by Sam Juliano
One of the most venerated films in movie history and the first-place winner here at Wonders in the Dark for the 30’s poll conducted months ago, The Wizard of Oz opened seventy years ago today at a special screening at the Strand Theatre in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, three days before it’s Hollywood premiere. No film in movie history has captured the heart and soul of filmgoers, even to the point of chronicling the lifespans of its characters and the iconic nature of so many of its components as this perennial classis has. The life-affirming fantasy has enriched so many lives in the USA and worldwide, and is ingrained in the cultural consciousness. It’s star Judy Garland, is associated with the film more than any other in her illustrious career, and the film’s cast of “munchkins” are integral to the film’s wide-appeal.
Both surviving munchkin Meinhardt Raabe and composer Herbert Stothart were Wisconsin natives.
The staff of Wonders in the Dark joins in the celebration for this timeless film, and calls upon all our readers to pop this beloved DVD into your players tonight, and revel in the supreme beauty and wonder of the cinema. There’s no place like home!