] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 1, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 00:51:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Richard Bauman <72172.2631@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Today's Growls Liz Schaible - To which SF book store are you referring? Dick Randolph - Jonathan Harris, ah! The evil Dr. Smith. Thank you. Notice to Academic Types - In California they are going to start making you pay for your INTERNET time. I'll bet other states won't be far behind. Is this going to affect you Dave? Briefly, Bear ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 03:15:17 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: Thompson and Judaism 1) It has been proposed that Matiah is a stereotype of Jews, though it has been also pointed out he could be an Arab stereotype as well. One thing that might push it towards being a Jewish stereotype is that in Pumperdink one of the cooks was named Hashem, which happens to be a substitute name of G-d. (Observant Jews avoid purposelessly using any of the seven names of G-d; hashshEm is the conventional substitute for the one conventionally translated into English as the LORD or Jehovah.) On the other hand, this just might be a coincidence (the other two cooks were Stirem and Fryem, plus nothing in Pumperdink struck me as particularly Jewish, realistic or stereotypical). Does anyone know how much Thompson actually knew about Judaism and her views thereon? 2) David, actually I thought of DOS and Windows as more stupid than evil, especially the former, which does less than any other OS on the market and many off the market. I would put DOS around dead last as far as OSs go. The man, Bill Gates, I would consider evil. (Though I'd really hate to get into an argument over what good and evil are in order to be able to justify it.) UNIX, on the other hand, I would put as about as close to evil as anything nonsentient can get. 3) Greg, go ahead, read Handy Mandy in Oz. Nothing in it really depends on Speedy in Oz or The Wishing Horse of Oz. Enjoy. 4) Having not gotten a message from , I hereby open my copy of The Dinamonster of Oz (should be in good condition, especially if Barry remembered to be careful and not bend the spine) to the public for trade for anything I don't have already. Ideal item wanted in trade would be a used Del Rey paperback of a Thompson book I don't have (Kabumpo in Oz, everything from The Yellow Knight of Oz to The Wishing Horse of Oz, The Silver Princess in Oz, Ozoplaning with the Wizard of Oz). Interested parties, please contact me via private E-mail for haggling. 5) Barry, Dorothy--Return to Oz is worse than The Dinamonster of Oz. The Dinamonster of Oz is at least amusing; Dorothy--Return to Oz is just plain sickening and morally offensive. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 08:18:01 -0700 From: ozbot@ix.netcom.com (Daniel C. Wall) Subject: Re: Ozzy Penguins Penguin rally leader looking at Eric's offer of Bungle and the Magic Lantern: "Oh. Well. That's better. Alright Penguins! Pack it up! Make way for the Platypus Contigent!" Platypi: "Hey-hey, Ho-ho, Platypi have got to show!" Non-American animals? Someone said Baum left out uniquely American animals, but I know he had beavers, at least Fairy Beavers, didn't he? I don't know if you could count it or not, but his Animal Fairy Tales include buffalo, porcupine, alligators, and gophers. Cosgrove-Payes' Wicked Witch had a whole chapter of hummingbirds as well. Any other American animals? armadillo, moose, Eagle, racoon, etc? I suppose jaguars and llamas (south american) would be asking for a lot. In terms of Aussie Oz animals, there was that kangaroo in EC, and a wombat in Animal Fairy Tales, and of course, the Platypus Contigent currently lobbying for equal representation. Thanking Baum for no mosquitos in Oz, Danny ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 11:22:51 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: For Ozzy Digest Dick Randolph: Thanks for the plug in Ozzy Digest 5/31. The broken wrist cast is off, and things are well on the mend. But I've been away a lot so the delivery service has been rather slow. However, Idon't cash checks until the books are mailed. In Germany I found a neat newly illustrated Wizard edition (Der Zauberer von Oz) with a "German" view of Kansas. It depicts Kansas as quite hilly, the Gale home as a one room hovel, more like a prairie wagon shed, and there are four tornados bearing down on in, not just one! Herm Bieber ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 05:36:49 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 > From: DIXNAM@aol.com > Subject: Ozzy Digest 5-30-96 > > Danny: Digest subscriber Herm Bieber is a great source of reasonably priced > FF Oz books. And he can be contacted at Herm Bieber@aol.com > From: boyle@peabody.jhu.edu (McGregor Boyle) > Subject: Thompson books out of sequence > > I am the father of Mac, the 6 year-old Oz _fanatic_, and we've been > struggling to find the later Thompson books. We last read _Ojo_ and I have > thus far not been able to find _Speedy_ or _Wishing Horse_. Both books are available in very nice reprint editions from The International Wizard of Oz Club. > I picked up a > copy of _Handy Mandy_ a couple of days ago though, and my question is > whether or not we should read it out of sequence or wait. My son is > sensitive to the logic of the series, and is bothered when we encounter a > character who has not been "properly introduced." We did read "Captain > Salt" already, but if "Handy Mandy" refers to events or characters in the > other two earlier books I'd prefer to wait- No references in "Handy Mandy" to anything that happened in "Speedy" or "Wishing Horse," it stands up very well on its own. (But it would help if you've read "Pirates," since a character last seen in that book reappears in "Handy Mandy"...) --Eric Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 09:51:29 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 Aaron: I've personally never had any problems losing data from Microsoft applications, but maybe I've just been lucky. And I never used a 68040 machine, going straight from a 68030 to a PowerPC. I do think the "upgrade" from Word 5.1 to Word 6 for the Mac was a travesty. Gates - or a Gates-like character - could make an excellent Oz villain. Because what he does is legal, just evil... Eric: I didn't say "Nuke Bill Gates and his Evil Empire," just "Down with them." I wish no harm to the surrounding community at all, at all. I was thinking that the Club-offered Del Reys just up through "Jack Pumpkinhead", but wasn't sure. Greg: Both SPEEDY and WISHING HORSE are available in very nice editions from the IWOC. But you can read HANDY MANDY without qualms; none of the new characters introduced in the two missing books appear in it, nor are events in them referred to. For that matter, none of the new characters from those two books ever appears again in the FF, nor is there a reference to their events. The only tiny thing I can think of is that in HM Dorothy, Trot, and Betsy are all wearing coronets while they play croquet (I think was the game), and WH is the first and only place I can recall in the FF that says that Trot and Betsy are princesses as well as Dorothy. But these are both rather obscure throwaway bits; it's not as if Ozma awarded the title to the other two girls in WH. So if Mac should wonder when he missed their getting titles, you can tell him you have it on excellent authority that it wasn't in one of the missing books. However, since IMHO SPEEDY and WISHING HORSE are Thompson's two best books, and both in the top five or six of all Oz books, I highly recommend you order them from the IWOC unless you just can't afford the $20 or so each they cost. (I think they only come in HC editions, though I could be wrong. Don't have my latest fliers from the club handy to check. I'm sure if there's a PB also available at lower cost Eric or Steve or Robin or someone will say so.) Short Digest today! David Hulan ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 10:10:28 -0400 From: DIXNAM@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Digest 5-30-96 Tyler: As I said in my post, it was not a shot at Buckethead. I realize what Chris & Co. are up against, and I have no complaints about their delivery. I was only noting how impressed I was with the humerous letter one of their warehouse people was using. Dick Randolph ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 10:13:43 -0400 (EDT) From: BARRY ESHKOL ADELMAN Subject: The Missing Thompson Books of Oz Peter Glassman, Tyler mentioned that four of the Thompson books (_Yellow Knight_, _Purple Prince_, _Pirates_, _Ojo_) are neither available from IWOC or BoW. Are there any plans in BoW's near future to print them? ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 11:18:21 -0700 From: steller Subject: (no subject) Greg: _Handy Mandy_ does not continue the story of any Oz characters in _Speedy_ or _Wishing Horse_. Both of these books are currently available, with color plates, from IWOC. If you are not a member, join, they are hard to get outside of the club. Barry: Yes, I am a professor, but I try to live that down. The doctoral program at Pittsburg[no h] State is non-existant. KU (Lawrence) and K State (Manhattan) have a monopoly on doctoral programs in the Kansas Regents system. By the way it's SJT not STJ. And _Dorothy--Return to Oz_ is far worse than _Dinamonster_. (I should know, I edited the latter). Tedrow seems to know nothing about Oz, KGBaum didn't get it all right, but he was following some of the tradition. Frank J. Baum's book (Laughing Dragon) has absolutely nothing to do with the Oz of his father. Steve T. ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 13:52:15 -0500 (CDT) From: Robin Olderman Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 Matiah: I never thought of the turban as being more than a device to aid the desert setting, but I think you guys have a point. Jews have been stereotyped as tricksy peddlers and I guess that, and the word torah, stuck out to me as a kid...not the turban. Odd, that persistence of memory and mindset;they're not easily dislodged by logic! :o) ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 19:31:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: Ozzy Digest Digest report: The Ozzy Digest for May 1996 is now available. Here are the file sizes: Dec 95 296K Jan 96 484K Feb 96 911K Mar 96 1142K Apr 96 834K May 96 794K E-mail me if you need any of these. Please do not post your request on the digest. Barry: ********** SPOILER FOR HORSES ********** The "Wishing Horse" is a misnomer, since Chalk cannot actually grant wishes, but he did figure out how to use the wishing emeralds. The "Giant Horse" is a normal sized horse from the Gilikin Country who can make his legs as long or as short as he wants. I know for a fact that Chalk is in PD, while the Giant Horse is not. This is embarassing, but I cannot remember the Giant Horse's name! Is is Highjump? David: Granted, my theory is not fully supported (mainly because wishes must be voiced, except in the non-FF _Emerald Ring_), but having Dorothy age simply by leaving Oz also has problems. The truth must lie somewhere in between. How would Dorothy's body "know" how many years had been lost? Perhaps Aaron's Machine has a database of people and keeps a running count. An evil person could wreak havoc by manually adjusting those numbers and then transporting someone back to America... ***** NON-OZZY GRIPE ***** David, I must disagree with you. OS/2 is the worst, most horrid evil system that has ever been invented. It deserves to be banished to the pits of H___. I cannot say enough bad things about it, so I will stop here. Aaron: I just heard that Bill Gates has come up with a piece of hardware that nobody has ever thought of before: A picture that shows you any scene in the world just by asking for it! Only Bill could think of this! :-) McGregor: AS far as I can remember, _Handy Mandy_ does not use anyone from _Speedy_ or _Wishing Horse_. Both of these books, by the way, can be ordered from the Oz Club. Other thoughts: Eric mentioned a line of thought that has never really been explored, either in the books or on the digest. Specifically, how does the magic enchantment of Oz affect the common people? As Eric said, most of the adventures involve a very select group of royals and/or celebrities from EC plus the usual bag of strange kingdoms. We very rarely get to see the average Oz citizen. Here's a rough MOPPeT: Most of the people of Oz do not use magic and are not considered fairies. They are simply normal people who live and work much as people did a century or more ago, with some fringe benefits. For these people, the enchantment works to make their general enviornment better. For example, the climate is always nice and tha rain comes often enough, but not too often. The soil is very rich, giving very abundant crops with a minimum of effort. In other words, I've often thought of the average Ozian's lifestyle as peaceful and idyllic. It is simple, but very easy with little or no toil. Very little changes from day to day. People are just generally happy. --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Fri, 31 May 1996 22:45:20 +0100 From: Sissor Subject: Yellow Brick Road I & II Hey all, Was looking through the Educorp Multimedia CD softsource catalogue and I saw these two cd roms. The Yellow Brick Road I and The Yellow Brick Road II. The first one is the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Cowardly Lion and their quest to save OZ from the evil Gnome King and his Army. The second one is: Glinda is being held captive in a magical crystal ball and must be saved! It's a two cd-rom set. Both look like 3D raytraced figure animation. It's avaible for both Mac and Windows. $30 and $40 respectively. I was wondering if anyone has actually see or played these? Any comments? For those interested Educorp: 1-800-843-9497 or www.educorp.com -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Version: 2.6.2 mQBvAzEqJqMAAAEDALufc5zZQa9RSF8EDaHmBBtL+ZU5IWEOuytOaABM05zRRAdq Zb+hbQPyimx6+tOU8To2re/khBId0qst+vzhgpfklo9sHM3GTrk5qN497l0koBTS wkjfnS9t1BS0oy9fQQARAQABtBlTaXNzb3IgPGhlbmFvQGJsa2JveC5jb20+ =TUen -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Sissor henao@blkbox.com Houston, TX ##################################################################### "to be nobody but yourself -- in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you like everybody else -- means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight, and never stop fighting" - e.e. cummings ====================================================================== Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 16:02:02 +0300 (WET) From: Gili Bar-Hillel Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 Hi Digest! Back after a four day absence. Peter Glassman and Eric - thank you for the information about Sendak. I was very curious about that, being a Sendak admirer. Sendak is still alive, isn't he? I've heard a rumor about him that I hope wasn't true. I knew of Christopher Milne's passing, but I was sorry to hear about Pamela travers and Garth Williams. Ethnicity in Oz - I noticed a multicultural trend in the Oz Stroy circle stories from the past year or two. One member wrote a story called "The Winter Soltice of Oz", which describes an Oz Holiday that combines traditions of Christmas, Hannuka, and Divali (possibly other holidays that I didn't recognise). Tyler (I *think* it was you who asked) - "wicked" has some references to the wizard's past. ******************SPOILER FOR "WICKED"********************************* I wonder how many of you who read the book noticed that Maguire made the Wizard a member of the Theosophical movement, who was sent to Oz by Madame Blatavsky in order to retrieve a book of magic (probably a book which is referred to in some mythology or literature of which I am not aware) from earth. *********************************************************************** Another Robin at the Winkie convention was Robin Mcmaster. There *were* lots of 'em! I remember at one point one of you offered to trade me a video copy of "WOZ in Concert", but I don't remember who it was. In any case, I'm still interested! Bye! Gili |\ _,,,---,,_ /,`.