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August 2023
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U.S. Census Bureau History: The Wizard of Oz
L. Frank Baum published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900. The story about a girl transported
by a tornado to the Land of Oz was made into an Academy Award-winning motion picture that
debuted on August 11–12, 1939.
Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution.
On August 11–12, 1939, the movie The Wizard of Oz premiered in Dennis, MA, Kenosha, WI, and Oconomowoc, WI. Fearing the film would be unpopular, movie studio executives chose these cities to debut the movie to better gauge audience reaction. Much to their delight, the film was a hit as moviegoers packed theaters. On August 15, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios hosted a star-studded, "official" premiere replete with searchlights, movie props, and sidewalk bleachers for fans at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, CA. More than 8 decades later, movie critics, adults, and children still consider The Wizard of Oz to be one of the greatest movies in film history.
The Wizard of Oz (1939) is based on L. Frank Baum's popular 1900 children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. When published, the novel proved far more popular than Baum and his publisher anticipated and the first printing of 10,000 copies sold out in a few weeks. Additional printings, a musical stage play, and a revised novel suitable for adult readers followed. Over the next 20 years, Baum published 13 more Oz-themed novels, with the last two books—The Magic of Oz (1919) and Glinda of Oz (1920) published posthumously.
Following the success of Walt Disney's 1937 book-to-film adaptation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Metro Goldwyn-Mayer purchased the rights to Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in January 1938. Screenwriters followed Baum's storyline closely. Movie audiences watched as a farm girl played by Judy Garland is swept away by a tornado from the black and white plains of Kansas to dazzling color in the Land of Oz. Her house accidentally landed on the Wicked Witch of the East, freeing the enslaved Munchkins and giving her ownership of the witch's coveted ruby slippers. Told that only the Wizard of Oz could help her get back home, she follows the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City with actress Margaret Hamilton playing the Wicked Witch of the West in pursuit. Dorothy is accompanied on her journey by her dog Toto, the Scarecrow played by Ray Bolger, a Tin Man portrayed by Jack Haley, and Bert Lahr's Cowardly Lion. After arriving at the Emerald City, the "Wizard of Oz"—played by Frank Morgan—tells Dorothy he will only help Dorothy return to Kansas if she destroys the Wicked Witch of the West and brings her flying broomstick back to him. (Morgan also played a fortune telling character named Professor Marvel in scenes before Dorothy was swept away by the tornado. The coat he wore was actually owned by L. Frank Baum!)
Dorothy and her friends succeed in destroying the witch and returned to the Emerald City only to learn that the Wizard of Oz is a fraud and does not have any special powers to help Dorothy return home. Thanks to the magical ruby slippers she received when she first arrived in Oz, Dorothy learns that she always had the power to return home on her own. With three taps of her heels, Dorothy repeats "There's no place like home," and is soon back with her family and friends in Kansas.
With a $2.8 million budget, The Wizard of Oz was Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's most costly production to date. Studio executives worried that the film would be a box office flop, so they decided to "quietly" premiered the movie at theaters in Oconomowoc, WI, Kenosha, WI, and Dennis, MA. Much to their relief, the movie studio executives were able to incorporate these audiences' reactions into the movie's worldwide advertising. The Hollywood premier of the film followed on August 15, and its August 17 New York City, NY, debut was followed by a live performance by Judy Garland. The film opened nationwide on August 25, 1939. Although theaters were packed, The Wizard of Oz barely broke even, earning only $3 million during its original 1939 release. The Wizard of Oz faced fierce competition at the box office and awards ceremonies, as 1939 is considered to be one of the finest years for movies. Despite this competition, The Wizard of Oz received five Academy Awards, winning the Best Original Score Oscar for the song, "Over the Rainbow." The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences also granted actress Judy Garland an Oscar for Best Juvenile Performance.
Millions more of L. Frank Baum's Oz-themed novels have sold since the 1939 premier, and the books and movie remains very popular as new generations are introduced to the story. Metro Goldwyn-Mayer re-released the film in theaters in 1949 and broadcast The Wizard of Oz on television for the first time in 1956. Home movie audiences had an opportunity to purchase the movie on video tape for the first time in 1980. Today, the movie remains a staple of the holiday television schedule with families planning to view the movie together at Thanksgiving and the Winter Holidays. The Wizard of Oz remains so popular that the 2019 theatrical release 
of the movie commemorating its 80th anniversary grossed more than $1.2 million!
You can learn more about the Wizard of Oz and its cast using census data and records. For example:
- When the Wizard of Oz premiered in 1939, 85 million Americans watched movies in theaters and spent $659 million every week. Ten years later, the film was re-released nationwide. In 1949, weekly movie attendance had fallen to 70 million, but spending rose to more than $1.45 billion every week. Today, Americans watch movies in theaters, on television, and streaming on mobile devices. The Motion Picture Association reported that the combined American theatrical and home/mobile entertainment market reached $36.8 billion in 2021.
- Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios was so worried that The Wizard of Oz was going to be a disappointing "flop," that it quietly premiered the film at theaters in Dennis, MA, Kenosha, WI, and Oconomowoc, WI, on August 11–12, 1939. Studio executives chose Dennis, MA, because Wicked Witch of the West actress Margaret Hamilton convinced them to show the film there while she performed at the nearby Cape Playhouse . Thanks to the time difference between Massachusetts and Wisconsin, the town of Dennis lays claim to the world's first showing of The Wizard of Oz on August 11, 1939. The town commemorates the anniversary with an annual showing of the movie on 35 millimeter film at the historic Cape Cinema. Moviegoers in Wisconsin saw the movie early because some of the motion picture's cast and crew had connection's to the state. Milwaukee, WI, native Herbert Stothart composed the film's musical score and owned a vacation home in Oconomowoc, WI. Meinhardt Raabe, who played the "Munchkin" coroner who declared the Wicked Witch of the East dead, was born in nearby Watertown, WI.
- Trainer Carl Spitz owned the Cairn Terrier that played Dorothy Gale's dog "Toto" in The Wizard of Oz. The terrier named "Terry" acted in nearly two dozen Hollywood movies between 1934 and 1945, earning a weekly salary greater than many of the actors she worked alongside. Terry's offspring included another acting pup named "Rommy." Rommy starred in the 1942 movie Reap the Wild Wind based on the novel written by former U.S. Census Bureau enumerator Thelma Strabel.
- The Wizard of Oz premiered on television in the United States on November 3, 1956, when approximately 34.9 million American families owned a television set. Watching the special annual television broadcast became a cherished family tradition for millions of families. It remains a popular television and streaming option for families during Thanksgiving and Winter Holiday gatherings. By 1992, the Census Bureau Survey of Income and Program Participation reported that nearly every household in the United States (96.6 percent) owned at least one television on which families could watch televised series and movies. Today, many Americans watch classic movies like The Wizard of Oz on mobile devices thanks to streaming media services and high-speed internet connections. According to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, 103.7 million of the nation's 121.5 million households had internet subscriptions. Nearly 103.4 million of these subscriptions were for high-speed broadband internet capable of streaming movies to televisions and mobile devices, while just 325,497 households still relied on slower dial-up internet service.
- Censuses—like the constitutionally-mandated decennial census and annual American Community Survey—are so important to understanding a nation's people and housing that L. Frank Baum even provided population and housing data in his 1910 book, The Emerald City of Oz. According to Baum, the Land of Oz had a population of more than 500,000 in 1910. The Emerald City—the capital of the Land of Oz—had 9,654 housing units and a population of 57,318. By comparison, the United States had a population of 92,228,496 in 1910 and our nation's capital of Washington, DC, had 331,069 inhabitants and 71,339 homes.
- One reason The Wizard of Oz has remained so popular among adults and children is the movie's contrast between the black and white segments and color photography in the Land of Oz. Theater-goers were awed by the movie's brilliant colors, but when CBS first televised the movie on November 3, 1956, very few households owned a color television. In 1955, a 15-inch color television cost more than $1000—an astronomical amount resulting in fewer than 50,000 color sets owned in the United States. The number of color televisions rose to just 300,000 by 1960. As the price of color sets fell, the number of households that could actually enjoy the colorful "Land of Oz" grew. In 1970, there were 20.9 million color sets and 63.4 million in 1980. Today, all new televisions sold in the United States are color sets. The last new black and white televisions sold in the United States were produced prior to the Federal Communication Commission's required shift from analog to digital television broadcasting in 2009.
- The first movie filmed in Hollywood, CA, was D.W. Griffith's silent movie In Old California. The western was shot in 1907 and released in theaters in 1910. Nearly 3 decades later, Victor Fleming filmed The Wizard of Oz at Metro Goldwyn-Mayer's nearby Culver City, CA, studios. In 2021, the Census Bureau's County Business Patterns series found that there were 17,269 establishments primarily producing and distributing motion pictures, videos, television programs, and television commercials (NAICS 512110). California led the nation with 7,231, followed by New York (2,184), and Florida (968).
- Did you know that actor Buddy Ebsen—famous for his starring roles on the television series The Beverly Hillbillies (1962–1971), Barnaby Jones (1973–1980), and dozens of movies and television shows—was originally cast to play the Scarecrow and later the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz? As filming began, Ray Bolger played the Tin Man. The two actors decided to switch roles, with Bolger donning the Scarecrow costume and Ebsen becoming the Tin Man. Ebsen was hospitalized soon after because he inhaled the toxic aluminum dust makeup used to transform him into the silver-faced Tin Man. Too sick to continue filming, actor Jack Haley replaced Ebsen as Tin Man and makeup artists replaced the aluminum dust makeup with a safer aluminum paste.
