The Tik-Tok Man of Oz
Encyclopedia
The Tik-Tok Man of Oz is a musical play with book and lyrics by L. Frank Baum
and music by Louis F. Gottschalk
that opened in Los Angeles
, California
on March 31, 1913. It is loosely inspired by Baum's book, Ozma of Oz
(1907), and the basis for his 1914 novel, Tik-Tok of Oz
. It was promoted as "A Companion Play to The Wizard of Oz" and directed by Frank M. Stammers
. The play is known from its advertising and published music, but survives only in earlier manuscript.
expressed interest in an extravaganza based on Ozma of Oz in 1909.
The play began as a collaboration between Baum and composer Manuel Klein
, an employee of the Shuberts, which they worked on during February–April 1909, first under the title, The Rainbow's Daughter, or the Magnet of Love, but eventually retitled Ozma of Oz, or The Magnet of Love. It incorporated elements of The Road to Oz
, which was published that July, mainly in the inclusion of two of its new characters, the Shaggy Man
and Polychrome
, the Rainbow's daughter (which created some continuity inconsistencies when it was adapted to the novel), both of which were influenced by Prince Silverwings
. Betsy Bobbin was intended to be Dorothy Gale
, but the characters in The Wizard of Oz
and The Woggle-Bug
were contractually unavailable to him—although "Ozma" remained from The Woggle-Bug, she was a wholly different character renamed Ozga for the books. It also adapted the Rose Kingdom from the Kingdom of Mangaboos in Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
, and Queen Ann was derived from General Jinjur in spite of the failure of The Woggle-Bug. The show languished before 1912, when Oliver Morosco
agreed to produce it.
is a princess in the Rose Kingdom and is analogous to Ozga in the novel, who is Private Files's love interest, as is Ozga in the novel, there described as Ozma's cousin. Michael Patrick Hearn
speculates that both names are in honor of Baum's wife, Maud Gage
(MAud GAge).
The play introduces several characters that will be familiar with readers of the novel, Tik-Tok of Oz
, such as Private Jo Files, who was portrayed by Charles Ruggles
during the beginning of his career, and Queen Ann Sofoth of Oogaboo, who was ultimately played by Charlotte Greenwood
near the end of the run.
, who deemed it not successful enough to take it to Broadway
, even though he inserted three songs of his own writing with music by Victor Schertzinger
. The show was extremely popular in Los Angeles, but the problems occurred when it toured. It was panned by critics in Chicago, who had seen the earlier play in 1902. Although the show was still making money, Morosco decided it was too expensive to continue running. Among the mixed to negative reviewers was Amy Leslie
of the Chicago Daily News
, who described it as a "revival instead of a sequel," finding Gottschalk's music "delicious" but inconsequential to the spectacle of pretty girls and special effects. She compared the audience to that of John Hamlin's first burlesque
show which had opened at the same theatre, the George M. Cohan. Leslie claimed that Baum "has no more sense of humor than one of his talking bats or mealy kittens." The show ran through much of the summer in Chicago despite critical boredom, and continued on the road before closing once again in Los Angeles early in 1914. The New York Review on October 18, 1913, noted that the play was to close for two weeks for practical reconstruction of the sets, and noted it was likely to open in winter in one of the three largest Eastern cities, but this was still up to Morosco. The article described it as "a Western production."
Oliver Morosco would later cast Charlotte Greenwood
, the final Queen Ann, in So Long Letty
, a role he had commissioned for her that would make her a star. The Oz Scrapbook erroneously captions Intropedi as Queen Ann with Charlotte Greenwood's name.
, has been performed in reading at conventions of The International Wizard of Oz Club
. It was performed with the Gottschalk songs (Klein was still assigned to the project when it had this title, but it is not known what, if anything, he composed) at the Ozmopolitan Convention (Chicago-area) in 1982 and the Munchkin (Delaware) and Winkie (California) Conventions in 1984. This production premiered at the Castle Club Theatre, June 19, 1982, and starred Marc Lewis as Ruggedo, John Fricke
as Tik-Tok, Rob Roy MacVeigh as The Shaggy Man, and Robin Olderman as Betsy, with Dick Martin
providing the promotional artwork.
