The Dreamer of Oz

The Dreamer of Oz
Poster.
Production company	Bedrock Productions Adams Productions Spelling Entertainment
Distributor	NBC
Release date	December 10, 1990
Run time	1:32:48
Starring	John Ritter Annette O'Toole Rue McClanahan Charles Haid David Schramm Nancy Lenehan Courtney Barilla
Executive producer(s)	David Kirschner Robert M. Myman
Producer(s)	Laura Moskowitz David Brooks Ervin Zavada Clare Witt
Music composed by	Lee Holdridge
Story by	David Kirschner Richard Matheson
Screenplay by	Richard Matheson
Director(s)	Jack Bender
Title card

The Dreamer of Oz is an American live-action biographical television film based on the life of L. Frank Baum and his creation of the 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The film was a joint production by Bedrock Productions, Adam Productions, and Spelling Entertainment. It aired on December 10, 1990 on NBC. It was written by David Kirschner and Robert M. Myman, produced by Ervin Zavada, and directed by Jack Bender.

During the opening night of MGM's The Wizard of Oz in 1939, Maud Gage Baum tells an aspiring young reporter the story of how she met Baum, a struggling actor, and how he went from job to job to support their family, all the while he developed what became The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which he struggled to get published.

Characters

Legend
Character debut	Speaking debut	Ep. debut	No lines	Mentioned

In order of appearance:

Character	Actor
Announcer	Dale Tarter
Albert	John Cameron Mitchell
Maud Gage Baum	Annette O'Toole
L. Frank Baum	John Ritter
Harriet Alvena Baum Neal	Nancy Lenehan
Matilda Joslyn Gage	Rue McClanahan
Actress	Laura Owens
Frank Joselyn Baum	Joshua Boyd (young Frank Jr.) Tim Eyster Christopher Pettiet (teen Frank Jr.)
Robert Stanton Baum	Ryan Todd
Charlie H. Gage	Pat Skipper
Helen Leslie Gage Gage	Nancy Morgan
Dorothy Louise Gage	Courtney Barilla
Mr. Harris	Rod Gist
Ned Brown	Ed Gale
Farmer	Ed Gale
Scarecrow	David Ellzy
Mr. Southby	Unavailable
Mrs. Southby	Unavailable
Uncle Henry
Aunt Em
Tin Man	Derek Loughram
Al Badham	Charles Haid
Mrs. Badham
Harry Neal Baum	Jason Ritter
Cowardly Lion	Charles Haid
Sullivan	Frank Hamilton
Salesman	Roger Steffans
Tobey	Unavailable
Dorothy Gale	Courtney Barilla
Toto	Unavailable
Mr. Munchkin	Jerry Maren
Mrs. Munchkin	Elizabeth Barrington
William Denslow	David Schramm
George Hill	Steven Gilborn
Publisher	Bill DeLand
Mr. Reynolds	Unavailable

Organizations

• MGM (mentioned)
• Dakota Pioneer
• Siegel Cooper and Company
• Chicago Press Club
• George Hill Publishers

Locations

• Earth
  • United States
    • California
      • Los Angeles
        • Hollywood
          • Hollywood Boulevard
            • The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
            • Grauman's Chinese Theatre
            • Hollywood Walk of Fame
    • New York
      • Fayetteville
        • Gage residence
      • Massachusetts (indirectly mentioned)
        • Boston (mentioned)
      • Cornell University (mentioned)
      • Syracruse
    • Dakota Territory
      • Alberdeen
        • Charlie H. Gage's residence
        • Baum's Bazaar
        • Dakota Pioneer building
    • Illinois
      • Chicago
        • Campbell Park
          • Siegel Cooper and Company building
          • George Hill Publishers building
    • Pennyslvania (indirectly mentioned)
      • Philadelphia (mentioned)
    • Kansas (mentioned)
  • Europe (mentioned)
  • Far East (mentioned)
  • Oz
    • Land of the Munchkins
    • Emerald City

Objects

• Dakota Pioneer newspaper
• Yellow Brick Road
• Mother Goose in Prose
• The Wizard of Oz
• Father Goose: His Book

Vehicles

• Nothing of importance

Music

The music was composed and conducted by Lee Holdridge. The music coordinator was Frank Capp.

Release

Dates are in order of release:

• United States: December 10, 1990 on NBC

Behind the scenes

• Harry Baum was played by John Ritter's real-life eldest son, Jason.

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient	Result

In other languages

Language	Name	Meaning

Home availability

• In Australia:
  • Circa 1990: CLC Video releases The Dreamer of Oz on VHS.
• In the United States:
  • September 29, 2009: Warner Home Video releases The Wizard of Oz: 75th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition on DVD.
  • September 29, 2009: Warner Home Video releases The Wizard of Oz: 75th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition on Blu-ray Disc.