During meals and breaks at the Oz Club’s national convention this summer in East Aurora, New York, several conversations ended up being about topics other than Oz. Surprised? I’m not. In a weekend packed with fascinating programming on the art and artists of the Oz books, Oz collecting, and Oz around the world, it is possible that we all just need an occasional break from Oz. But there may be something else going on. While listening to several Club members describe their other interests, I noticed connections back to their passion for Oz. That’s certainly true for me, too.
Some time in the late 1990s, I attended a talk by an expert on the American Arts and Crafts movement who spoke about the Roycroft artisans of East Aurora. I spotted a familiar seahorse in the corner of an overhead image even before he mentioned the name of famous Roycrofter W. W. Denslow. That presentation ignited in me an appreciation for the craftsman style. A growing passion in the coming decades for bungalows, the architectural masterworks of Frank Lloyd Wright, furniture of Gustav Stickley, and book designs of Dard Hunter, connects back to a love of Denslow’s charming illustrations and layout for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
While being led on a tour down the Midway Plaisance in Chicago during the summer of 2003, a thought popped into my head about L. Frank Baum’s visit to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, held in and around that city park. Was I walking in his footsteps? I imagined what he may have seen along the mile-long stretch—now mostly grass but then packed with international villages, entertainment venues, cafes, and a giant Ferris Wheel. Soon after, I devoured Eric Larson’s newly released The Devil in the White City and once again found myself drifting down a fascinating pathway off the Yellow Brick Road. Plunging deeper and deeper into the history of the 1893 World’s Fair (including some interesting connections to Baum and Denslow) in the two decades since, I’ve never lost sight of the trailhead back near the Emerald City.
Other friends—old and new—with whom I chatted at the Oz convention this summer talked about interests ranging from Marvel comics to musical theater to book restoration to youth outreach. For three days, presenters shared their astounding knowledge about Oz and Baum and Denslow and so much more. But equally enriching were the casual conversations among attendees about our myriad other interests. Look closely and a footpath leading back to Oz peaks through.
Scott Cummings
IWOC Board of Directors, 2019–22