. Meanwhile, Queen Ann Soforth seeks to lead an army against the Emerald City
with every man (17 officers and one private) in her tiny kingdom of Oogaboo
, and Betsy Bobbin and her companion, a mule named Hank, are brought to the land in a shipwreck and storm not unlike the one in Ozma of Oz. They also meet Polychrome, the Rainbow's Daughter, whom Ruggedo tries to keep in his kingdom to brighten it up. As Baum put it in the introduction of Tik-Tok of Oz, "There is a play called The Tik-Tok Man of Oz, but it is not like this story of Tik-Tok of Oz, although some of the adventures recorded in this book, as well as those in several other Oz books, are included in the play. Those who have seen the play and those who have read the other Oz books will find in this story a lot of strange characters and adventures that they have never heard of before."
Harry Kelly
, who had previously turned down the title role in The Woggle-Bug, and Joe Whitehead replaced Morton and Moore in the leads while they vacationed.
Two player piano
rolls of suites and vintage recordings of "Ask the Flowers to Tell You" and "My Wonderful Dream Girl" can be found on Disc 2 of David Maxine's Grammy-nominated collection of Vintage Recordings from the 1903 Musical The Wizard of Oz (2003), while James Patrick Doyle performs a suite of many of the songs on synthesizer in his collection, Before the Rainbow: The Original Music of Oz (1999), both released by Hungry Tiger Music
.
L. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author of children's books, best known for writing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
and music by Louis F. Gottschalk
Louis F. Gottschalk
Louis Ferdinand Gottschalk was an American composer and conductor born in St. Louis, Missouri. The son of a Missouri governor, also named Louis, he studied music in Stuttgart, Germany, where his father, a judge, was American consul.He came to attention as conductor of the U.S. premiere of Franz...
that opened in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
on March 31, 1913. It is loosely inspired by Baum's book, Ozma of Oz
Ozma of Oz
Ozma of Oz: A Record of Her Adventures with Dorothy Gale of Kansas, the Yellow Hen, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, Tiktok, the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger; Besides Other Good People too Numerous to Mention Faithfully Recorded Herein published on July 30, 1907, was the third book of L....
(1907), and the basis for his 1914 novel, Tik-Tok of Oz
Tik-Tok of Oz
Tik-Tok of Oz is the eighth Land of Oz book written by L. Frank Baum, published on June 19, 1914. The book actually has little to do with Tik-Tok and is primarily the quest of the Shaggy Man to rescue his brother, and his resulting conflict with the Nome King.The endpapers of the first edition...
. It was promoted as "A Companion Play to The Wizard of Oz" and directed by Frank M. Stammers
Frank M. Stammers
Frank M. Stammers was a theatre director, choreographer, playwright, lyricist, and actor. Today he is best remembered for directing L. Frank Baum and Louis F. Gottschalk's The Tik-Tok Man of Oz for producer Oliver Morosco in 1913 in Los Angeles and on tour. He is also noted for his role as Dave...
. The play is known from its advertising and published music, but survives only in earlier manuscript.
Genesis
The Shubert OrganizationThe Shubert Organization
The Shubert Organization is a theatrical producing organization and a major owner of legitimate theatres based in Manhattan, New York City. It was founded by the Shubert brothers, Sam S. Shubert, Lee Shubert, and Jacob J. Shubert of Syracuse, New York in the late 19th century in upstate New York,...
expressed interest in an extravaganza based on Ozma of Oz in 1909.
The play began as a collaboration between Baum and composer Manuel Klein
Manuel Klein
Manuel Joachim Klein was an English-born composer of musical theatre and incidental music who worked primarily in New York City.- Biography :...
, an employee of the Shuberts, which they worked on during February–April 1909, first under the title, The Rainbow's Daughter, or the Magnet of Love, but eventually retitled Ozma of Oz, or The Magnet of Love. It incorporated elements of The Road to Oz
The Road to Oz
The Road to Oz: In Which Is Related How Dorothy Gale of Kansas, The Shaggy Man, Button Bright, and Polychrome the Rainbow's Daughter Met on an Enchanted Road and Followed it All the Way to the Marvelous Land of Oz. is the fifth of L. Frank Baum's Land of Oz books...
, which was published that July, mainly in the inclusion of two of its new characters, the Shaggy Man
Shaggy Man
The Shaggy Man is a character in the Oz books by L. Frank Baum. He first appeared in the book The Road to Oz in 1909.He is a kindly old wanderer, dressed in rags, whose philosophy of life centers on love and an aversion to material possessions. His one possession of value is the Love Magnet...
and Polychrome
Polychrome (fictional character)
Polychrome is a fairy and the daughter of the Rainbow. She first appears in The Road to Oz, the fifth of the fourteen Oz books by L. Frank Baum...
