The Fairylogues and Radio-Plays (lost early film adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz" children's fantasy novel; 1908): Difference between revisions

From The Lost Media Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
No edit summary
(25 intermediate revisions by 16 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
[[File:Fairylogue.jpg|thumb|300px|A rediscovered still from the film.]]
{{InfoboxLost
Before the widely-known 1939 film adaptation of ''The Wizard of Oz'', there were numerous attempts to bring L. Frank Baum's classic characters to life.'' '''The Fairylogues and Radio-Plays''''' was the earliest-known of these attempts. "Fairylogue" was a play on words of "travelogue", a popular form of documentary at the time which involved people traveling to exotic places. The "radio" part was an attempt to make the film sound "high-tech" much like the word "cyber" would be used in the 90s and early 2000s. This film was actually one of Baum's many ambitious projects, and reportedly one of his last.
|title=<center>The Fairylogues and Radio-Plays</center>
|image=TheFairyloguesAndRadioPlays-InfoboxStill.jpg
|imagecaption=A rediscovered still from the film.
|status=<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>
}}
'''''The Fairylogues and Radio-Plays''''' is the earliest known<ref>https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=X_7VbOGM8iMC&pg=PA270&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false</ref> adaptation of L. Frank Baum's ''The Wizard of Oz'', written by and starring Baum as Oz. "Fairylogue" is a play on "fairy" and "travelogue", a popular form of the documentary at the time which involved people traveling to exotic places. The word "radio" was an attempt to make the film sound "high-tech" (as "cyber" or "2000" would be used in the 1990s and early 2000s). The film was a mix of live action, magic lantern slides, and film which included colorized slides and narration. The film is also said to be the first film to feature a score, as opposed to D.W. Griffith's 1915 silent film ''The Birth of a Nation''.


The film marks many "firsts". It is the first known film adaptation of Baum's literary works, as mentioned above. It is also one of the first all-color films. It is unknown if it was done through a hand-tinted technique or through early proto-technicolor processes. All that is known is that the color is credited to a "Michael Radio" of Paris, of whom is not at all documented. Whatever Mr. Radio did, he did an amazing job as what can be seen in the above image. The film is also the first film to have an official film score, as it had a small pit orchestra.
The film is recognized for its technical ambition due to these then-revolutionary features. Baum and several stage actors would interact with each other on stage as well as onscreen. The film would start out with Baum giving a lecture of his "travelogue" through the Land of Oz and the characters would eventually "pull" him into their world. There was even a scene where Dorothy would be whisked away from the stage onto the screen by a tornado.


Then there comes the real kicker of ambition: this is the first known "interactive" film. Baum and several stage actors would interact with each other on stage as well as onscreen. The film would start out with Baum giving a lecture of his "travelogue" through the Land of Oz and the characters eventually would "pull" him in and then somehow magically work their way out. There was even a scene where Dorothy would be "whisped" away from the stage onto the screen by a tornado. This is considered one of the most technically ambitious pre-1910 films.
The film was shown for two months straight in Michigan and then in New York before closing on December 16, 1908. Despite the massive critical acclaim and sold out shows nearly every night it ran, costs were so high that, even though they had doubled the ticket prices, they still couldn't turn a profit. The show's failure to cover it's high production costs left Baum disappointed for years, though he continued to keep writing books until his death in 1919. Many viewed the show as Baum's non-literary masterpiece.


The film was shown for two months straight in Michigan and then in New York before closing on December 16, 1908. Despite massive critical acclaim and sold out shows nearly every night it ran, costs were so high that, even though they had doubled the ticket prices, they still couldn't turn a profit. This left Baum depressed for a few years, even up to his death in 1919. Many viewed this as Baum's non-literary masterpiece.
==Status==
The film was shown again on September 24th, 1925 until December 16th, 1925 after the Selig Polyscope Company was acquired by First National Pictures (though the re-release was supposed to last through December 31st). The film was eventually discarded after the Baum estate discovered its decomposition, and it is unknown if any other copies survive. A few production stills were uncovered in the late 1980s, and historians scrambled to get as much information as possible. There have been rumors that a few copies may have been made to sell to collectors via a gift shop at the theatre the film was shown. Unless these rumors are true, this film may be permanently lost.


The film was discarded after the Baum estate discovered its decomposition (our good old friend, cellulose nitrate, strikes again) and it is unknown if any other copies survive. When a few production stills were uncovered in the late 80s, historians scrambled to get as much information as possible. The few color images proved to many just how gorgeous the movie was crafted. There have been rumors that a few copies may have been made to sell to collectors via a gift shop at the theater the film was shown. Unless these rumors are true, this film may now be permanently lost.
==Reference==
{{reflist}}


[[Category:Lost films]]
[[Category:Lost films|Fairylogues and Radio-Plays]]
[[Category:Historic|Fairylogues and Radio-Plays]]
[[Category:Completely lost media|Fairylogues and Radio-Plays]]

Revision as of 05:45, 28 May 2021

TheFairyloguesAndRadioPlays-InfoboxStill.jpg

A rediscovered still from the film.

Status: Lost

The Fairylogues and Radio-Plays is the earliest known[1] adaptation of L. Frank Baum's The Wizard of Oz, written by and starring Baum as Oz. "Fairylogue" is a play on "fairy" and "travelogue", a popular form of the documentary at the time which involved people traveling to exotic places. The word "radio" was an attempt to make the film sound "high-tech" (as "cyber" or "2000" would be used in the 1990s and early 2000s). The film was a mix of live action, magic lantern slides, and film which included colorized slides and narration. The film is also said to be the first film to feature a score, as opposed to D.W. Griffith's 1915 silent film The Birth of a Nation.

The film is recognized for its technical ambition due to these then-revolutionary features. Baum and several stage actors would interact with each other on stage as well as onscreen. The film would start out with Baum giving a lecture of his "travelogue" through the Land of Oz and the characters would eventually "pull" him into their world. There was even a scene where Dorothy would be whisked away from the stage onto the screen by a tornado.

The film was shown for two months straight in Michigan and then in New York before closing on December 16, 1908. Despite the massive critical acclaim and sold out shows nearly every night it ran, costs were so high that, even though they had doubled the ticket prices, they still couldn't turn a profit. The show's failure to cover it's high production costs left Baum disappointed for years, though he continued to keep writing books until his death in 1919. Many viewed the show as Baum's non-literary masterpiece.

Status

The film was shown again on September 24th, 1925 until December 16th, 1925 after the Selig Polyscope Company was acquired by First National Pictures (though the re-release was supposed to last through December 31st). The film was eventually discarded after the Baum estate discovered its decomposition, and it is unknown if any other copies survive. A few production stills were uncovered in the late 1980s, and historians scrambled to get as much information as possible. There have been rumors that a few copies may have been made to sell to collectors via a gift shop at the theatre the film was shown. Unless these rumors are true, this film may be permanently lost.

Reference