Over the years, Baum’s story has had several adaptations and reinterpretations

Baum wrote 14 'Oz' novels in total

Following the success of ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,’ Baum continued writing about the fictional world until his death, turning the world into a lucrative brand. One of the books, “The Patchwork Girl of Oz,” was turned into a silent film and released in 1914.

The 1925 ‘Wizard of Oz’ predates the classic 1939 film

The film differs significantly from the 1900 book and the later 1939 film adaptation: Dorothy is 18 years old, the Tin Woodman is a villain, and the entire story of Oz is framed by a toy-maker reading the original Baum book to his granddaughter.

The musical 'The Wizard of Oz' debuted in 1902

Following the success of ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,’ Baum adapted the novel for the stage. It premiered at Chicago’s Grand Opera House in 1902 and made it to Broadway’s Majestic Theatre in 1903. It then toured the country through 1909. It was also a musical adaptation of the story.

The 1939 ‘Wizard of Oz’ reimagined Baum’s book for a new age

Technological breakthroughs brought high-quality, synchronized sound to films by the end of the 1920s. By the 1930s, the movie-musical, a genre that blended artful cinematography and Broadway-style musicals, became more popular. “The Wizard of Oz” evolved the form further by structuring the plot into episodes anchored by memorable, revelatory songs.

L. Frank Baum aimed to make 'Oz' a modern fairy tale

Baum began writing stories for children while working as a traveling salesman and found success with 1899’s “Father Goose, His Book,” a book of nursery rhymes. Its popularity made him realize children did not want moral education; they wanted escapism.

Read the complete text of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'

The 1900 L. Frank Baum book that established the world of Oz entered the public domain in 1956, making it available for anyone who would like to read, distribute or reinterpret it. That also means you can browse the complete, original text for free.

'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' was the first major American fantasy novel

Baum blended elements of Hans Christian Andersen, the Brothers Grimm, and Lewis Carroll, placing them in an American context. The illustrations of William Wallace Denslow brought the fantastical elements to life, as seen below. The book was an instant smash hit, selling out its initial 10,000-book pressing within the first eight months. By the time it entered the public domain in 1956, it had sold 3 million copies.

'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' was inspired by a drought

In 1886, Baum moved to Aberdeen, South Dakota, opening a general store and a newspaper. A drought afflicted the area, decimating crops. Baum moved, but his first 'Oz' book describes Dorothy's Kansas in a way that matched what he saw in South Dakota.

The 'Wicked' movie is based on several previous ‘Oz’ adaptations

Gregory Maguire's novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West," published in 1995, is based on"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." It offers an adult-oriented retelling of the Oz story, focusing on Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. The book was then adapted for the stage, which premiered on Broadway in 2003. The Broadway musical was then adapted for the screen—the first film in the series debuted in 2024.

Some believe 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' is a political allegory

Although Baum claimed his book was intended as a simple children's story, scholars challenged that notion. One high school history teacher, Henry Littlefield, began teaching the book as a satire of the Gilded Age and published an essay inspiring other scholars to consider the text as a politically charged allegory.

Some believe L. Frank Baum wrote 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' on vacation

The writer vacationed in Macatawa, Michigan, in 1899. His great-grandson claims most of the book was written while staying there on the shores of Lake Michigan. The nearby town of Holland commemorated the book with the Oz Sculpture Garden.

Dorothy's famous entrance into Oz in 'The Wizard of Oz' relied on analog tricks, including a body double and sepia-toned paint, as much as it did on technology

The 1939 film changed Dorothy's slippers from silver to ruby

Baum’s original book listed the slippers as silver, but the filmmakers wanted the shoes to pop on film—and highlight their use of Technicolor—so they turned them ruby. The slippers wound up becoming one of the movie’s most iconic elements.

Shirley Temple was rumored to be a potential Dorothy

The child star—who was a huge fan of Baum’s books—mentioned in a 1988 autobiography that she’d heard she was being discussed for the role before Judy Garland was officially cast. She said that Garland was, ultimately, the right pick. “Sometimes, the gods know best,” she wrote.

Judy Garland's body double wore a sepia dress in the movie's most famous scene

A famous scene from "The Wizard of Oz" features Dorothy leaving behind her home in Kansas and walking into Oz. The filmmakers wanted the character to exit a colorless world and enter a Technicolor one, though the nascent technology required more than some clever postproduction tricks. The scene was painted sepia, as was Judy Garland's body double's dress. As she walks through the door, into Oz, the camera turns away. Then, Judy Garland strides back into frame, wearing her iconic blue dress.

A theory about Pink Floyd and 'The Wizard of Oz' was popularized by a 19-year-old

Pink Floyd’s seminal album “Dark Side of the Moon” eerily synchronizes with “The Wizard of Oz,” offering a psychedelic soundtrack for the movie. Journalist Charlie Savage popularized the phenomenon when he was 19. He’d go on to write for the Boston Globe and New York Times winning a Pulitzer Prize.

Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of 'Wicked,' is named after 'The Wizard of Oz' author

Gregory Maguire named the Wicked Witch of the West after L. Frank Baum. “I tried Lafaba, I tried Lafeyba," he said. "And then I tried Elphaba. As soon as I got Elphaba, I thought, oh, that's it.”

The first robot in literature may have been a 'mechanical man' in 1907's 'Ozma of Oz,' a book in L Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz' series.

'The Wiz' reimagined Baum's story for Black America

The 1978 film, produced in part by Motown Productions, starred several popular stars: Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell and Lena Horne. The music—composed by Charlie Smalls and Luther Vandross, and overseen by Quincy Jones—mirrored songs from the 1939 film.

The first robot in literature may have been a 'mechanical man' in 1907's 'Ozma of Oz,' a book in L Frank Baum's 'Wizard of Oz' series.

'Labyrinth' initially flopped

The fantasy movie, directed by Henson and starring David Bowie, exited theaters less than a month after its release. Later, though, the movie would become a cult classic and would inspire many writers and artists to create similarly whimsical worlds.

The best adaptations of Dickens' books

There have been over 300 screen adaptations of Dickens' works, including 50 of "A Christmas Carol" alone. This list breaks down the best of the bunch, with nods to the Gen X "Great Expectations," the musical rendition of "Oliver Twist," and Dev Patel's take on "David Copperfield."

Imagining the memoirs of aging Disney princesses

This resource shares a collection of drawings that humorously imagine the books Disney princesses would write as middle-aged women. See Cinderella’s guide to passive income or Sleeping Beauty’s story of becoming sober in this creative collection of comics.

The story behind one iconic meme

The 2012 post titled "Just a book owners smile" shows 11-year-old Maggie Goldenberger—resplendent in her braces, pigtails, and treasure map-like vest—holding a trio of Goosebumps books and grinning wildly at the camera. Another user quickly captioned it, "GERSBERMS. MAH FRAVRIT BERKS."

The history of the iconic Barbie doll

The 1959 debut of the Barbie doll changed the culture of toys permanently, and its many iterations have come to reflect, in a certain way, the aspirations of women around the world. But Barbie's unrealistic looks and plastic substance have prompted...

Mid-century modern graphic designers, known for their bright colors and bold lines in advertising, also found success with children's books.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, but became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.

A Maya creation myth begins with dwarfs

In the Popol Vuh—a foundational Maya creation text from Guatemala—an early age is marked by dwarves gifted with great vision and intellect. Their hubris led to destruction by flood, after which humans were created from corn with deliberately limited sight.

In 1945, Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí and legendary animator Walt Disney began collaborating on a short film that was not completed until 2003, years after both men had died.

The unexpected origin story of the snow globe

In 1900, a Vienna tradesman named Erwin Perzy I was attempting to invent an inexpensive way to improve light amplification in hospital operating rooms. After experimenting with a glass globe filled with water, the idea for the snow globe struck. Industrious as well as inventive, Perzy eventually turned his idea into a successful business. Read the full article to learn how the invention grew to become recognized globally.

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

The distributor behind 'Rocky Horror' pulled the film from its scheduled national release, believing it would be a failure, though it eventually amassed a dedicated fanbase through midnight showings, a trend that continues over 50 years later.

In 2009, the nation was gripped by the story of a missing young boy who was believed to be floating over Colorado in a homemade balloon, until it was revealed that he was at home the whole time.

American short story writer Flannery O'Connor raised 40 peacocks, which became potent symbols for her fiction's elegant violence

The story of Dollree Mapp, whose legal challenge over her 1957 conviction for possessing "obscene material" led to a major strengthening of the Fourth Amendment

'Saturday Night Fever,' the 1977 film that introduced disco to the mainstream, was based on a fabricated magazine story.

Watch a 1934 short film starring jazz legend Cab Calloway, a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene

The Ramones' 'Pet Sematary,' the theme song for the Stephen King novel of the same name, was written while the band was admiring the writer's collection of horror memorabilia.

In recent years a child anxiety expert has created and tested a novel phobia and anxiety treatment approach for children, focused on changing how parents respond to the fears.

Visualize the path of every solar eclipse from 1900 to 2099 and see what each looks like when observed from different locations on Earth.

Comedy legend Catherine O'Hara, star of 'Schitt's Creek' and 'Home Alone,' quit 'Saturday Night Live' after just one week to return to her old job.

In its famous catalog, Sears sold $600 DIY house kits from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in an estimated 100,000 'Sears and Roebuck homes.'

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

Many legends about George Washington, including his supposed wooden teeth and the story of cutting down the cherry tree, lack evidence.

Mark Twain spent decades feuding with the US Postal Service, convinced its costs and regulations were bureaucratic overreach.

Explore a list of the 100 best novels of all time, compiled by some of the world's best living writers, including Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and Jennifer Egan.

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

See images of medical cases of firework injuries shared on this 'Instagram for doctors.' (Warning: Graphic content)

Artificial coral reefs have been 3D printed from nontoxic, biodegradable terracotta clay, which coral polyps have used as a foundation for rebuilding marine ecosystems.