Pick of the Day: The Wiz

Pretty well everyone has seen the classic 1939 MGM movie The Wizard of Oz in which the adorable Judy Garland starred as Dorothy, the young Kansas girl who, along with her dog Toto, gets swept up in a tornado and is whisked away to the magical land of Oz. It is a true Hollywood classic.

Tonight and tomorrow night at Conexus Arts Centre, Do-It-With-Class Young Peoples Theatre are presenting a somewhat revised musical version of L. Frank Baum's beloved tale with some video sequences being shot in Wascana Park. The Wiz debuted on Broadway in 1975, and in 1978 was made into a movie that starred such luminaries as Diana Ross (Dorothy), Michael Jackson (Scarecrow), Lena Horne (Glinda the Good Witch of the West), Nipsey Russel (TinMan) and Richard Pryor (the Wizard).

God knows how many TV and film versions of Baum's story are out there. All have a touch of weirdness attached to them. But hands down, in my mind anyway, this cartoon that I remember from my childhood is the weirdest. Anyone else out there remember this? (YouTube)