THE OFFICIAL 50th ANNIVERSARY PICTORIAL HISTORY” IS NOW 35 YEARS OLD Part Two By John Fricke Welcome to Part Two of our birthday salute to the best-selling, full-length history of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s 1939 production of THE WIZARD OF OZ, first published 35 years ago this past August to commemorate the film’s 50th anniversary in 1989. Its …
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO “THE GREEN BOOK”!
“THE WIZARD OF OZ — THE OFFICIAL 50th ANNIVERSARY PICTORIAL HISTORY” IS NOW 35 😊 Part One – By John Fricke Above: This is the front dust jacket cover of the book that celebrated the golden anniversary of MGM’s THE WIZARD OF OZ just 35 years ago this summer . . . and on into …
Ha-Ha-Ha! Ho-Ho-Ho!
And a Happy, High-Spirited History of Last Month’s Magic (Or: Oz-Stravaganza® 2024 😊) by John Fricke After 46 prior and virtually annual jubilations, what can be said about Oz-Stravaganza® #47 that hasn’t been gratefully and proudly “sung out” before? Perhaps the most grandiose AND accurate declaration is that the weekend of May 31st-June 2nd, 2024, …
“THE LITTLE PEOPLE WHO LIVE[D] IN THIS LAND” – CONCLUSION
By John Fricke FOREWORD In our August 26th entry for 2023 — posted on Chittenango’s All Things Oz and OZ-Stravaganza! Facebook pages (as well as on this blog site) — we celebrated the Oz festival of last June. The highlights of that weekend, of course, were provided by the song, dance, autographing-and-reminiscing participation of ninety-one-year-old …
Continue reading ““THE LITTLE PEOPLE WHO LIVE[D] IN THIS LAND” – CONCLUSION“
“THE LITTLE PEOPLE WHO LIVE[D] IN THIS LAND” – PART 3
By John Fricke FOREWORD In our August 26th entry, posted on the various Chittenango, New York, All Things Oz and OZ-Stravaganza! Facebook pages (as well as its blog site), we celebrated 2023’s Oz festival. The weekend highlight, of course, was the song/dance/autographing/reminiscing participation of ninety-one-year-old Betty Ann Bruno, an original “MunchKid” from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s 1939 feature …
Continue reading ““THE LITTLE PEOPLE WHO LIVE[D] IN THIS LAND” – PART 3“
2023: TENS OF THOUSANDS JOY-OZ-LY TRAVEL
CHITTENANGO’S YELLOW BRICK ROAD . . .TAKING BETTY ANN BRUNO VERY MUCH TO HEART! By John Fricke [A BRIEF, PRELIMINARY NOTE FROM JOHN: The rough draft and art selection attendant to this “All Things OZ” Blog were basically wrapped up nearly two months ago. Then I was hit with sciatica, and everything went on hold …
OZ-STRAVAGANZA! BIGGER & BETTER &
“CLOSER & PRETTIER THAN EVER” —
AND 46 YEARS OLD!
by John Fricke Let the JOY-OZ news be spread: OZ-STRAVAGANZA! is JUST ahead! I know that isn’t at all the way “Yip” Harburg put it in his “Munchkinland” lyric in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer’s THE WIZARD OF OZ movie. Back then, however, he was “only” proclaiming the passing of the Wicked Witch of the East; WE’RE here today …
Continue reading “OZ-STRAVAGANZA! BIGGER & BETTER &
“CLOSER & PRETTIER THAN EVER” —
AND 46 YEARS OLD!”
HOW THE GIRL FROM MINNESOTA & HOLLYWOOD BECAME THE GIRL FROM KANSAS & OZ!
By: John Fricke Across the last nine months, multiple entries in this series have celebrated L. Frank Baum, including a special column about his Christmas traditions with wife Maud Gage and their four sons. (This is, of course, no less than is deserved by the native of Chittenango, New York, and the