Tales of the Wizard of Oz

America

The story

Tales of the Wizard of Oz is a 1961 animated television series produced by Crawley Films for Videocraft (later known as Rankin/Bass Productions). This is the second animated series produced by the studio and the first by Rankin/Bass to feature traditional animation.

Summary

The series features stories derived from characters created in L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Several characters are given additional names, including Dandy the Cowardly Lion, Rusty the Tin Man, and Socrates the Strawman. In this adaptation, rather than being dropped by a tornado, Dorothy and Toto are blown in from Kansas through a hole cut out of the landscape.
Each episode is a brief vignette about an adventure that the characters are involved in, often revolving around the Wizard's attempts to fulfil the characters' wishes.
Artistic renditions of the Oz characters created for this series were later featured in the hourlong television special Return to Oz. The series was also adapted to a comic book for a one-shot issue in Dell's Four Color #1308 (March–May 1962).
As of 2025, this series has yet to be released officially on DVD.

Cast

Carl Banas as The Wizard
Corinne Conley as Dorothy
Bernard Cowan as Munchkins, Various
Stan Francis as Various
Paul Kligman as Dandy Lion, Ham
Peggi Loder as Various
Larry D. Mann as Rusty the Tin Man, the Wicked Witch, Topsy Turvy, Desmond the Dragon
Alfie Scopp as Socrates the Strawman, Baker, Robby the Rubber Man

Episode list

Pilot: Part 1
Pilot: Part Two - The Witch Switch
Leapin' Lion
The Magic Hat
The Balloon Buzz
Machine-Gun Morris
Movie Maid
Shadow Shakes
The Big Cake Bake
Desmond's Dilemma
Misfire Miss
Gung-Ho Gang
Heart Burn
Stuffed
The Fountain of Youth
The Rubber Man
The Happy Forest
Dandy's Dilemma
The Search
The Bag of Wind
The Music Men
To Bee or Not to Bee
Have Your Pie and Eat It Too
The Sound of Munchkins
The Count
Places, Please
The Green Golfer
The Flying Carpet
The Monkey Convention
The Big Shot
On the Wing
To Stretch A Point
The Flipped Lid
Down in the Mouth
The Gusher
The Family Tree
Boomer Rang
The Great Laurso
The Pudgy Lion
Beauty and the Beach
The Hillies and the Billies
The School Marm
An Optical Delusion
Watch the Bouncing Bull
All in a Lather
The Green Thumb
Leap Frog
The Cultured Lion
Chowy Mein
The Super-Duper Market
Friends of a Feather
Monkey Air Lift
Guaranteed for Life
The Skills of Bravery
The Coat of Arms
Roar, Lion, Roar
Be a Card
The Inferior Decorator
The Salesman
The Cat's Meow
The Yellow Brick Road
Rusty Rusty
The Scarecrow
The Invisible Man
Free Trade
The Bull Fighter
The Golden Touch
The Long Hair
Roll the Presses
The Big Brother
The Cool Lion
Gabe the Gobbler
The Raffle
The Strawman Twist
The Dinner Party
The Fire Chief
The Green Tomato
The Poet
The Three Musketeers
One Big Headache
Get Out the Vote
The Wizard's Promise
Well Done
The Do-It-Yourself Heart
The Great Oz Auto Race
The Jail Breakers
The Reunion
The Sucker
The Bubble Champ
Too Much Heart
The Witch's Boyfriend
The Clock Watchers
Double Trouble
The O.N.
Going to Pieces
Mail-Order Lover
Love Sick
It's a Dog's Life
The Fallen Star
Don't Pick the Daisies
The Munchkin Robin Hood
The Wizard's Tail-Fins
The Rubber Doll
The Magic World Of Oz
The Wisdom Teeth
The Brain
Bake Your Cake and Eat it Too
A Fish Tale
The Last Straw
Plug-In Courage
The Wizard's Magic Wand
The Mail Man
The Pony Express
TV Romance
Film: Return to Oz (Feb 9, 1964)