One of my lifelong favorite memories is everything about The Wizard of Oz. So much so that I replaced the record/book set I had as a child (which was likely garage sale fodder in the 1980s) a couple of years ago—courtesy of eBay. I remember so well sitting on our floral-print couch, legs sticking straight out, with book in hand, listening to the records on our old black-and-white TV/record player combo. In 1968, I would've been four years old. My mom had already spent countless hours reading to me at this age, so I could easily follow along word for word.
Truly, there is no telling how many times I listened to those records and read that book! ("Playing time over 3 hours.") When I received this set from eBay a few years back, I immediately placed it on my retro turntable and started listening. The cadence of the voices—every word, every pause, and all the suspense—was exactly as I remembered it as a child. I was almost giddy listening to it! I'm pretty sure I saw the movie before I ever got this set. The anticipation of being able to watch it on TV was priceless. I hate to admit it, but one time I faked being sick because I knew the movie was going to be on The Wonderful World of Disney on a Sunday night when we had church. I remember Mom let me watch it all snuggled up in a blanket on the couch.
I never had bad dreams. The winged monkeys were scary, but I've always had a strong sense of reality, so those things never bothered me. I loved Dorothy's courage and was elated that she was able to defeat the Wicked Witch by melting her with a bucket of water. I don't know how old I was when I finally realized that the Cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow, and the Tin Man were actually the helpers on her aunt and uncle's farm, but I do remember having that epiphany at some point. The Wizard of Oz was a solid part of my childhood, and it will always be my favorite story/movie of all time.
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