The Wizard of Oz officially opened 81 years ago today, on August 25, 1939. MGM previewed the movie in Wisconsin two weeks earlier to test its popularity in the Midwest. Viewers were wowed by Technicolor, a film first. Still, production was marred by mishaps and it was a decade before MGM recouped its $3 million investment. Read more about the making of The Wizard of Oz and its “big” and “little” stars in A Brain. A Heart. The Nerve., a fictional biography of the actor who played the Munchkin Coroner (see NOVELS).