-'`' -. ;-;;,_ Gili Bar-Hillel, |,4- ) )-,_..;\ ( `'-' avigailb@zoot.tau.ac.il '---''(_/--' `-'\_) ====================================================================== Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 11:31:31 -0700 From: ozbot@ix.netcom.com (Daniel C. Wall) Subject: re: more Ozzy stuff Addendum to previous post: OOps! I know I'll get a lot of response about my mistake of calling a gopher a uniquely american animal! Even Winnie Pooh knows better than that! What I was thinking of was the Prairie Dog family in the ever wonderfully titled _Twinkle and Chubbins_. That better? I also was looking through Piglet Press' bibliography for some other books I haven't read, and found a jaguar in _Tin Woodman_! Shows how much I know! Next I find a Koala. . . Danny ====================================================================== Date: Saturday 01-Jun-96 15:10:57 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things BEAR: >In California they are going to start making you pay >for your INTERNET time. I'll bet other states won't be far behind. Is this >going to affect you Dave? Oh ^%#&(@%#!...You mean it's not enough that I have to fork out big $$$ to my server, but they're going to TAX the Internet as well??? Can you tell me where you read/heard that? If it's much it *could* affect me a lot!!! ERIC: > ... [_Handy Mandy in Oz_] stands up very well on its own. (But it would >help if you've read "Pirates," since a character last seen in that book >reappears in "Handy Mandy"...) Also it helps explain why at the start of _Handy Mandy_, Ruggedo is in the form of a jug... TYLER: >This is embarassing, but I cannot remember the Giant Horse's name! >Is is Highjump? High Boy. >Granted, my theory is not fully supported... But it's much more logical, IHMO (that Ozzy magic just *halts* aging, rather "storing" the extra years in some latent form somewhere). >I've often thought of the average Ozian's lifestyle as peaceful and idyllic... >People are just generally happy. This is my view as well. :) -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 2, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 21:49:36 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: ozzy digest Trot's Royal titles: While _Wishing Horse_ may have contained the first mention of Trot as a Princess of EC, in _Giant Horse_, when Trot is made a princess of the Saphire City, the Scarecrow mentions that this makes Trot "twice a princess". Presumably, the other part refers to EC, although this is the first time it's mentioned. Steve "Don't say Professor" T: _Laughing Dragon_ is an interesting case. While it has absolutely nothing to do with any other Oz book, it can be argued that it is Historically Accurate on the basis that it does not contradict anything in the FF. Dave: From what Bear said, it sounds like Universities are going to start charging an "Internet fee" to students. it will probably be a flat fee charged on a per-semester basis. Also, thanks for your support of my two MOPPeTS. They may not be entirely true, but they SOUND like they are... --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 21:05:57 -0500 (CDT) From: Robin Olderman Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 Mosquitoes in Oz: They sing like birds according to, I think, Nick Chopper. Now *that's* an idyllic place to live! Oz Convention: Who's going to Louisville in a coupla weeks? I know Jane, Pete, Patrick, Herm, and Jim are going, but who else for sure? Hashem: I'm convinced it's a strictly-for-laughs name. RPT was more interested in gags than in what she would have considered esoterica. I have no reason to believe she knew much about Judaism, and it would probably take someone with Aaron's pre-rabbinical expertise to know a code name for G-d...unless that's something they teach for Bar Mitzvah????? --Robin "one of the many Robins at WinkieCon" Olderman ====================================================================== Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 23:21:21 -0400 From: "Melody G. Keller" <104270.2374@compuserve.com> Subject: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 To Sissor: Have not seen the CD rom games you describe, but they sound neat! By the way, Folks, has anyone besides me ever owned a copy of the computer game "The Wizard of Oz" by Windham Classics? It is a simple text adventure game copyrighted in 1985, featuring the text at the bottom of the screen and 2d graphics at the top. **********GAME SPOILER ALERT!!!!!********** Interestingly enough, as Dorothy you meet Tip, Mombi, the Sawhorse and Jack Pumpkinhead in this game as well as the characters from "The Wizard of Oz." When you meet Tip, he goes with you to the castle of the Wicked Witch of the West. (Or he asks if he can go--it's been a long time since I played this one.) After you melt the WWW, you must search for your friends, who have been transformed into toys in a box. There are other departures from plot of the original "Wizard" as well, presumably to add interest to the game. Including the fact that Tip becomes the rightful ruler of Oz at the end of the game! (No, he never turns into Princess Ozma. He simply gets a royal crown and robe. Yes, you, Dorothy, are sent home, too.) !!!!!!!!!END of SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyways, it was a fun game while it kept me busy trying to solve it, and IS there anyone out there who has ever seen or played it? I still have the disks, and the only annoying thing about it is that the game is so well protected, I cannot even make backup copies for myself. If the disks ever go bad, that's it. Tyler: What happened to Dorothy when she left Oz is identical to legends told about those having dealings with the faeries of Ireland. When Oisin left the Irish fairyland of Tir Nan Og for Ireland, and then fell off his horse, he "quickly turned into an aged man" goes the song written about him. OIsin was lucky, probably because he had a faery mother. Other legends tell of mortals who visited the faeries for what seemed to them an evening, or a few days, only to return to the land of mortals to find that centuries had gone by out there and they crumbled to dust when they dismounted from their horses. Thompson seems simply to have followed an old Irish tradition when she has Dorothy age instantly upon leaving the fairyland of Oz. However, this does have problems because, in the Outside World, instant aging is simply impossible. The closest thing to it is progeria, a genetic disorder that causes a child to age rapidly and die as it is growing up. I agree with the view that it would take magic to cause a person to age as rapidly as Dorothy does. The way to avoid this bad effect might be to take absolulely NOTHING magical with one back into the Outside World. Aaron: Having worked with both IBM and Macs, I can say the Macs are easier to work with. But they are (or were) so much more darned ex$pensive than IBM's! And IBM software vendors seem to be much more generous than their Apple counterparts. Windows and DOS include disk defragmenting programs and other helpful tools that are not included in Mac's OS. You have to buy them separately from Symantec. Ditto for CorelDraw--one has to sink lots of $$$$$ into fonts, tracing programs and plug-ins to make Illustrator for Mac the equivalent of CorelDraw for the IBM. However, I do agree that Windows '95 swiped a lot of things from Apple's operating system. ( Recycling Bin = Trash, Start Button = Finder, Shortcut = Alias, etc., etc., etc.) There's no such thing as a perfect computer. In the future