The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)

The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical comedy-drama fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and the most well-known and commercially successful adaptation based on the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. The film stars Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale. The film co-stars Terry the dog, billed as Toto; Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Frank Morgan, Billie Burke, and Margaret Hamilton, with Charley Grapewin and Clara Blandick, and the Singer Midgets as the Munchkins.

Notable for its use of Technicolor, fantasy storytelling, musical score, and unusual characters, over the years, it has become an icon of American popular culture. It was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, but lost to Gone with the Wind. It did win in two other categories, including Best Original Song for "Over the Rainbow". However, the film was a box office disappointment on its initial release, earning only $3,017,000 on a $2,777,000 budget, despite receiving largely positive reviews. It was MGM's most expensive production at that time, and did not completely recoup the studio's investment and turn a profit until theatrical re-releases starting in 1949.

Return to Oz

Return to Oz is a 1985 fantasy adventure film directed and written by Walter Murch, an editor and sound designer, cowritten by Gill Dennis and produced by Paul Maslansky. It stars Nicol Williamson as the Nome King, Jean Marsh as Princess Mombi, Piper Laurie as Aunt Em, Matt Clark as Uncle Henry and introduces Fairuza Balk as Dorothy Gale. It is loosley based on L. Frank Baum's Oz novels, mainly The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904) and Ozma of Oz (1907), yet is set six months after the events of the first novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900). It is also considered a semi-sequel to the 1939 MGM film, The Wizard of Oz.

The plot focuses on an insomniac Dorothy, who returns to the Land of Oz only to discover that the entire country and its inhabitants are facing near extinction at the hands of a villainous king who dwells in a neighboring mountain. Upon her second arrival, Dorothy, alongside her pet chicken Billina, is befriended by a group of new companions, including Tik-Tok, Jack Pumpkinhead and the flying Gump. Together they set out on a quest to save Oz and restore it to its former glory.

The Wizard of Oz (pinball)

The Wizard of Oz is a Jersey Jack Pinball, Inc. pinball machine released in April 2013. It is the first pinball machine with an LCD in the back box as well as the first one to have color on the monitor since the Pinball 2000 games, the first widebody pinball machine since 1994 and the first new pinball machine not made by Stern Pinball since 2001. The pinball machine is based on the classic film version of The Wizard of Oz.

Description

The backbox has a 26-inch HD display that displays film clips in full color and the playfield is illuminated by RGB LED lights that can change into any color as industry firsts. Widebody pinball machines as The Wizard of OZ offer more playfield space and more to be packed in but has been too expensive because pinball sales have been in decline since 1994. The machine includes also two completely filled out upper playfields.

The machine costs $7,000 and Jersey Jack Pinball, Inc. has spent $2 million into the production. Jersey Jack Pinball licenses its flippers from Planetary Pinball Supply and builds its soundboards in partnership with Massachusetts’ Pinnovators. The sound system supports stereo and has 600 watts of power. A $300,000 inkjet printer is used for the printing the artwork. Jersey Jack tested more than 10 different playfield finishes, rolling and shooting hundreds of thousands of balls. The machine uses Williams parts that have allegedly better quality than Stern’s current flippers.

The Wizard of Oz (arcade game)

The Wizard of Oz is an arcade pusher game based on the 1939 film that awards token chips and cards that are redeemable for prizes. The player shoots coins into the machine which drops chips and cards. The player collects the cards and chips that can be redeemed later for prizes. The coins are retained by the machine. Most arcades that have this game will award a jackpot for collecting the entire series of cards. It can be played by up the six players. The game is developed by Elaut USA and released in the fall of 2010. According to the company's press release, the game was very well received by players and amusement centers.

Cabinet

Each side of the machine features one of the following characters:

In addition, the cabinet can be retrofitted with different themes and graphics other than the Wizard of Oz. In eastern countries, this is featured as the Mistral.

Card and Chips

Adaptations of The Wizard of Oz

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a 1900 children's novel written by American author L. Frank Baum. Since its first publication in 1900, it has been adapted many times: for film, television, theatre, books, comics, games, and other media.

Film