, the Rainbow's daughter (which created some continuity inconsistencies when it was adapted to the novel), both of which were influenced by Prince Silverwings
Prince Silverwings
Prince Silverwings and Other Stories is a 1902 children's book by Edith Ogden Harrison. The book is best known because she collaborated with L. Frank Baum on an uncompleted stage adaptation of the book as a musical exravaganza...
. Betsy Bobbin was intended to be Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale
Dorothy Gale is the protagonist of many of the Oz novels by American author L. Frank Baum, and the best friend of Oz's ruler Princess Ozma. Dorothy first appears in Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and reappears in most of its sequels...
, but the characters in The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz (1902 stage play)
The Wizard of Oz was a 1902 musical extravaganza based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, which was originally published in 1900...
and The Woggle-Bug
The Woggle-Bug (musical)
The Woggle-Bug is a musical based on The Marvelous Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum, with book and lyrics by the author and music by Frederic Chapin that opened June 18, 1905 at the Garrick Theatre in Chicago under the direction of Frank Smithson, a Shubert Organization employee. The musical was a...
were contractually unavailable to him—although "Ozma" remained from The Woggle-Bug, she was a wholly different character renamed Ozga for the books. It also adapted the Rose Kingdom from the Kingdom of Mangaboos in Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz: A Faithful Record of Their Amazing Adventures in an Underground World; and How with the Aid of Their Friends Zeb Hugson, Eureka the Kitten, and Jim the Cab-Horse, They Finally Reached the Wonderful Land of Oz is the fourth book set in the Land of Oz written by L....
, and Queen Ann was derived from General Jinjur in spite of the failure of The Woggle-Bug. The show languished before 1912, when Oliver Morosco
Oliver Morosco
Oliver Morosco was an American theatrical producer, director, writerand theater owner.-Biography:Born Oliver Mitchell in Logan, Utah, Morosco was raised in San Francisco, California...
agreed to produce it.
Adaptation
In this play, OzmaPrincess Ozma
Princess Ozma is a fictional character in the Land of Oz, created by L. Frank Baum. She appears in every book of the series except the first, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz .She is the rightful ruler of Oz, and L...
is a princess in the Rose Kingdom and is analogous to Ozga in the novel, who is Private Files's love interest, as is Ozga in the novel, there described as Ozma's cousin. Michael Patrick Hearn
Michael Patrick Hearn
Michael Patrick Hearn is an American literary scholar and one of America's leading men of letters specializing in children's literature and its illustration. His works include The Annotated Wizard of Oz , The Annotated Christmas Carol , and The Annotated Huckleberry Finn...
speculates that both names are in honor of Baum's wife, Maud Gage
Maud Gage Baum
Maud Gage Baum was the wife of L. Frank Baum. Her mother was the suffragist Matilda Joslyn Gage. In her early life, she attended a boys' high school and was raised to be headstrong....
(MAud GAge).
The play introduces several characters that will be familiar with readers of the novel, Tik-Tok of Oz
Tik-Tok of Oz
Tik-Tok of Oz is the eighth Land of Oz book written by L. Frank Baum, published on June 19, 1914. The book actually has little to do with Tik-Tok and is primarily the quest of the Shaggy Man to rescue his brother, and his resulting conflict with the Nome King.The endpapers of the first edition...
, such as Private Jo Files, who was portrayed by Charles Ruggles
Charles Ruggles
Charles Sherman “Charlie” Ruggles was a comic American actor. In a career spanning six decades, Ruggles appeared in close to 100 feature films. He was also the brother of director, producer, and silent actor Wesley Ruggles .-Background:Charlie Ruggles was born in Los Angeles, California in 1886...
during the beginning of his career, and Queen Ann Sofoth of Oogaboo, who was ultimately played by Charlotte Greenwood
Charlotte Greenwood
Frances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
near the end of the run.
Production
The musical was produced by Oliver MoroscoOliver Morosco
Oliver Morosco was an American theatrical producer, director, writerand theater owner.-Biography:Born Oliver Mitchell in Logan, Utah, Morosco was raised in San Francisco, California...
, who deemed it not successful enough to take it to Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, even though he inserted three songs of his own writing with music by Victor Schertzinger
Victor Schertzinger
Victor L. Schertzinger was an American composer, film director, film producer, and screenwriter. His films include Paramount on Parade , Something to Sing About with James Cagney, and the first two "Road" pictures Road to Singapore and Road to Zanzibar...