maybe... I loved Lost in Space when it first appeared on the air... until both it and Dr. Smith became so silly it was embarrassing.... Melody Grandy ====================================================================== Date: Sat, 01 Jun 1996 23:24:21 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: For the Ozzy Digest Oz Story 2 was released tonight at a festive publication party at the Hungry Tiger Press (David Maxine, editor, Eric Shanower (ES), art director. It contains many new and (hard to find) old Oz stories and comics. The contents include: The Greed Goblin of Oz (story by ES; art by Anna Maria Cool) Dorothy and the Mushroom Queen (story by Janet Deschman; art by ES) Mary Marvel in the Modern Wizard of Oz (comic strip; art by Jack Binder Studio) Abby (story by ES; art by Frank Kramer) The Clockwork Man (story by L. Frank Baum (LFB); art by Vlada Stolikovich) The Wonderland of Oz (comic adaption of Baum's Land of Oz; art by Walt Spouse) The King of the Corn (story by Ruth Plumly Thompson (RPT); art by W. W. Denslow) The Magic Land (story by Eloise Jarvis McGraw; art by Lauren Lynn McGraw) Toyland (story and art by John R. Neill (JRN)) Christmas in Pumperdink (story by RPT; art by Mark Grammel) Who's Afraid? (story by LFB; art by JRN) Skin Deep (story by ES; art by Dan Parent) Policeman Bluejay (the complete 1907 fairy novel by LFB; art by Maginel Wright Enright) This handsome addition to any Oz collection is well worth the $15 asking price. To order postpaid, send $18 (NJ residents $18.90) to Hungry Tiger Press, 15 Marcy Street, Bloomfield, NJ 07003-3814. (no e-mail hookup yet!). Oz Story #1 is still available at the same price. ====================================================================== Date: Saturday 01-Jun-96 23:26:25 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things TYLER: >From what Bear said, it sounds like Universities are going to start >charging an "Internet fee" to students. it will probably be a flat fee >charged on a per-semester basis. Oh, well if that's the case then it will probably only effect me if my campus starts charging a fee for the use of their WWW terminals in the library. (Everything else I do at home from Delphi.) MELODY: >By the way, Folks, has anyone besides me ever owned a copy of the computer >game "The Wizard of Oz" by Windham Classics? I never saw this game, but I have Windham Classics' "Alice in Wonderland", in which the player (Alice) interacts with characters from _Alice in Wonderland_, _Through the Looking-Glass_, and even _The Hunting of the Snark_! I have never been able to finish it though...I've never figured out how to get past the Jabberwock ( Can anyone who has by chance finished the game help me here? :) ) -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 3, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 03:18:07 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: The Platypuses of Oz 1) SOMEONE SEND THESE PENGUINS AND PLATYPUSES AWAY! I ALREADY PUT A KIWI INTO THE WOOZY OF OZ! 2) Danny, I think in The Emerald City of Oz the Tin Woodman mentioned that they have giant mosquitoes which sing in Oz. 3) Tyler, I thought that High Boy (the Giant Horse)'s body was twice the size of a normal horse. Also: The Magic Machine definitely stores a lot of data on people (and other things as well). Otherwise when disenchanting something the old form would have to be created from scratch. (E.g., when the Wizard was turned into a fox by Kiki Aru, he was able to restore himself to his natural form by saying something like "I want to be myself again. Pyrzxgl!" The Machine therefore had his old form stored somewhere; otherwise it wouldn't have known what to do when the word of transformation was invoked.) Also: Effects of magic enchantment not mentioned yet: Disease is rare and death is virtually impossible. Though I was under the impression that the happiness had nothing to do with the enchantment but rather with a) the political situation, in which the government allows people to do pretty much whatever they want within reason ("Behave yourself" is the only rule according to the Tin Woodman), and b) the culture, which promotes kindness and sharing, both of which help create an atmosphere of trust and well-being and hence happiness. 3) On "Ethnicity in Oz": I never really thought of Ozites as being syncretists before. Though that might explain Lurline and the White Ravens of Oz, which botches Greek mythology to the point of making a Jewish daemon a goddess. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 03:50:25 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: Stuff that has very little to do with Oz 1) Robin, practically any Jew who has had some religious education knows (or should know--I can't vouch for what the Reform teach--) of the name hashshEm. 2) Dave, I haven't played that Carrollian game, but having a good knowledge of the contents of the Alice books, may I suggest that the Jabberwock could be defeated by cutting off its head? Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 10:16:32 -0400 From: RMorris306@aol.com Subject: Recent Ozzy Digests Hi again! Going on another weekend trip, so I'd better make this quick... Tyler Jones wrote: <> Actually, I think I remember an issue of THE OZMAPOLITAN (a Reilly & Lee PR paper irregularly sent out to accompany new Oz books) that was reprinted in THE BAUM BUGLE some years ago. They were said to be written by Baum and/or Thompson themselves, at least partially...and one from the early Thompson era mentioned Ozma's decision to make Trot and Betsy princesses and give them equal rank with Dorothy. <<_Laughing Dragon_ is an interesting case. While it has absolutely nothing to do with any other Oz book, it can be argued that it is Historically Accurate on the basis that it does not contradict anything in the FF. >> That's what I'd say, too. Would anyone know if and when the non-Oz version was published? Robin Olderman wrote: <> Yes, but do they still *bite* people? Melody Keller wrote: What happened to Dorothy when she left Oz [in THE LOST KING OF OZ] is identical to legends told about those having dealings with the faeries of Ireland...Other legends tell of mortals who visited the faeries for what seemed to them an evening, or a few days, only to return to the land of mortals to find that centuries had gone by out there and they crumbled to dust... Thompson seems simply to have followed an old Irish tradition when she has Dorothy age instantly upon leaving the fairyland of Oz. >> Yes, but that seems to be the result of the passage of time being different in different worlds, and there've been other fantasies that reversed the effect. (In THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE, the heroes, adults in Narnia, revert to children when the return to Earth. On the other hand, in THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW and later books they don't age back even to their earlier Narnian ages, let alone crumble to dust. <> I thought that often happened automatically anyway, as when Dorothy left the Silver Shoes behind in THE WIZARD OF OZ. See you later! Rich Morrissey ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 10:43:11 -0400 (EDT) From: BARRY ESHKOL ADELMAN Subject: Jabberwocks Dave, how do you get past a jabberwock? You cut off its head with a vorpal sword! (Yeesh, what do people learn in schools these days...) Melody, that tradition of time passing differently between our universe and Fairyland isn't unique to the Irish. I seem to remember similar legends from East Asia built around kids visiting a magical undersea kingdom for a night and when they get back it's like 200 years later. (Then again, if it also works the other way, that may explain Trot and Cap'n Bill's visit with the Sea Fairies...) ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 07:48:45 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 > From: "Aaron S. Adelman" > Subject: Thompson and Judaism > > Ideal item wanted in trade > would be a used Del Rey paperback of a Thompson book I don't have > (Kabumpo in Oz, everything from The Yellow Knight of Oz to The Wishing > Horse of Oz, The Silver Princess in Oz, Ozoplaning with the Wizard of > Oz). Interested parties, please contact me via private E-mail for haggling. Del Rey never got around to publishing "Silver Princess" or "Ozoplaning" before Judy Lynn Del Rey died. Although IIRC they were announced at one point. > 5) Barry, Dorothy--Return to Oz is worse than The Dinamonster of Oz. The > Dinamonster of Oz is at least amusing; Dorothy--Return to Oz is just > plain sickening and morally offensive. Tedrow does not know his Oz very well, but sickening and morally offensive? That's a stretch! It's nowhere NEAR as bad as "Wicked" or "Barnstormer," to name two examples. > From: DavidXOE@aol.com > Subject: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 > > However, since IMHO SPEEDY and WISHING HORSE are > Thompson's two best books, and both in the top five or six of all Oz books, I > highly recommend you order them from the IWOC unless you just can't afford > the $20 or so each they cost. (I think they only come in HC editions, though > I could be wrong. Don't have my latest fliers from the club handy to check. > I'm sure if there's a PB also available at lower cost Eric or Steve or Robin > or someone will say so.) Yes, sorry for not mentioning it, they only come in hardcover. > From: Sissor > Subject: Yellow Brick Road I & II > > Hey all, > Was looking through the Educorp Multimedia CD softsource catalogue > and I saw these two cd roms. The Yellow Brick Road I and The Yellow Brick > Road II. The first one is the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Cowardly Lion and > their quest to save OZ from the evil Gnome King and his Army. > The second one is: Glinda is being held captive in a magical > crystal ball and must be saved! It's a two cd-rom set. > Both look like 3D raytraced figure animation. It's avaible for both > Mac and Windows. $30 and $40 respectively. I was wondering if anyone has > actually see or played these? Any comments? The "Seattle Times" reviewed the first one recently, and mentions that it's not quite as Ozzy as one might think. At one point the Tin Woodman uses a circular saw to defeat the Winged Monkeys! > From: Dave Hardenbrook > Subject: Ozzy Things > > ERIC: > > ... [_Handy Mandy in Oz_] stands up very well on its own. (But it would > >help if you've read "Pirates," since a character last seen in that book > >reappears in "Handy Mandy"...) > > Also it helps explain why at the start of _Handy Mandy_, Ruggedo is in the > form of a jug... Thank you, Dave, for spoiling my carefully-worded non-spoiler... --Eric "Okay, yes, everybody, Ruggedo is in 'Handy Mandy'" Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 07:55:23 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-02-96 > From: Tyler Jones > Subject: ozzy digest > > Trot's Royal titles: > While _Wishing Horse_ may have contained the first mention of Trot as a > Princess of EC, in _Giant Horse_, when Trot is made a princess of the > Saphire City, the Scarecrow mentions that this makes Trot "twice a > princess". Presumably, the other part refers to EC, although this is the > first time it's mentioned. Er, Trot wasn't IN Oz in "Emerald City." I don't think Baum ever made her or Betsy a princess of Oz, that was all Thompson's doing. (BTW, despite the chapter title in "Emerald City," Dorothy was actually made a princess of Oz in "Ozma of Oz." It just flies by so quick that if you blink you miss it.) > From: Robin Olderman > Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 > > Mosquitoes in Oz: They sing like birds according to, I think, Nick > Chopper. Now *that's* an idyllic place to live! This IS discussed in "Emerald City," I might add. > Oz Convention: Who's going to Louisville in a coupla weeks? I know Jane, > Pete, Patrick, Herm, and Jim are going, but who else for sure? Sadly I won't be in Louisville, but since Winkies are coming up pretty soon now as well (less than seven weeks now!), who's going to be there? And who's going to take my Masters Quiz? > From: "Melody G. Keller" <104270.2374@compuserve.com> > Subject: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 > > By the way, Folks, has anyone besides me ever owned a copy of the computer > game "The Wizard of Oz" by Windham Classics? It is a simple text adventure > game copyrighted in 1985, featuring the text at the bottom of the screen > and 2d graphics at the top. I never owned it -- they never made a version for the Tandy Color Computer, which is what I had at the time -- but a friend of mine in this area did, and we played it at an Oogaboo Rendezvous once. Fun stuff! > From: HermBieber@aol.com > Subject: For the Ozzy Digest > > Oz Story 2 was released tonight at a festive publication party at the Hungry > Tiger Press (David Maxine, editor, Eric Shanower (ES), art director. Then how come I saw a copy a couple of weeks ago at my local comics shop? (If I didn't already have it on order straight from HTP I'd have bought it then and there.) --Eric "Hey, Dave, I thought we weren't going to get a Digest yesterday!" Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 11:21:36 -0400 From: "< Badger >" Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-30-96 << DIXNAM@aol.com Subject: 5-29-96 Ozzy Digest In your comments regarding the old TV show, "Lost in Space", you said you liked Hans Conreid. Isn't it Jonathan Harris you're thinking of? I don't recall Hans Conreid in that series. >> I know this has already been settled, but ironically I do recall Hans Conreid being a guest star at least once, but cannot recall what exactly. << Tyler Jones Subject: Ozzy Digest With all this talk about "Lost in Space", I would like to see Dr. Smith team up with the Nome King! >> That *would* have been great, and in character. Smith would have been properly cowering and begging from all the tortures Ruggedo would ponder using. -------------------- Thought for the Day.... "Diplomacy - the art of letting someone have your way." < Badger > http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/vul ture.htm http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/pil l-1.htm All Rights Reserved Without Prejudice; UCC 1-207 ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 11:41:42 -0400 (EDT) From: Mark Anthony Donajkowski Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-02-96 speaking of oz cdroms did anyone get the sillybus of oz cd rom??or know where i can get a copy of it hugs anthony van pyre ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 11:58:37 -0400 From: "< Badger >" Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 << From: Sissor Subject: Yellow Brick Road I & II Was looking through the Educorp Multimedia CD softsource catalogue and I saw these two cd roms. The Yellow Brick Road I and The Yellow Brick Road II. The first one is the Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Cowardly Lion and their quest to save OZ from the evil Gnome King and his Army. The second one is: Glinda is being held captive in a magical crystal ball and must be saved! It's a two cd-rom set. Both look like 3D raytraced figure animation. It's avaible for both Mac and Windows. $30 and $40 respectively. I was wondering if anyone has actually see or played these? Any comments? For those interested Educorp: 1-800-843-9497 or www.educorp.com >> These are news to me, but they sure sound interesting: the first sounds similar to "Emerald City of Oz." ======================== To: Melody Grandy << I loved Lost in Space when it first appeared on the air... until both it and Dr. Smith became so silly it was embarrassing.... >> Same here, the change was with the second (color) season (although it started slowly towards the middle of the first (black and white) season. I prefered him as a villian that got them into trouble for being a closed minded fool than simply being a