"The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is the earliest existing film of the over 60 movies adapted from the 1900 L. Frank Baum book. And that tally doesn't include subsequent television and live stage presentations. The released Oz movie on March 1910 was produced by the Selig Polyscope Company out of Chicago and adopted many of the elements from the 1902 Wizard of Oz play.
Selig was able to make the movie using the Baum book because the company was involved in the author's "The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays," a combined play/vaudeville act/movie production in 1908. (The short Selig movie played during this production has been lost). After a disastrous two months, the act bankrupted Baum, giving Selig the rights to use his Oz characters and story. Besides the "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" movie, Selig immediately made three Oz sequels within 1910--all three now lost.
In this first 1910 Selig movie, Imogene the Cow, not portrayed in the Braun book, takes the place of Toto. Imogene is a person in a cow costume while Toto the dog could not be asked to be on the 1902 stage for a couple of hours and behave. Toto does make a brief appearance in this movie, but the cow dominates as a companion to Dorothy. Also, the scarecrow is discovered by Dorothy before the tornado and accompanies her to the Land of Oz. Another added element to the movie over the play was the extended role of the Wicked Witch of the West. Just like the Judy Garland 1939 classic, Dorothy has to confront the witch to get her wish from the Wizard. But instead of water shrinking the witch, water thrown at her simply makes the witch disappear.
And it appears the cast is dancing to some music. The 1902 play did havemusic to which accompanied the actors' dance numbers--but since film hadn't advanced enough to play sound, there is no songs heard on the movie that choreograph the cast.
Selig was able to make the movie using the Baum book because the company was involved in the author's "The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays," a combined play/vaudeville act/movie production in 1908. (The short Selig movie played during this production has been lost). After a disastrous two months, the act bankrupted Baum, giving Selig the rights to use his Oz characters and story. Besides the "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" movie, Selig immediately made three Oz sequels within 1910--all three now lost.
In this first 1910 Selig movie, Imogene the Cow, not portrayed in the Braun book, takes the place of Toto. Imogene is a person in a cow costume while Toto the dog could not be asked to be on the 1902 stage for a couple of hours and behave. Toto does make a brief appearance in this movie, but the cow dominates as a companion to Dorothy. Also, the scarecrow is discovered by Dorothy before the tornado and accompanies her to the Land of Oz. Another added element to the movie over the play was the extended role of the Wicked Witch of the West. Just like the Judy Garland 1939 classic, Dorothy has to confront the witch to get her wish from the Wizard. But instead of water shrinking the witch, water thrown at her simply makes the witch disappear.
And it appears the cast is dancing to some music. The 1902 play did havemusic to which accompanied the actors' dance numbers--but since film hadn't advanced enough to play sound, there is no songs heard on the movie that choreograph the cast.