- The last surviving actor with a speaking role in the Wizard of Oz was Jerry Maren. Maren was one of the Lollipop Guild Munchkins who greeted and sang to Dorothy upon her arrival to Munchkinland. Maren appeared on stage and screen, gave interviews, and attended promotional events and festivals into the 2000s. The 98-year-old actor died on May 24, 2018 , in the La Jolla community of San Diego, CA.
- Dorothy, the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion followed the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City where they met the Wizard of Oz. In 2021, that roadway would have been built by one of the 9,465 highway, street, and bridge construction establishments identified by the County Business Patterns series. Bricks with a yellow or white hue get their color from a high concentration of lime. The County Business Patterns series found that there were 101 establishments in the United States primarily engaged in manufacturing lime and 632 establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing concrete blocks and brick in 2021.
The 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz was filmed at the Metro Goldwyn-Mayer studios (above) in Culver City, CA, and in Liberal, KS.
In 2021, the County Business Patterns series found there were 17,269 establishments primarily producing and distributing motion pictures, videos, television programs, and television
commercials (NAICS 512110). California led the nation with 7,231 establishments, followed by New York (2,184), and Florida (968).
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.
This Month in Census History
From 1790 through 1820, the decennial census was conducted as of the first Monday in August.
President John Quincy Adams recommended moving Census Day from August to June in his December 1828 address to Congress believing the move would give the U.S. marshals (who conducted the 1790 to 1870 censuses) more time to complete the enumeration.
Censuses were conducted in June through 1900.
In 1910, Congress moved Census Day to April 15 and January 1 in 1920.
Since 1930, Census Day has been as of April 1. Our most recent census counted 331,449,281 people as of April 1, 2020.
View larger image
The red sequined "ruby slippers" Judy Garland wore in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz are perhaps the most famous footwear in American popular culture. More than 8 decades since the movie's release, the sparkling red shoes still attract excited crowds to the Smithsonian's Museum of American History in Washington, DC.
Footwear often plays an important role in film, music, sports, and historic events. For example, Carl Perkins (1955) and Elvis Presley (1956) sang about their Blue Suede Shoes.
Movie audiences were aghast when Charlie Chaplin played a starving miner who ate his boot in 1925's Gold Rush. In Walt Disney's 1950 film Cinderella, the prince finds his princess thanks to the glass slipper she left behind at a ball, while John Wayne's Lucchese cowboy boots manufactured in San Antonio, TX, added to the actor's western bravado. More recently, Nike's "Cortez" sneakers played a "supporting role" in 1994's Academy Award-winning movie Forest Gump.
In the sports world, track and field star Jesse Owens wore spiked athletic shoes manufactured by Adolf and Rudy Dassler during the 1936 Summer Olympics. The brothers later separately founded the Adidas and Puma athletic shoe and apparel companies.
Famous footwear has even left a "lasting imprint" on the moon! On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin captured the now famous image of his footprint in the lunar dust while wearing specially designed boots made by ILC Dover of Newark, DE.
Today, thousands of people in the United States continue to produce footwear for stage, screen, sports, the office, and outdoor adventures. The 2021 Annual Survey of Manufactures found that American footwear manufacturing establishments (NAICS 3162) had annual sales, value of shipments, or revenues of more than $1.6 billion and employed 10,379 people nationwide.
Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution.
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For the Record
L. Frank Baum's popular children's book The Wizard of Oz became one of the most beloved motion pictures in history thanks to a talented cast of lovable characters.
The movie stars Grand Rapids, MN, native Judy Garland as Dorothy Gale, a Kansas farm girl who is transported to the Land of Oz by a tornado. Garland became world famous in the decades after The Wizard of Oz, earning Academy, Golden Globe, Grammy, and Tony awards for her work. Today, the American Film Institute ranks her as the 8th greatest actress in film history.
Dorothy "follows the Yellow Brick Road" to meet the Wizard of Oz played by actor Frank Morgan. Along the way, she is joined by the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion played by Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, and Bert Lahr. The three were vaudeville performers in the 1920s before appearing on New York's Broadway stages and later in Hollywood films.
In a LA Times interview
Scarecrow actor Bolger said that in the decades after the film's release, "Little moppets come up to me and punch me to see if I'm made of straw." Despite the abuse of young admirers, the actor added, "How many can say 'I belong to a great American classic?'"Another of the films stars was often recognized by children who ran away crying!
Margaret Hamilton played the Wicked Witch of the West who chased, taunted, and kidnapped Dorothy as she tried to take her ruby slippers. In a 1975 episode of Mister Rogers Neighborhood, Hamilton said of the Wicked Witch, "Sometimes, Mister Rogers, I'm a little unhappy because lots of children are quite scared by her."
Hamilton continued acting until 1982 and used her notoriety to speak at schools and raise money for charitable causes until her death in Salisbury, CT, in 1985.
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