jerk. ======================== << From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things I have Windham Classics' "Alice in Wonderland", in which the player (Alice) interacts with characters from _Alice in Wonderland_, _Through the Looking-Glass_, and even _The Hunting of the Snark_! I have never been able to finish it though...I've never figured out how to get past the Jabberwock ( Can anyone who has by chance finished the game help me here? :) ) >> While I've not played the game, I would think you'd need a vorpal blade.... -------------------- Thought for the Day.... "Diplomacy - the art of letting someone have your way." < Badger > http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/vul ture.htm http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/pil l-1.htm All Rights Reserved Without Prejudice; UCC 1-207 ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 14:08:07 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: Ozzy Digest Robin: The people in the Irish legends should stay on their horses! :-) Short post! --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 12:21:32 +0300 (WET) From: Gili Bar-Hillel Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-01-96 Aaron - though "hashem" does mean "the name" in Hebrew, I have never met or heard of anyone with Hashem as a Hebrew name. However, Hashem is a very popular Arabic name (for example, Israeli Knesset member Hashem Mahmid). So that would actually be an argument for Matiah's being Arab. (Then again, I have met Jewish Matiahs and Matityahus, but never heard of Arabs by the same name. Nonethless RPT's characters seem to me to be influenced more by "Arabian Nights" than by just random ethnic stereotypes.) Herm Beiber - what publisher put out your new German edition of "The Wizard of Oz"? I have four different beautifully illustrated German editions, none of them seem to be like the one you described. Maybe my Swiss cousins can get me a copy of the new one, too. :-) Bye! |\ _,,,---,,_ /,`.-'`' -. ;-;;,_ Gili Bar-Hillel, |,4- ) )-,_..;\ ( `'-' avigailb@zoot.tau.ac.il '---''(_/--' `-'\_) ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 15:21:29 -0400 From: OzBucket@aol.com I am looking for any artwork for the 1998 Oz Club Calendar. I know it seems early, but most artists are not real punctual (sorry, Melody. That was not meant as a dig at ALL illustrators...). It's theme is to be the flipside of the '96 one. That was heroes that do not look very heroic. This will be villains who do not look villainous. AKA: General Jinjur, the Wizard of Wutz, or the roses of the Rose Kingdom. If you are at all interested, let me know ASAP that you will be drawing a picture and who you'd like to draw (I already have a beautiful centerfold of the First and Foremost Phanfasm as a woman -from EMERALD CITY, I think. But all others have yet to be cast!) Also: Anyone know where we can find a Fairuza Balk as Dorothy doll for less than a king's ransom? I'm not sure they were ever available in the US. I think they were made in England or Venus or some planet like that. ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 14:25:45 -0700 From: steller Subject: Ozzy Matters Sissor: I have a review copy of and have played _Yellow Brick Road I_ (I haven't finished it yet, computer game playing is *not* my specialty. _Yellow Brick Road II_ is due for release about labor day. They are being produced by Synergy Interactive, Educorp is merely the distributor. Those interested in seeing a demo disk of YBR II should know I hope to have copies at Ozmapolitan convention in Louisville this month; YBR I will be there also, but not for free distribution. They are Windows 3.1, Windows 95 and Mac compatable. Greg: (via David Hulan) No, there is no PB edition of Wishing Horse or Speedy from IWOC. Barry: IWOC has been planning a _Purple Prince_ (with color plates) for several years now. Write a letter to the special publications committee demanding action. Melody: I owned a copy of the Wyndham Game, but was never able to play it on my old 8086. By the way, will you be in Louisville? Steve T. ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 16:18:42 -0500 (CDT) From: Robin Olderman Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-02-96 Melody: Yeah, I've got it, but I never was able to solve it. I'm not much of a games player, anyway, so it's sat around somewhere in the house for years. My version works/worked on an old Apple IIe. It seems to me I gave up somewhere quite early...in the Tin Woodman's cottage, I think. I couldn't get out of the darned thing, as I recall. Duh! ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 18:02:19 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Digests, 06-01 & 02-96 Aaron: I don't know anything about Thompson's knowledge or views of Judaism, but I'd doubt extremely that "Hashem" owed anything to the Hebrew. I'm almost sure that it was intended to be pronounced "HASH-'em", as a pun on "turn them into hash", rather than "ha-SHEM" like the Hebrew word. I'm sure the match is pure coincidence (as I'm sure that Matiah's father's name "Metorah" has nothing to do with the Torah). DOS is itself just stupid; it was Gates's use of it that was evil. Windows, however, seems evil to me in itself - if for no other reason than that it's a blatant ripoff of the Mac OS, with about the same relationship as one of the $25 Rolex fakes you can buy in Hong Kong has to a real Rolex. Unix, on the other hand, I consider not so much evil as bizarre. A friend of mine once characterized it as "written by Martians for Martians". Since I already have a copy of DINAMONSTER I'm not much interested in your offer. I do have a spare copy of SPEEDY (HC, probably 1940s vintage, good but not mint condition) that I'd be willing to trade if you (or anyone) come up with something I want... (I paid, ISTR, $30 or so for it back in the '70s, so I'd want something for it that's either hard to find or that costs $30 or so to buy new.) Danny: I was referring to animals in Baum's Oz, not Baum's fiction in general. I'm sure he used animals from all continents at some point or other - possibly even penguins. He did have the fairy beavers in JOHN DOUGH, but they never came to Oz. I can think of animals from Eurasia (horse, chicken, tiger), Africa (lion, leopard, zebra), Australia (kangaroo), and South America (jaguar), but nothing unique to North America (e.g. bison, beaver, prairie dog, raccoon). Of course, continental divisions aren't always that strict in fact; although lions are usually associated with Africa there are some in SW Asia, and jaguars do occasionally range into North America. Barry: The four missing Thompson books are still under copyright, so reprinting them would take the permission of Dorothy Maryott (or however she spells her last name). I don't know how easy that is to get. ISTR hearing at some point that the IWOC had gotten reprint rights to PURPLE PRINCE, but my impression is that the IWOC isn't going to be reprinting any more books until they've sold off a lot more of their current inventory. Tyler: The Giant Horse (Highboy) isn't an ordinary-sized horse even when he's retracted his legs. His body, however, isn't inordinately bigger than some of the biggest ordinary horses. You won't find an ordinary horse able to fit two ten-year-old children, an adult male, a stone statue, and a scarecrow on its back comfortably. And I don't consider "Wishing Horse" a misnomer; while Chalk didn't grant the wishes by his own magic power, he played an essential role in their being granted. ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 15:05:48 -0700 From: ozbot@ix.netcom.com (Daniel C. Wall) Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest stuff Okay, one more observation on PC Baum, before I (Hopefully) can find another topic to talk about: Brousing in Piglet Press' bibliography (again,) I noticed that one of the Adepts, Aurah, maybe?, was quoted as having brown skin and brown hair. Did I read it wrong, or could we have an African Ozian here? Dave. . .? I was thinking of my reference to WInnie the Pooh in one of my previous posts about any American animals in Oz. Wasn't one of Milne's ideas in the Hundred Acre wood to include only British (or British-by-way-of imperialism) animals? I guess I put my foot in my virtual mouth, as Gopher is only a Disney character, added for their Winnie the Pooh cartoons. Guess I won't live this down, Danny ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 20:20:46 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Digest, 06-01 & 02-96 This is the second part of my response; I sent the first part accidentally. Tyler, continued: Since there is no real-world experience with magical retarding of age, we have no way of knowing just how it works. Certainly in many, many fantasy novels where there is such magical retarding of age, the one whose aging was retarded ages extremely swiftly as soon as the spell loses its effect, for whatever reason. Presumably the body cells do recognize the passage of time, but the magic prevents the usual processes from taking place when they normally would. Once the magic dissipates, the cells revert to the condition they would have been in had the magic not been in place. As I said a couple of days ago, I think the analogy of not checking your E-mail for a period of time may be more appropriate than turning off a light bulb. When you do finally get around to checking it, you end up having as much in your folder as if you'd checked it every day (assuming you never responded to any); it just happens a lot faster. I'll admit that I've never used OS/2 myself; some people I've known who have used it have liked it quite a bit, but I take note of your disagreement with them. The only group of ordinary Oz citizens that we get much detail about that I can recall are the people of Oogaboo in TIK-TOK (and QUEEN ANN and GLASS CAT...). I believe that Baum does say that they are fairies of a sort, though of course not the same sort as Ozma - but I'm not sure about that, and at the moment, I can't even refer to TIK-TOK (the only Oz book I'd had available for months) because it's already out at my new house. (We closed Friday and the movers bring our Stuff on Monday! By Wednesday or Thursday I should have access to my Oz books again!) Gili: I remember noting that the Wizard was a Theosophist; when I get access to my copy of WICKED again (soon!) I'll see if I recognize the source of the book. (Blavatsky invented a few herself, of course - one called THE BOOK OF DZYAN, I think...I'll have to look her up in that section of de Camp's LOST CONTINENTS.) Tyler (6/2 now): I have assumed that the Scarecrow's "twice a princess" remark about Trot referred to her previous office as Queen of Sky Island, since the Royal Historians seem to use "queen" and "princess" interchangeably for younger rulers (e.g. Ozma). In any case, we're never shown a scene where Ozma makes Trot or Betsy a princess, as we are when she gives titles to Dorothy, Peter, and Jenny Jump. Robin: I'm going to Louisville, be the good Lord willin' and the cricks don't rise 'twixt here and there, as we used to say in my youth... I've paid for my membership and room, anyhow. Melody: I owned a copy of that WIZARD OF OZ game, but I never got very far playing it. I didn't find it particularly good at the time, though its Ozziness (for as far as I got) was indubitable - clearly based on the books and not the movie. And then one time I tried to play it and the disk had been corrupted, so I gave up on it. In the outside world rapid aging like Dorothy's in LOST KING and all the other examples from fantasy is impossible, but in the outside world retarded aging is also impossible. Are these two negatives additive or multiplicative? Herm: I assume that OZ STORY MAGAZINE #2 will be available at Louisville, so I'll plan to buy it there (unless they want to give me another review copy...). I'm looking forward to it; "Policeman Bluejay" in particular is one of the few Baum works I've really wanted to read and haven't been able to find. (I'm not overly interested in the Boy Fortune Hunters or Aunt Jane's Nieces; I'll read them if I find them at a reasonable price, but I'm fairly tepid about them.) David Hulan ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 20:30:19 -0400 (EDT) From: jnw@vnet.net Subject: Dorothy growing up in LOST KING On the subject of Dorothy's growing up in LOST KING, Tyler is close with his idea that it was the wishing sand that was responsible. Dorothy never wished to grow up, however. What she did do was to read out loud the magic green formula of restoration that was on Humpey's tag. Immediately after that she began to grow, as the the wishing sand interpreted this as a command to "restore" her to her chronological age. (Another example of wishing magic obeying commands spoken in the language of Magic is the Wizard transporting a party to Morrow.) -- jnw@vnet.net (John N. White) ====================================================================== Date: Sun, 02 Jun 1996 22:22:14 -0400 From: ZMaund@aol.com Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-31-96 To: DAVEH47@delphi.com Dave -- if possible, can you post this for me? Maybe even post it again in a couple of weeks? Hello and Greetings to you. I am coordinating the auctions for the International Wizard of Oz Club. In general, we're always looking for any and all Oz, Thompson, and Baum material, but right now we're particularly after first editions of The Hidden Valley of Oz and Merry Go Round in Oz; copies of The Gingerbread Man (an advertising booklet written by Ruth Thompson; and copies of The Wizard of Oz and The Magical Monarch of Mo illustrated by Evelyn Copelman. I would greatly appreciate information about copies of the above for sale. Patrick Maund (ZMaund@AOL.com) -- thanks, Dave! ====================================================================== Date: Sunday 02-Jun-96 22:05:51 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things AARON: >"Behave yourself" is the only rule according to the Tin Woodman ... This is IMHO just the Ozzy version of the credo of Shangri-La: "Be kind". :) THE JABBERWOCK: A lot of people suggested killing the Jabberwock with a vorpal blade just like the poem, but this admittedly child-oriented _Alice_ game is limited as what the played can do to other players. (Taking violent action is not one of them). ERIC: >Del Rey never got around to publishing "Silver Princess" or "Ozoplaning" >before Judy Lynn Del Rey died. I didn't realize the publication of the Thompson books depended on one individual! (Sort of like my local Software, Etc., which had a manager that had an Amiga, so they had lots of Amiga software, unlike all other big computer stores...But then he left, and quicker than you could do it with the Magic Belt, all the Amiga stuff was gone.) >>(Tyler): Presumably, the other part refers to EC, although this is the >> first time it's mentioned. >Er, Trot wasn't IN Oz in "Emerald City."