Finding Dorothy: A Novel

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Letts ( The Perfect Horse, 2016, etc.) builds her historical novel around Maud Gage Baum, the high-spirited wife of L. Frank Baum, who wrote the original Wizard of Oz books. In one of two intercut narratives, the 77-year-old Maud, who’d exerted a strong influence on her late husband, appears on the set of the movie in 1938; there, she encounters 16-year-old Judy Garland—cast as Dorothy—among others. The second narrative opens in Fayetteville, New York, in 1871 and traces Maud’s life from age 10: her girlhood as the daughter of an ardent suffragette; her brief time at Cornell University—she was one of the first women admitted there; her early marriage to Baum, an actor at the time; and the births of their four sons. Frank, a dreamer, was not so talented at making money, and the family endured a hardscrabble, peripatetic life until he scored as a writer. This part of the story is dramatic and sometimes-poignant, though it goes on a bit. (Read carefully, and you can spot some elements that made their ways into the books and movie.) The Hollywood part is more entertaining even if some of it feels implausible. Maud did meet Judy Garland and attend the premiere of the film in real life. But in the book she tries to protect and nurture Garland, who was at the mercy of her abusive stage mother and the filmmakers and was apparently fed amphetamines to keep her weight down. And while it’s true the movie’s best-loved song, “Somewhere over the Rainbow,” was almost cut at the last minute, the book has Maud persuading studio chief L.B. Mayer to keep it in. He noted the faded clothbound volume Maud held in her other hand. “Doing a little homework, I see.” This richly imagined novel tells the story behind The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the book that inspired the iconic film, through the eyes of author L. Frank Baum's intrepid wife, Maud. and even by her opinionated peers. Do you think it helped or hurt Maud to have such a famous and strong-minded woman as her mother? The fourth live show on Saturday 24 April 2010 saw the remaining eight finalists perform to stay in the competition. Following a one-on-one session with Charlotte Church, the mission this week was learning to perform " No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)". In the search for a dog to play Toto, the final 10 auditioned in front of the Toto panel and Lloyd Webber and the final 5 were chosen.

Maud [Gage Baum] is a fascinating character, and this is a poignant, absorbing tale of the life and love story that led to the creation of a beloved classic.”

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The top 20 performed in front of Lloyd Webber and the panel in a live show for a place in the final 10. The panel selected the final 10, with the public selecting one of the 10 contestants not chosen by the panel (Emilie Fleming) as the wildcard and eleventh finalist. [10] Live finals [ edit ]

As an elderly Maud reflects and reminisces on her life with Frank, Letts draws numerous parallels to her life as a rebellious young woman and the various indiscretions she observes on the set. Knowing the actress’s fate, readers will feel 16-year-old Judy’s pain as she is forced into a strict diet, flirted with by older men and generally ignored as a real person. Letts brings the set to life; Maud’s interactions with costume designers, directors and actors remind us all that The Wizard of Oz was truly cutting-edge for its time, and the amount of work that went into it was staggering. Fun fact: Dorothy’s famous shoes were originally meant to be silver, but the producers worried that silver would not look good on film. Now it is hard to imagine an Oz without ruby slippers. Certainly not, of course not,” Langley stammered, his face now beet red. “It’s just that I imagined the book was published years ago? I guess, I assumed—oh, never mind what I assumed...” It is worth noting that FINDING DOROTHY is definitely a work of fiction. Maud did meet Judy, but it is unlikely that she had such a strong role in the girl’s life. And while an early scene has her saving the song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” from being cut, that seems implausible. What is true, though, is Frank’s dedication to women’s rights, something that will likely please modern readers. In fact, upon reflection, I can now see that Dorothy herself was a much more strong-willed, feminist character than I ever realized when watching the movie or reading the books as a child. Though his views were no doubt bolstered by his wife and her suffragette mother, Letts also shows us the ways that Frank himself championed women’s rights and how his work informed his writing. Another source of interest for readers is finding in Maud’s life with Frank the incidents and experiences that he uses in the well-known story of the Wizard of Oz. The Scarecrow, for instance, came from Maud’s childhood fear of scarecrows. The tin man came from his stint selling oil. The word “Oz” originated with his children’s “Ahs!” on seeing his imaginative Christmas surprises. “It’s about our whole life and everything we’ve endured and imagined, all wrapped up and turned into make-believe,” says Frank.

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Group mash-up: " Well, Did You Evah! / Get the Party Started / Wild Thing" ( DuBarry Was a Lady / Pink / The Troggs)

My 2019 year of reading is off to a wonderful start partly because of this wonderful book! This is such an original story that I couldn’t wait to start reading and I was not disappointed. The fact that I've watched this movie over a dozen times improved my experience because when Maud, our main character, is talking about the scenes that were being filmed, I could remember each and every one of them. Bronte (mission winner) with Amy, Emilie, Jessica and the remaining contestants: " Love Machine" ( Girls Aloud)He jerked his head to the left—a gesture that could have pointed anywhere. “White Lung? Just head that way. You can’t miss it.” Nineteen years after Frank's passing, Maud is the only person who can help the producers stay true to the spirit of the book - because she's the only one left who knows its secrets... or on television? Did you watch it every year? What characters and scenes have remained with you? What frightened you the most? Did One of the most beautiful women ever to grace the silver screen, Hedy Lamarr also designed a secret weapon against Nazi Germany.