. The show was extremely popular in Los Angeles, but the problems occurred when it toured. It was panned by critics in Chicago, who had seen the earlier play in 1902. Although the show was still making money, Morosco decided it was too expensive to continue running. Among the mixed to negative reviewers was Amy Leslie
Amy Leslie
Amy Leslie was an American actress, opera singer, and drama critic who was the first wife of Frank Buck.-Early years:...
of the Chicago Daily News
Chicago Daily News
The Chicago Daily News was an afternoon daily newspaper published between 1876 and 1978 in Chicago, Illinois.-History:The Daily News was founded by Melville E. Stone, Percy Meggy, and William Dougherty in 1875 and began publishing early the next year...
, who described it as a "revival instead of a sequel," finding Gottschalk's music "delicious" but inconsequential to the spectacle of pretty girls and special effects. She compared the audience to that of John Hamlin's first burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
show which had opened at the same theatre, the George M. Cohan. Leslie claimed that Baum "has no more sense of humor than one of his talking bats or mealy kittens." The show ran through much of the summer in Chicago despite critical boredom, and continued on the road before closing once again in Los Angeles early in 1914. The New York Review on October 18, 1913, noted that the play was to close for two weeks for practical reconstruction of the sets, and noted it was likely to open in winter in one of the three largest Eastern cities, but this was still up to Morosco. The article described it as "a Western production."
Oliver Morosco would later cast Charlotte Greenwood
Charlotte Greenwood
Frances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
, the final Queen Ann, in So Long Letty
So Long Letty
So Long Letty is a silent American comedy film directed by Al Christie, and starring Grace Darmond, T. Roy Barnes, and Colleen Moore. So Long Letty was an adaptation of a popular stage comedy/musical of the same name.-Story:...
, a role he had commissioned for her that would make her a star. The Oz Scrapbook erroneously captions Intropedi as Queen Ann with Charlotte Greenwood's name.
Revival
An early draft of Ozma of Oz, provided by Michael Patrick HearnMichael Patrick Hearn
Michael Patrick Hearn is an American literary scholar and one of America's leading men of letters specializing in children's literature and its illustration. His works include The Annotated Wizard of Oz , The Annotated Christmas Carol , and The Annotated Huckleberry Finn...
, has been performed in reading at conventions of The International Wizard of Oz Club
The International Wizard of Oz Club
The International Wizard of Oz Club, Inc., was founded during 1957 by Justin G. Schiller, a then thirteen-year-old boy.The sixteen charter members, some of whom continue to make valuable contributions to the club, were garnered from the mailing list found among the papers of the recently deceased...
. It was performed with the Gottschalk songs (Klein was still assigned to the project when it had this title, but it is not known what, if anything, he composed) at the Ozmopolitan Convention (Chicago-area) in 1982 and the Munchkin (Delaware) and Winkie (California) Conventions in 1984. This production premiered at the Castle Club Theatre, June 19, 1982, and starred Marc Lewis as Ruggedo, John Fricke
John Fricke
John Fricke is a historian/author on The Wizard of Oz and Judy Garland. He has been a major figure in the Oz community for many years. He recently served as consultant for every aspect of the new 2005 deluxe DVD set of M-G-M's The Wizard of Oz, released by Warner Home Video. This includes his...
as Tik-Tok, Rob Roy MacVeigh as The Shaggy Man, and Robin Olderman as Betsy, with Dick Martin
Dick Martin (artist)
Dickinson P. Martin was an artist from Chicago who illustrated a number of books related to The Oz books series, most notably, Merry Go Round in Oz , the 40th and final title in the regular series, as well as many other children's books. He wrote and illustrated The Ozmapolitan of Oz, published...
providing the promotional artwork.
Plot
The plot, similar to the novel Tik-Tok of Oz, but lacking Quox and the journey to the kingdom of Tititi-Hoochoo, deals with the Shaggy Man's attempt to rescue his brother, Wiggy (unnamed in the novel), from the Dominions of Ruggedo, the Metal Monarch, King of the NomesNome King
The Nome King is a fictional character in L. Frank Baum's Oz books. Although the Wicked Witch of the West is the most famous of Oz's villains , the Nome King is the closest the book series has to a main antagonist.-In the novels:The character called the Nome King is originally named Roquat the Red...
. Meanwhile, Queen Ann Soforth seeks to lead an army against the Emerald City
Emerald City
The Emerald City is the fictional capital city of the Land of Oz in L. Frank Baum's Oz books, first described in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
with every man (17 officers and one private) in her tiny kingdom of Oogaboo
Oogaboo
Oogaboo is a fictional small kingdom in the Oz series of novels created by L. Frank Baum. A mountain range separates it from the rest of the Winkie Country in the Land of Oz. It is ruled by Queen Ann Soforth, daughter and successor to King Jol Jemkiph Soforth, who abdicated...
