Off to See the Wizard

Off to See the Wizard is an American television anthology series, partially animated but mostly live action, produced by MGM Animation/Visual Arts and telecast on ABC-TV between 1967 and 1968 that was narrated by Hal Holbrook.[1]

## History

[edit]

The series derived its name from the well-known song "We're Off to See the Wizard", featured in MGM's classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. Such was the popularity of the film among TV audiences by then that ABC decided to build an anthology series around it, a series which primarily showcased the first network telecasts of some of MGM's most popular recent live-action family films, much as Walt Disney had often showcased the first telecasts of his films on the Disney anthology television series. Animated versions of Dorothy Gale, Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion, and the Wizard of Oz book-ended each episode of the series, often providing humorous introductions to the films.[2] Chuck Jones, who provided the animation, served as executive producer.

Two never-aired episodes consisted of a feature entitled High Jungle, which was scrapped after actor Eric Fleming drowned during filming.[3]

The series also used music from the famous MGM film. The opening credits featured an unseen chorus singing a stanza of "Over the Rainbow" and segued into Dorothy and her three friends singing "We're Off to See the Wizard."

### Featured films

[edit]

The series ran only an hour, so full-length films had to be split into two parts, much as Disney used to do on its television anthology series. Films shown on the series in order of appearance include:

* Clarence, the Cross-Eyed Lion (1965)
* Flipper (1963)
* Alexander The Great filmed in 1963 with William Shatner, John Cassavetes and Adam West but never previously shown. Directed by Phil Karlson
* Hell Cats (a 1964 television pilot starring George Hamilton[4])
* Island of the Lost
* Lili (1953)
* Mike and the Mermaid (pilot)[4]
* Rhino!
* The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1960)
* Gypsy Colt (1953)
* Untamed World
* Who's Afraid of Mother Goose?
* Wild World
* Zebra in the Kitchen (1965)
* The Glass Slipper (1955)
* Captain Sindbad (1963)

## Cast

[edit]

* Mel Blanc \- Cowardly Lion
* Daws Butler \- Scarecrow, Wizard of Oz
* Don Messick \- Toto, Tin Man
* June Foray \- Dorothy Gale, Wicked Witch of the West

## See also

[edit]

* The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)
* Walt Disney anthology television series

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Woolery, George W. (1985). Children's Television: The First Thirty-Five Years, 1946-1981, Part II: Live, Film, and Tape Series. The Scarecrow Press. pp. 378–379. ISBN 0-8108-1651-2.
2. ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 912–913. ISBN 978-1476665993.
3. ^ Jeremy Roberts (October 5, 2016). "Now or never: Remembering 'Rawhide' star Eric Fleming". Medium.com. Retrieved August 13, 2018.
4. ^ a b Goldberg, Lee (5 July 2015). Unsold Television Pilots: 1955-1989. Adventures in Television. ISBN 9781511590679.

## External links

[edit]

* Off to See the Wizard at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

Books

| Novels|

| Baum|

* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900)
* The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904)
* Ozma of Oz (1907)
* Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz (1908)
* The Road to Oz (1909)
* The Emerald City of Oz (1910)
* The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1913)
* Tik-Tok of Oz (1914)
* The Scarecrow of Oz (1915)
* Rinkitink in Oz (1916)
* The Lost Princess of Oz (1917)
* The Tin Woodman of Oz (1918)
* The Magic of Oz (1919)
* Glinda of Oz (1920)

|

Thompson|

* The Royal Book of Oz (1921)
* Kabumpo in Oz (1922)
* The Cowardly Lion of Oz (1923)
* Grampa in Oz (1924)
* The Lost King of Oz (1925)
* The Hungry Tiger of Oz (1926)
* The Gnome King of Oz (1927)
* The Giant Horse of Oz (1928)
* Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz (1929)
* The Yellow Knight of Oz (1930)
* Pirates in Oz (1931)
* The Purple Prince of Oz (1932)
* Ojo in Oz (1933)
* Speedy in Oz (1934)
* The Wishing Horse of Oz (1935)
* Captain Salt in Oz (1936)
* Handy Mandy in Oz (1937)
* The Silver Princess in Oz (1938)
* Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz (1939)
* Yankee in Oz (1972)
* The Enchanted Island of Oz (1976)

