Walt Disney Pictures and its associated businesses have multiple connections with Oz literature:
(External links go to the Disney Wiki)
Films, Show Episodes, and other adaptations
- The studio's first feature length movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs helped to inspire the 1939 MGM film The Wizard of Oz. Walt Disney planned to make an animated film based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, but found that Samuel Goldwyn had already bought the rights, and later sold them to Louis B. Mayer. However, the MGM producers considered soliciting Disney himself as a consultant, but never followed through on the plan. (Adriana Caselotti, the voice of Snow White, sings one line in the Oz film - "Wherefore art thou, Romeo?" in the Tin Woodman's "If I Only Had a Heart." Pinto Colvig, who voiced Goofy, contributed to the sound of the Munchkins.)
- The studio purchased the film rights to L. Frank Baum's last thirteen Oz books (that is, all but the first) in 1954 intending to use them for Rainbow Road to Oz as a feature starring Mickey Mouse Club members which was canceled despite a 1957 preview airing .
- During the 1960s, Disneyland Records released several records containing original story books including The Songs from The Wizard of Oz, The Story and Songs of The Wizard of Oz, The Story of the Scarecrow of Oz, The Story and Songs of The Tin Woodman of Oz, and The Story and Songs of The Cowardly Lion of Oz. One song from these called Living a Lovely Life says the Lion has a lifetime pass to Disneyland.
- The studio released the film Return to Oz in 1985. The Disneyland Paris version of Storybook Land Canal Boats had small versions of the Emerald City and Mombi's Castle viewable from 1994 to 2024 until they were replaced with Paradise Falls from the Pixar movie Up. There was also a commemorative float dedicated to the film's release during the Main Street Electrical Parade for a short while. Tik-Tok also serves as a Beetleworx enemy in the video game Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two released on November 18th, 2012.
- In 1995, Disney bought the ABC Network which had previously aired The Wizard of Oz TV series five years prior. A year later, they aired The Oz Kids.
- In 1999, there was a quick gag of Dorothy and Toto being blown away in a hot air balloon during the Timon & Pumbaa episode Broadway Bound & Gagged.
- In 2009, they published Daisy in the Wonderful World of Oz but it appears to have only been released in Europe as written by Alberico Pennacchioli and Motta Sauro.
- The studio released the film Oz the Great and Powerful in 2013. The home video releases include a bonus feature documenting various Oz-related projects Disney produced, or attempted to produce, before it. A possible sequel has been speculated.
- Also in 2013 the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse had a special episode called "Minnie's The Wizard Of Dizz"featuring Minnie as Dorothy, Goofy as the Scarecrow, Mickey as the Tin Man and Donald as the Lion.
- Starting in 2014 and ending in 2018, ABC Studios used original Oz story lines in its television series Once Upon a Time.
- In 2019, Disney Channel Deutschland started airing the German dub of Amazon's Lost in Oz (web series). It is believed to have completed first run airing in 2022 based on promo clips that were added to their Youtube channel.
- In 2022, a fan wearing Ruby shoes or presumably Dorothy Gale herself is referenced in the Disney+ film adaptation of Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers. This might be given that the convention features various fictional characters as if they are real people with some borrowed from non-Disney properties.
- Marvel Comics has produced comic adaptations of L. Frank Baum's first six Oz books, the last five released after Disney purchased the company.
Theme Parks
- From July 1955 to January 1956, a women's clothing store at the Disneyland park featured a robot called "The Wonderful Wizard of Bras" who explained clothing styles of the 19th century.
- The Great Movie Ride attraction opened in May 1st, 1989 and closed on August 13th, 2017 at Walt Disney World. It had two Oz scenes as riders went thru the 1939 film's Munchkinland to encounter the Wicked Witch and then see Dorothy along with her friends stand outside of the Emerald City wave.
The Disney organization also planned other Oz projects that were unsuccessful. In 1958, a TV program called Rainbow Road to Oz which would have featured the Mouseketeers, failed to be created despite a filmed preview of it being aired. A planned Emerald City attraction at Disneyland also did not materialize. Also, The Wonderful World of Disney attempted to air a TV version of The Wiz in the late 1990s, but rights issues with Universal (who distributed the 1978 movie) forced them to abandon their attempts. Although, two of The Wonderful World of Disney's producers, Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, did get to air a 2015 TV version on NBC, which shares a parent company with Universal.
Connections to other productions
Though not related to Oz, some films along with television shows have similar plot details and devices such as Rapunzel in Tangled being stolen as a baby and her royalty kept secret like Ozma was.
The character of Elyon from the comic turned animated series W.I.T.C.H. is also a lost princess taken as a baby. The show's first season villain Phobos is an evil wizard who presents to her an illusion of his castle like the Emerald City's green glasses and he uses a "viewing stone" not much unlike the Magic Picture.
Furthermore, Sally from The Nightmare before Christmas is very similar to the Patchwork Girl as both are made of patched cloth. Tim Burton who later had his unrealized Lost in Oz project has confirmed that his character of Jack Skellington was inspired by Jack Pumpkinhead.
In the animated series Elena of Avalor, one episode entitled "Spellbound" has a evil wizard who turns the kingdom's citizens into stone not much unlike how the Nome King did in Return to Oz. Also, the villain Shuriki has an affinity for green emeralds.
It is worth noting when surprised by the Wizard in the 1939 film, Dorothy says “Jiminy Crickets!” which was a common 1920-30s euphemistic exclamation for Jesus Christ. A year later, Disney coopted this phrase for the name of a character in Pinocchio. Alan Cumming who played the Scarecrow in Tin Man (2007) is set to play Honest John in an upcoming live-action remake. He has also played roles for them including in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, Annie (1999), and Strange Magic.
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