Shot in November of 1938 under Thorpe, "If I Only Had a Brain" was originally very different than what would end up in the final film. "If I Only Had a Brain" - Original Version Staying with the film for less than a week, he was brought on to help shape the film.Īll footage from Thorpe's reign was scrapped, and like the Taurog footage is presumed to be lost.
Thorpe was subsequently fired.Īs a new director was sought out and hired, director George Cukor took over while waiting for his next film, Gone With the Wind, to begin filming. He also believed that the footage lacked the childlike wonder and innocence the production needed. After unforeseen circumstances caused the production to shut down temporarily, producer Mervyn LeRoy reviewed Thorpe's footage and thought that the director was rushing the production. The scenes filmed included Dorothy and the Scarecrow's first encounter in the cornfield and various sequences in the Wicked Witch's castle. On October 13th, filming began on the MGM Studios lot and continued for a total of nine days. According to the book The Wizard of Oz: The Official 50th Anniversary Pictorial History, Thorpe "had a reputation for bringing in pictures on budget and on schedule, which must have been a real attraction as the studio watched pre-production costs mount on The Wizard of Oz." Though some pictures from the set have survived, the test footage shot by Taurog is presumed lost.ĭirection Under Richard Thorpe - Fall 1938Īfter Taurog's reassignment, MGM brought in director Richard Thorpe to work on the film. Working on the film during the extensive wardrobe and makeup tests for the summer of 1938, Taurog was paid for three days of directorial work for the project, most likely for test shots performed in July-August.ĭuring the first week of September, Taurog was replaced by Richard Thorpe and reassigned to The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, which would be released on February 10th, 1939. In July 1938, MGM announced that they had tapped director Norman Taurog, who had a reputation of guiding young performers, to helm their upcoming film adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Due to Koshay's make-up and wardrobe, this photo was likely taken during a visit to Fleming's set. Bobbie Koshay (Judy Garland's stand-in) and who appears to be Norman Taurog alongside some of the Munchkins on the Munchkinland set.
0 kommentar(er)