Others|

* The Wonder City of Oz (1940)
* The Scalawagons of Oz (1941)
* Lucky Bucky in Oz (1942)
* The Magical Mimics in Oz (1946)
* The Shaggy Man of Oz (1949)
* The Hidden Valley of Oz (1951)
* Merry Go Round in Oz (1963)
* The Forbidden Fountain of Oz (1980)
* The Ozmapolitan of Oz (1986)
* The Wicked Witch of Oz (1993)
* The Giant Garden of Oz (1993)
* The Runaway in Oz (1995)
* The Rundelstone of Oz (2000)
* The Emerald Wand of Oz (2005)
* Trouble Under Oz (2006)

Other books|

* The Magical Monarch of Mo (1899)
* Dot and Tot of Merryland (1901)
* The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus (1902)
* Queen Zixi of Ix (1904)
* John Dough and the Cherub (1906)
* The Sea Fairies (1911)
* Sky Island (1912)
* Little Wizard Stories of Oz (1913)

Characters|

| Baum|

* Dorothy Gale
* Toto
* Aunt Em
* Uncle Henry
* Princess Ozma
* Wizard of Oz
* Scarecrow
* Tin Woodman
* Cowardly Lion
* Glinda, the Good Witch of the South
* Good Witch of the North
* Wicked Witch of the East
* Wicked Witch of the West
* Billina
* Glass Cat
* Jack Pumpkinhead
* Jellia Jamb
* Jinjur
* John Dough
* Mombi
* Munchkins
* Nome King
* Pastoria
* Patchwork Girl
* Polychrome
* Queen Lurline
* Shaggy Man
* Soldier with the Green Whiskers
* Tik-Tok
* Winged monkeys
* Woggle-Bug

|

Post-Baum|

* Jinnicky the Red Jinn
* Kabumpo
* Peter Brown
* Elphaba

Elements|

* Land of Oz
* Emerald City
* Gillikin Country
* Munchkin Country
* Quadling Country
* Winkie Country
* Yellow brick road
* Deadly Desert
* Land of Ev
* Merryland
* Ruby slippers
* Silver shoes

Authors|

| Writers|

* L. Frank Baum
* Ruth Plumly Thompson
* John R. Neill
* Jack Snow
* Rachel Cosgrove Payes
* Eloise Jarvis McGraw
* Dick Martin
* Alexander Volkov
* Eric Shanower
* Gregory Maguire
* Sherwood Smith
* Roger S. Baum

|

Illustrators|

* William Wallace Denslow
* John R. Neill
* Frank Kramer
* Dirk Gringhuis
* Dick Martin
* Leonid Vladimirsky
* Eric Shanower
* William Stout

Related|

* Political interpretations
* Copyright status

Adaptations

| Stage|

* The Wizard of Oz (1902)
* The Woggle-Bug (1905)
* The Tik-Tok Man of Oz (1913)
* The Wizard of Oz (1942)
* The Wiz (1974)
* The Marvelous Land of Oz (1981)
* The Wizard of Oz (1987)
* The Wizard of A.I.D.S. (1987)
* Twister (1994)
* Wicked (2003)
* The Wizard of Oz (2011)
* The Woodsman (2012)

|

Films|

* The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays (1908)
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1910)
* The Patchwork Girl of Oz (1914)
* The Magic Cloak of Oz (1914)
* His Majesty, the Scarecrow of Oz (1914)
* The Wizard of Oz (1925)
* The Wizard of Oz (1933)
* The Wizard of Oz (1939)
* The Wizard of Oz (1950)
* The Rainbow Road to Oz (unproduced)
* Return to Oz (1964, TV)
* The Wizard of Mars (1965)
* The Wonderful Land of Oz (1969)
* Ayşecik ve Sihirli Cüceler Rüyalar Ülkesinde (1971)
* Journey Back to Oz (1972)
* Oz (1976)
* The Wiz (1978)
* The Wizard of Oz (1982)
* Os Trapalhões e o Mágico de Oróz (1984)
* Return to Oz (1985)
* Dorothy Meets Ozma of Oz (1987)
* The Dreamer of Oz: The L. Frank Baum Story (1990)
* The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True (1995)
* Lion of Oz (2000)
* The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2005)
* Apocalypse Oz (2006)
* After the Wizard (2011)
* Tom and Jerry and the Wizard of Oz (2011)
* Dorothy and the Witches of Oz (2012)
* Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)
* Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return (2014)
* OzLand (2014)
* Guardians of Oz (2015)
* The Wiz Live! (2015)
* Tom and Jerry: Back to Oz (2016)
* The Steam Engines of Oz (2018)
* Rainbow (2022)
* Wicked (2024)
* Wicked Part Two (2025)

