problems. So in a way, it makes sense that she had to go through all of that before she could go home.

By the same token, she’s also learned that she belongs with her family at the moment. Dorothy is still a child, and does spend a good deal of the movie worrying especially about her aunt. Where she begins the movie feeling swept aside by her family, Dorothy realizes how much she cares about and needs family and friends in her life. She has learned to be self-sufficient, but not alone.

That’s a pretty good message for a kid, and indeed, for people of all ages. With that in mind, it makes a lot of sense that people have kept coming back to this film for its heartwarming story. There’s a reason this movie is a classic, after all.

In the upcoming articles, we’ll be taking a look at some more of the fascinating facets that make up The Wizard of Oz, so please, stay tuned for next time! Thank you all so much for reading and feel free to message me with your own thoughts. I hope to ‘see’ you in the next article!

#The Wizard of Oz #The Wizard of Oz 1939 #1939 #30s #Film #Movies #Fantasy #Adventure #PG #Judy Garland #Margaret Hamilton #Frank Morgan #Ray Bolger #Jack Haley #Bert Lahr #Billie Burke #Victor Fleming

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