1999
Michael Gessel
Michael Gessel served on the staff of The Baum Bugle from 1984 to 1997, and as editor-in-chief for the five years between 1988 and 1992—one of the longest tenures in the publication’s history.
He became editor of the Club’s Special Publications in 1994, and advised the Board of Directors and president on the Special Publications Program during our long search for a new editor. Michael wrote the afterword for Jack Snow’s The Magical Mimics in Oz, reprinted by the Special Publications Program in 1990, and spoke at the Munchkin Convention about Snow’s contribution to Oz.
Michael has served on the Board of Directors of the Club as well as numerous committees of the Club and its board. He assisted with Club convention auctions and programs, and he chaired the Munchkin Convention in 1993. He also helped organize local Club meetings in the Washington, D.C., area.
Several museum and library exhibits dealing with The Wizard of Oz have benefited from Michael’s assistance, including the 100th anniversary tribute by the Library of Congress. In 1977, at the University of Pennsylvania, he organized the first retrospective exhibition of original drawings and books by W. W. Denslow.