Follow the Yellow Brick Road to the Wizard of OZ Museum
Being from the boomer generation, I was raised on the 1939 Wizard of OZ movie since I was a five-year old. It was that once a year experience of can’t wait to watch it on TV. This year celebrates the 85th anniversary of the film! I had recently seen the beautiful OZ Park in Chicago with sculptures of the Scarecrow, Lion, Tin Man and Dorothy with her beloved Toto and then I heard about a Wizard of Oz Museum located in Cape Canaveral and knew I had to see it.
The museum is located a stone’s throw from Port Canaveral. It’s hard to miss with the giant ruby slipper and green building. It is like walking into a time capsule of OZ. You arrive into the gift shop with a video welcoming you to the museum and giving you a preview of your experience. A life-size Dorothy cardboard cutout is there to greet you. The founder & owner, Fred Trust gave me a personal tour of his amazing collection of OZ. There are over 2,000 artifacts from the original L. Frank Baum book published in 1900 to the upcoming 2024 film “Wicked” coming this Thanksgiving. It is such a treasure trove to see honoring the world of OZ.
Just a few of the goodies you are going see are; the iconic “Dorothy” dress from the 1939 movie, an original sword from the witch’s castle and a replica pair of the “Ruby Slippers” which were from Disney’s Great Movie Ride. That is just the beginning, there are so many collections, and you can spend hours looking at the beautiful work of artists who have created the world of OZ in many different ways. There is a children’s interactive room for the kids to watch OZ cartoons, play games and learn about OZ. A great idea so the parents can take a look around while the kids are keeping busy. Fred has created an amazing video immersive OZ experience which is a wonderful way to take a rest, relax and enjoy the music and characters of OZ.
There are photo ops with Dorothy, Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow. There is the Wicked Witch and her Winged Monkeys, if you dare to take a pic with them! Fred showed me a very rare doll of the Wicked Witch of the East, which we never saw in the movie. There is an original Shirley Temple doll and you would wonder, what is that doing in OZ? A little trivia, Shirley Temple was MGM’s original choice to play Dorothy but she was under contract to 20th Century Fox so Judy Garland got the part. Can you imagine anyone else playing Dorothy? I sure can’t. If you are a diehard fan of OZ, you must make the pilgrimage to Cape Canaveral or if you are just around the area and want to experience a bit of nostalgia for our heroes of OZ, don’t miss a chance to check it out. Both Tripadvisor and Google have named the museum one of Florida’s best family and children’s museums as well as must-see attraction! You can check out their website at Wizard of OZ Florida. We’re off to see the Wizard…..
Vicky Sullivan Photos