The Many Lands of Oz

Oz may be the brainchild of Chittenango's own L. Frank Baum, but Disney is about to give the magical land new life on the big screen with Oz: The Great and Powerful, a prequel that hits theaters March 8. The film, which tells the story of how a young magician from Kansas (James Franco) went on to become the Wizard, is one of many visions of Oz that have taken hold over the years. Here is just a sampling of some others:

Baum's literary canon: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is the book that started it all, but did you know that Baum penned 13 more books in the series during his lifetime? Not only that, but Baum's publisher, Reilly and Lee, solicited other authors to continue the series after his death, bringing the grand total of official Oz books to 40.

Wicked: Like Oz: The Great and Powerful, the Tony Award-winning musical (which passed through Syracuse on tour just last December) serves as a prequel to the main story, but this alternate vision contains the witches at the center and a soundtrack that holds its own place in our cultural consciousness.

Tin Man: The 2007 SyFy miniseries starring Zooey Deschanel reinvents Oz in a dystopian future. Though its characters have clear counterparts from the original story, Tin Man puts an entirely different spin on the Oz you thought you knew.