TV series|

* Tales of the Wizard of Oz (1961)
* Off to See the Wizard (1967–68)
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1986–87)
* The Wizard of Oz (1990)
* The Wonderful Galaxy of Oz (1992–93)
* The Oz Kids (1996)
* Tin Man (2007)
* "Wizard of Odd" (2010)
* Once Upon a Time (2011–18)
* Lost in Oz (2015–18)
* Emerald City (2017)
* Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz (2017–20)

Books|

* The Wizard of the Emerald City (1939)
* A Barnstormer in Oz (1982)
* Mister Tinker in Oz (1985)
* Dorothy of Oz (1989)
* Sir Harold and the Gnome King (1991)
* Was (1992)
* Queen Ann in Oz (1993)
* The Magic Dishpan of Oz (1994)
* The Wicked Years series (1995–2011)
* Visitors from Oz (1998)
* Paradox in Oz (1999)
* Oz Before the Rainbow (2000)
* The Hidden Prince of Oz (2000)
* The Unknown Witches of Oz (2000)
* Bloodstained Oz (2006)
* The Secret Order of the Gumm Street Girls (2006)
* Dorothy Must Die (2014)
* The Wicked Will Rise (2015)

Comics|

* Queer Visitors from the Marvelous Land of Oz (1904–05)
* Adventures in Oz (1986–92)
* The Enchanted Apples of Oz (1986)
* Oz Squad (1991)
* Lost Girls (1991–92)
* Dorothy (2004–07)
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (2005)
* Cheshire Crossing (2006–19)
* The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (2009)
* The Marvelous Land of Oz (2010)

Games|

* The Wizard of Oz (1985)
* The Wizard of Oz (1993)
* The Wizard of Oz: Beyond the Yellow Brick Road (2008)
* Emerald City Confidential (2009)
* The Wizard of Oz (2010)
* The Wizard of Oz (2013)

Related|

* The Oz Film Manufacturing Company
* The International Wizard of Oz Club
* The Baum Bugle
* Oz Park
* Land of Oz
* Wizard of Oz festival
* Wizard of Oz Museum
* Oz-story Magazine

* Category

* v
* t
* e

Chuck Jones

Short subjects|

| 1930s|

* The Night Watchman (1938)
* Dog Gone Modern (1939)
* Robin Hood Makes Good (1939)
* Prest-O Change-O (1939)
* Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur (1939)
* Naughty but Mice (1939)
* Old Glory (1939)
* Snowman's Land (1939)
* Little Brother Rat (1939)
* The Little Lion Hunter (1939)
* The Good Egg (1939)
* Sniffles and the Bookworm (1939)
* The Curious Puppy (1939)

