I watched “Return to OZ” this weekend. I’ve never seen it before, don’t know why I’ve never heard of it, but my GF introduced me to it. I loved it. But I can’t figure out how some parts relate to the original Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
For one thing, she’s much younger, but it happens later?
How the heck did the scarecrow become king?
What the heck is a Gump?
I don’t remember which movie “Return To Oz” was (Liza Minnelli? Disney? The Disney one combined elements of books 2 and 3, the Minnelli one was a redone book 2)
Spoilers follow:
Anyway, in the Oz books (NOT the movie!) Dorothy was about 8 years old when she first went to Oz.
In the books, the Scarecrow became King of Oz after the Wizard left because of his new brains (in the book, the Wizard gave the Scarecrow brains, the Woodsman a heart, etc). The Woodsman became king of the Winkies after the Wicked Witch was melted and the Lion became king of a jungle down towards Glinda.
In the second book, “The Marvelous Land of Oz”, a kid named Tip escaped from the only remaining wicked witch (Mombi) who he’d been living with. He also took a magic dust called “The Powder of Life”. Tip used this to animate a sawhorse and Jack Pumpkinhead. The three of them travelled to the Emerald City to escape from Mombi. They got there, just as some Sufferagettes(sp) took over the Emerald City. Before they could storm the palace, Tip lashed together a couple of couches, some palm fronds, a mounted “Gump” head (sort of a combination goat and deer). The combined thing was sprinked with the remaining powder of life and flew them to safety (with it’s palm frond wings) along with the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodsman.
Anyway they met up with Glinda who ousted the Sufferagettes but refused to put the Scarecrow back on the throne since there was a rightful heir floating around. The Wizard had gotten rid of the previous king but didn’t kill his infant daughter. He gave her to Mombi. Mombi turned Ozma into Tip as an infant. Good disguise, that. Glinda forced Mombi to turn Tip back into Ozma who took back the throne.
It’s the only Oz book where someone from the outside world doesn’t appear. (Dorothy doesn’t show up 'till book 3, Ozma of Oz). It also paints the Wizard in an extremely bad light that’s never really dealt with in the rest of the series
Probably more than you wanted to know.
Fenris (your source for Oz-trivia!)
Suffering Suffragettes!
I always thought that General Jin-Jur’s army was chorus girls. You know, to pick up the stage version…
Oops. I thought it was the pre-landing G.U.M.P. check: Gas (fuel on fullest tank or “both”), Undercarriage (down and locked), Mixture (rich), Propellor (high RPM). 
Are you asking about the common mountain gump, or the rare forest gump?
Thanks kids, I’m gonna go read the books. Story sounds great to tell the kids one day, if I ever have any…
slythe, I dunno, what’s the head of a forest gump look like? does it eat chocolate?
Someone in Oregon, please, hunt down this person and perform a dope-slap of epic proportions. It was actually physically painful to read this post.
Thank you in advance for your support of decency,
Stofsky