Wizard Of Oz Movie Vs Book

Ruby slippers, witches, munchkins, a talking lion, tin man, and scarecrow; all things that come to mind to people around the world when they hear the iconic phrase, “There’s no place like home.” The Wizard of Oz is one of the most beloved movies of all time, touching the hearts of families throughout generations. But how did it become such a cultural phenomenon? The original book, making of the movie, and the major impact of it during World War 2 all bring together this iconic film.
It all started with L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” published in Chicago in 1900. Baum based the book off his every day life, basing characters off of adventures he had growing up in North Dakota and jobs he had before and during being an author. When
The movie was released on August 12, 1939, just two weeks before World War 2 started. It is my personal belief (taken from stories my great grandpa use to tell me) that this movie helped people throughout the war. The idea of, “there’s no place like home,” and, “somewhere over the rainbow,” really hit home with families and soldiers alike. Judy Garland went on a radio show to sing her iconic song for our troops, during which they showed clips such as a military man holding his daughter, families being reunited at home, and parades of people waving the American flag (1943 Command Performance, YouTube). I grew up hearing about the war from my great grandpa and always recall his story of how him and his fellow soldiers would always quote the movie whenever they were feeling down and it would always bring a smile to their face. However, the story he would tell that always got tome was the first time him and his troop heard, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” on their radio. He would say, “There wasn’t a dry eye in the room, we all imagined being home with our families instead of being surrounded by the bodies of our