|

1940s|

* Mighty Hunters (1940)
* Elmer's Candid Camera (1940)
* Sniffles Takes a Trip (1940)
* Tom Thumb in Trouble (1940)
* The Egg Collector (1940)
* Ghost Wanted (1940)
* Stage Fright (1940)
* Good Night Elmer (1940)
* Bedtime for Sniffles (1940)
* Elmer's Pet Rabbit (1941)
* Sniffles Bells the Cat (1941)
* Joe Glow, the Firefly (1941)
* Porky's Ant (1941)
* Toy Trouble (1941)
* Porky's Prize Pony (1941)
* Inki and the Lion (1941)
* Snow Time for Comedy (1941)
* The Brave Little Bat (1941)
* Saddle Silly (1941)
* Porky's Midnight Matinee (1941)
* The Bird Came C.O.D. (1942)
* Porky's Cafe (1942)
* Conrad the Sailor (1942)
* Dog Tired (1942)
* The Draft Horse (1942)
* Hold the Lion, Please (1942)
* The Squawkin' Hawk (1942)
* Fox Pop (1942)
* The Dover Boys at Pimento University; or, The Rivals of Roquefort Hall (1942)
* My Favorite Duck (1942)
* Case of the Missing Hare (1942)
* To Duck or Not to Duck (1943)
* Flop Goes the Weasel (1943)
* Super-Rabbit (1943)
* The Unbearable Bear (1943)
* The Aristo-Cat (1943)
* Coming!! Snafu (1943)
* Wackiki Wabbit (1943)
* Spies (1943)
* The Infantry Blues (1943)
* Fin'n Catty (1943)
* Inki and the Minah Bird (1943)
* Point Rationing of Foods (1943)
* Tom Turk and Daffy (1944)
* Bugs Bunny and the Three Bears (1944)
* Private Snafu vs. Malaria Mike (1944)
* The Weakly Reporter (1944)
* A Lecture on Camouflage (1944)
* Going Home (1944, unreleased)
* Gas (1944)
* Angel Puss (1944)
* Outpost (1944)
* From Hand to Mouse (1944)
* Lost and Foundling (1944)
* Hell-Bent for Election (1944)
* Odor-able Kitty (1945)
* Private Snafu in The Aleutians—Isles of Enchantment (Oh Brother!) (1945)
* Trap Happy Porky (1945)
* It's Murder She Says (1945)
* Hare Conditioned (1945)
* Fresh Airedale (1945)
* No Buddy Atoll (1945)
* Hare Tonic (1945)
* Secrets of the Caribbean (1945)
* Quentin Quail (1946)
* Hush My Mouse (1946)
* Hair-Raising Hare (1946)
* Fair and Worm-er (1946)
* Roughly Squeaking (1946)
* Scent-imental Over You (1947)
* Inki at the Circus (1947)
* A Pest in the House (1947)
* House Hunting Mice (1947)
* Little Orphan Airedale (1947)
* A Feather in His Hare (1948)
* What's Brewin', Bruin? (1948)
* Rabbit Punch (1948)
* Haredevil Hare (1948)
* You Were Never Duckier (1948)
* Daffy Dilly (1948)
* My Bunny Lies over the Sea (1948)
* Scaredy Cat (1948)
* So Much for So Little (1949)
* Awful Orphan (1949)
* Mississippi Hare (1949)
* Mouse Wreckers (1949)
* The Bee-Deviled Bruin (1949)
* Long-Haired Hare (1949)
* Often an Orphan (1949)
* Fast and Furry-ous (1949)
* Frigid Hare (1949)
* For Scent-imental Reasons (1949)
* Bear Feat (1949)
* Rabbit Hood (1949)

1950s|

* The Scarlet Pumpernickel (1950)
* The Ducksters (1950)
* Dog Gone South (1950)
* 8 Ball Bunny (1950)
* The Hypo-Chondri-Cat (1950)
* Homeless Hare (1950)
* Caveman Inki (1950)
* Rabbit of Seville (1950)
* Two's A Crowd (1950)
* Bunny Hugged (1951)
* Scent-imental Romeo (1951)
* A Hound for Trouble (1951)
* Rabbit Fire (1951)
* Chow Hound (1951)
* The Wearing of the Grin (1951)
* Cheese Chasers (1951)
* A Bear for Punishment (1951)
* Drip-Along Daffy (1951)
* Operation: Rabbit (1952)
* Feed the Kitty (1952)
* Little Beau Pepé (1952)
* Water, Water Every Hare (1952)
* Beep, Beep (1952)
* The Hasty Hare (1952)
* Going! Going! Gosh! (1952)
* Mouse-Warming (1952)
* Rabbit Seasoning (1952)
* Terrier Stricken (1952)
* Orange Blossoms for Violet (1952)
* Don't Give Up the Sheep (1953)
* Forward March Hare (1953)
* Kiss Me Cat (1953)
* Duck Amuck (1953)
* Much Ado About Nutting (1953)
* Wild Over You (1953)
* Duck Dodgers in the 24½th Century (1953)
* Bully for Bugs (1953)
* Zipping Along (1953)
* Lumber Jack-Rabbit (1953)
* Duck! Rabbit, Duck! (1953)
* Punch Trunk (1953)
* Feline Frame-Up (1954)
* No Barking (1954)
* The Cat's Bah (1954)
* Claws for Alarm (1954)
* Bewitched Bunny (1954)
* Stop! Look! And Hasten! (1954)
* From A to Z-Z-Z-Z (1954)
* My Little Duckaroo (1954)
* Sheep Ahoy (1954)
* Baby Buggy Bunny (1954)
* Beanstalk Bunny (1955)
* Ready, Set, Zoom! (1955)
* Past Perfumance (1955)
* Rabbit Rampage (1955)
* Double or Mutton (1955)
* Jumpin' Jupiter (1955)
* Knight-mare Hare (1955)
* Two Scent's Worth (1955)
* Guided Muscle (1955)
* One Froggy Evening (1955)
* 90 Day Wondering (1956)
* Bugs' Bonnets (1956)
* Broom-Stick Bunny (1956)
* Rocket Squad (1956)
* Heaven Scent (1956)
* Gee Whiz-z-z-z-z-z-z (1956)
* Barbary Coast Bunny (1956)
* Rocket-Bye Baby (1956)
* Deduce, You Say! (1956)
* There They Go-Go-Go! (1956)
* To Hare Is Human (1956)
* Scrambled Aches (1957)
* Ali Baba Bunny (1957)
* Go Fly a Kit (1957)
* Boyhood Daze (1957)
* Steal Wool (1957)
* What's Opera, Doc? (1957)
* Zoom and Bored (1957)
* Touché and Go (1957)
* Drafty, Isn't It? (1957)
* Robin Hood Daffy (1958)
* Hare-Way to the Stars (1958)
* Whoa, Be-Gone! (1958)
* To Itch His Own (1958)
* Hook, Line and Stinker (1958)
* Hip Hip-Hurry! (1958)
* Cat Feud (1958)
* Baton Bunny (1959)
* Hot-Rod and Reel! (1959)
* Wild About Hurry (1959)