, and Betsy Bobbin and her companion, a mule named Hank, are brought to the land in a shipwreck and storm not unlike the one in Ozma of Oz. They also meet Polychrome, the Rainbow's Daughter, whom Ruggedo tries to keep in his kingdom to brighten it up. As Baum put it in the introduction of Tik-Tok of Oz, "There is a play called The Tik-Tok Man of Oz, but it is not like this story of Tik-Tok of Oz, although some of the adventures recorded in this book, as well as those in several other Oz books, are included in the play. Those who have seen the play and those who have read the other Oz books will find in this story a lot of strange characters and adventures that they have never heard of before."
Cast
- Tik-Tok--James C. MortonJames C. MortonJames C. Morton was an American character actor. He appeared in 187 films between 1922 and 1943.-Career:...
- Shaggy ManShaggy ManThe Shaggy Man is a character in the Oz books by L. Frank Baum. He first appeared in the book The Road to Oz in 1909.He is a kindly old wanderer, dressed in rags, whose philosophy of life centers on love and an aversion to material possessions. His one possession of value is the Love Magnet...
--Frank Moore - Betsy Bobbin--Lenora Novello
- Hank the Mule--Fred Woodward
- Queen Ann Soforth--Josie Intropedi (later replaced with Adele Rowland and finally Charlotte GreenwoodCharlotte GreenwoodFrances Charlotte Greenwood was an American actress and dancer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Greenwood started in vaudeville, and eventually starred on Broadway, movies and radio. Standing around six feet tall, she was best known for her long legs and high kicks...
) - Private Jo Files--Charles RugglesCharles RugglesCharles Sherman “Charlie” Ruggles was a comic American actor. In a career spanning six decades, Ruggles appeared in close to 100 feature films. He was also the brother of director, producer, and silent actor Wesley Ruggles .-Background:Charlie Ruggles was born in Los Angeles, California in 1886...
(later replaced with Charles Purcell) - Ozma--Vera Doria (later replaced with Hon Bergere and Beatriz Michelina)
- PolychromePolychrome (fictional character)Polychrome is a fairy and the daughter of the Rainbow. She first appears in The Road to Oz, the fifth of the fourteen Oz books by L. Frank Baum...
--Dolly Castles - Ruggedo--John Dunsmure (later replaced with Eugene Cowles)
Harry Kelly
Harry Kelly
Harry Kelly may refer to:* Harry Kelly , American anarchist* Harry Kelly , American Division I basketball player with over 3,000 career points and 1,000 rebounds* Harry Kelly , the Governor of Michigan...
, who had previously turned down the title role in The Woggle-Bug, and Joe Whitehead replaced Morton and Moore in the leads while they vacationed.
Songs
All songs are written by Baum and Gottschalk unless otherwise specified.- The Magnet of Love
- When in Trouble Come to Papa (Ruggedo and Polychrome)
- The Waltz Scream
- Dear Old Hank (Betsy)
- So Do I
- The Clockwork Man (Tik-Tok and Clock Girl Chorus)
- Oh My Bow (Polychrome)
- Ask the Flowers to Tell You (Files and Ozma)
- Rainbow Bride
- Just for Fun (Flirting Song)
- Army of Oogaboo
- March of the Golden Imps
- An Apple's the Cause of It All (Shaggy Man)
- Work, Lads, Work
- My Wonderful Dream Girl (Morosco/Schertzinger)
- There's a Mate in this Big World for You (Morosco/Schertzinger)
- Oh! Take Me (Morosco/Schertzinger)
Two player piano
Player piano
A player piano is a self-playing piano, containing a pneumatic or electro-mechanical mechanism that operates the piano action via pre-programmed music perforated paper, or in rare instances, metallic rolls. The rise of the player piano grew with the rise of the mass-produced piano for the home in...
rolls of suites and vintage recordings of "Ask the Flowers to Tell You" and "My Wonderful Dream Girl" can be found on Disc 2 of David Maxine's Grammy-nominated collection of Vintage Recordings from the 1903 Musical The Wizard of Oz (2003), while James Patrick Doyle performs a suite of many of the songs on synthesizer in his collection, Before the Rainbow: The Original Music of Oz (1999), both released by Hungry Tiger Music
Hungry Tiger Press
Hungry Tiger Press is an American specialty publisher of books, compact discs, comic books and graphic novels, focused on the works of L. Frank Baum, other authors of Oz books, and related Americana. Perhaps most notably, the Press has published rare, early, long-neglected dramatic and musical...
.