WIZARD OF OZ, THE (1939) Full-length portrait of Ray Bolger as the Scarecrow

The Wizard of Oz is the most recognized film of all time. Its status is legendary and any original ephemera of 1939 is a collectors’ and archivists’ gold. From L. Frank Baum’s popular children’s classic, the film referring to the book opens with the title “For nearly forty years this story has given faithful service to the Young in Heart; and Time has been powerless to put its kindly philosophy out of fashion.” For 80 plus years since, the movie has become beloved by new generations who still find this message true. The brilliant cast members each became film legends for the characters they portrayed. Celebrating a new year, we present a fine array of original 1939 production stills for your consideration.

WIZARD OF OZ, THE (1939) [Hollywood]: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1939. Vintage original 8 x 10″ (20 x 25 cm.) black-and-white double weight glossy silver nitrate photo print, FINE. Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, Bert Lahr, Billie Burke, Margaret Hamilton, dir: Victor Fleming; MGM.

Full length shot of Ray Bolger as the Scarecrow used for the film’s publicity art. The date stamp of “Feb. 9, 1939” indicates this was released early on to be used for the ad department’s renderings for newspaper and magazine print ads. The printed typed blurb also appears on the verso. The photo number ink stamp of “106–144” also appears. Remnants of an attached paper blurb are also present.