1960s|

* Fastest with the Mostest (1960)
* Who Scent You? (1960)
* Rabbit's Feat (1960)
* Ready, Woolen and Able (1960)
* Hopalong Casualty (1960)
* High Note (1960)
* Zip 'N Snort (1961)
* The Mouse on 57th Street (1961)
* The Abominable Snow Rabbit (1961)
* Lickety-Splat (1961)
* A Scent of the Matterhorn (1961)
* Compressed Hare (1961)
* Beep Prepared (1961)
* Nelly's Folly (1961)
* A Sheep in the Deep (1962)
* Zoom at the Top (1962)
* Louvre Come Back to Me! (1962)
* Martian Through Georgia (1962)
* I Was a Teenage Thumb (1963)
* Now Hear This (1963)
* Hare-Breadth Hurry (1963)
* Mad as a Mars Hare (1963)
* Transylvania 6-5000 (1963)
* To Beep or Not to Beep (1963)
* Tom and Jerry (cartoon shorts, 1963–1967)
* War and Pieces (1964)
* The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics (1965)
* The Bear That Wasn't (1967)

1980s|

* Spaced Out Bunny (1980)
* Soup or Sonic (1980)

1990s|

* Chariots of Fur (1994)
* Another Froggy Evening (1995)
* Superior Duck (1996)
* Pullet Surprise (1997)
* From Hare to Eternity (1997)
* Father of the Bird (1997)

Television
specials|

* How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (1966)
* The Pogo Special Birthday Special (1969)
* Horton Hears a Who! (1970)
* The Cat in the Hat (1971)
* The Cricket in Times Square (1973)
* A Very Merry Cricket (1973)
* Yankee Doodle Cricket (1975)
* The White Seal (1975)
* Rikki-Tikki-Tavi (1975)
* Mowgli's Brothers (1976)
* Bugs and Daffy's Carnival of the Animals (1976)
* A Connecticut Rabbit in King Arthur's Court (1978)
* Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Great Santa Claus Caper (1978)
* Raggedy Ann and Andy in The Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile (1979)
* Bugs Bunny's Looney Christmas Tales (1979)
* Bugs Bunny's Bustin' Out All Over (1980)
* Daffy Duck’s Thanks-for-Giving Special (1980)
* A Chipmunk Christmas (1981)
* Peter and the Wolf (1995)

Feature films|

* Gay Purr-ee (1962, screenplay)
* The Phantom Tollbooth (1970)
* The Bugs Bunny/Road Runner Movie (1979)
* Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988, animation consultant)
* Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990, animation sequences)
* Stay Tuned (1992, animation sequence)
* Mrs. Doubtfire (1993, animation supervisor)

Television series|

* The Bugs Bunny Show (1960-1962, new animated sequences)
* Off to See the Wizard (1967-1968, animated sequences)
* Curiosity Shop (1971-1972)

Books|

* Daffy Duck for President (1997)

Characters|

* Bugs Bunny
* Charlie Dog
* Claude Cat
* Daffy Duck
* Elmer Fudd
* Gossamer
* Henery Hawk
* Hubie and Bertie
* Marc Antony and Pussyfoot
* Marvin the Martian
* Michigan J. Frog
* Nasty Canasta
* Penelope Pussycat
* Pepé Le Pew
* Porky Pig
* Ralph Wolf and Sam Sheepdog
* Sniffles
* The Three Bears
* Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner
* Witch Hazel

Other works|

* Chuck Amuck: The Movie
* Chuck Jones: Extremes & Inbetweens – A Life in Animation

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