... I think Tyler meant that Trot was "twice a princess" both of Sapphire and of the Emerald City...He did not mean to make any reference to _Emerald City_ *the book*. DANNY: >Brousing in Piglet Press' bibliography (again,) I noticed that one of >the Adepts, Aurah, maybe?, was quoted as having brown skin and brown >hair. Did I read it wrong, or could we have an African Ozian here? >Dave. . .? They tell me that they're European, and their pictures seem to confirm this...Of course having a close association with the Adepts (what with they're being my "informants"), I know a lot of "facts" about the Adepts that I'm obliged to label a "MOPPeT" here in the Digest... Auxannah: You'd better write up something about us in your FAQ, Dave... :) Audirfah: Call it, "What are the Adepts *really* like?" :) :) :) Aunyetah: Allow us to introduce ourselves -- we are three MOPPeT's... :) :) :) -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 4, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 03:23:49 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: For Ozzy Digest Availability of IWOC Oz Books: Regarding recent notes about IWOC Thompson and later books, the warehouse inventory records (not necessarily 100% reliable) show that: Speedy - available in hard cover only Wishing Horse - available in hard cover only Silver Princess - hard cover copies are near sold out; several hundred paperback versions should exist, but they weren't in the latest inventory. They may yet show up Capt. Salt - available in paperback only Ozoplanning - available in hard or soft cover Handy Mandy - available in hard or soft cover Magical Mimics - available in hard or soft cover Shaggy Man - available in hard cover only Hidden Valley - available in hard or soft cover Problems with the clubs fulfillment service (It was NOT Fred Meyer's fault or illness that caused the exasperating delays during the past year!) have mostly been resolved, and delivery times should be a lot faster in the future. David Hulan: Eric and David informed me that they will only attend the Munchkin Convention this year, so it is unlikely that Oz Story 2 will be on sale in Louisville. Melody: I guess the wholesaler must have sent Oz Story 2 out before the official christening! ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 04:29:07 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: Why Tedrow is the worst author of Oz 1) Eric, what I find so offensive about Tedrow's Dorothy--Return to Oz is that it forces its moral standard upon the reader. (Incidentally, this is one of my complaints against Heinlein.) While Wicked and A Barnstormer in Oz contain elements I don't like (the former more than the latter), neither of them forces anything upon the reader; if you like Unionism or Quadling Christianity, that's OK with Maguire and Farmer, and if you don't, that's fine with them too. If you don't like the Golden Ruler, then Tedrow finds you reprehensible. (And likewise if you reject Heinlein's views on the optionality of clothing, he thinks you're sick.) As I belong to a school of thought which holds that nothing is intrisically moral or immoral, that is, all morality is a matter of opinion, I find it presumptuous of Tedrow and Heinlein, two mere mortals, to tell me on their own authority what is and isn't moral. Isn't my opinion as good as theirs? (And as a precautionary measure, I add that there is one being whose opinions on morality I accept: G-d.) And on top of that, Tedrow doesn't write very well, down to the lame poetry in the magic spells and the near complete lack of decent names for any of the characters. Maguire, Farmer, and even Heinlein, on the other hand, can write decently. 3) David, wait a minute! I don't remember Jenny Jump ever being given a title. When did this happen? 4) Dave, OK, so you can't use a vorpal blade on the Jabberwock. That leaves a) going around it to the side, b) going over it, c) going under it, d) going around it through the fourth dimension, e) putting it to sleep first, f) wearing garlic or something else strong smelling around your neck so that it stays away from you, and g) bribing it. And maybe a few other things I didn't think up off of the top of my head, such as... Jabberwock: Like talking it to death? Yeah, that'd work too. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 13:40:33 +0300 (IDT) From: Avigail Bar-hillel Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-03-96 Hi Digest! Melody, Dick, and others - interesting comments about aging. I never thought of how aging in Narnia only works one way. It's as if your REAL age (you being Lucy, Edmund, Jill or whoever) is your earth age, and that's what stays constant when you return to earth. Your age in Narnia changes with Narnian time so long as you don't return to earth. This is somewhat like reading a book - you can identify with a character and "grow old" with this character, but the moment you stop reading the book, you revert back to your earth age, which is your REAL age. There are so many variations on stories where time passes differently for one group of people than for another. Think of Rip Van Winkle - he grew old as he would have if he had been awake, he just didn't notice the passage of time (rather like what happened to the real patients described in Oliver Sacks' "Awakenings"). Sleeping Beauty also slept for 100 years (not according to Disney...) but during this time she didn't age a day. Peter Pan never grew up, and James Barrie himself (according to Alison Lurie) had some sort of genetic condition which meant his aging processes were retarded, so that he looked as if he had frozen as an adolescent, which if you come to think of it is a rather tragic condition. Peter Pan seemed to like it, but Barrie also wrote a play about a character called Mary Rose, who is kidnapped by fairies and returned years later - she herself has not aged a day, but her husband is now old enough to be her father, her baby boy a grown man, and the situation is unquestionably tragic. I've been rambling ... sorry! David - *****************SPOILER FOR WICKED************************ If you blinked, you could have missed it. The word Theosophy itself is not mention, but Madame Blavatsky is mentioned as the person who physically sent the Wizard to Oz. Which means that neither of them are humbugs... *********************************************************** Dave - so you can't kill the Jabberwocky with a vorpal blade. How do you win over the Snark? With railway shares and soap, unless it is a Boojum? Danny - brown skin could refer to any variety of people: tanned europeans, Indians (from India, or native americans), arabs or people from northern Africa .... I suppose you could interpret this however you prefer. Ethnic/racial labeling often has less to do with your actual color than with other features, physical or cultural. Else why would anyone feel a need to assign a "race" to the Patchwork girl, the Scarecrow, or any of the animals in Oz? BTW, FWIW, yes, Milne would have to be thinking in Imperialist terms to think of a tiger and two kangaroos as British animals... I think it rather rude of him to select toys for his child purely on the basis of what set of animals would make a good combination for him to write about... BTW - HashshEm is purely Adelmanian spelling. The Adelmans have developed a method of transcribing Hebrew into English so that absolutely no information is lost in the transcription. IMHO, this method should be reserved for discussions where the exact Hebrw spelling is crucial - most non-Hebrew speakers would find the method more confusing than useful. Bye! Gili ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 09:10:30 -0700 From: steller Subject: Laughing Dragon Rich M.: I regret to say that the original form of _Rosine and the Laughing Dragon_, of which _The Laughing Dragon of Oz_ forms the first part, has never been published and probably never will be. I have read the entire MS, discussed all the changes made between the MS and LD and summarized the chapters that follow the part in the published book and submitted this to the Oz Research table some time ago. Unfortunately my e-mail system cannot now import material so I would have to type in the whole thing before I could send it out. Steve T. ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 19:30:18 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: ozzy digest On aging: Obviously, since in our "real" world we have no practical experience with magical aging, but we can work out some theories. For example, if someone ages upon returning to America, the knowledge of how many years had elapsed must be stored somewhere (the Magic Machine, in our own cells, etc). My main point was that it is very unlikely that Dorothy's aging and de-aging was due only to her return to America and her re-return to Oz. IMHO, it is unlikely that both of these happened due to "natural causes". The magic wishing sand is a possibility, and so is the incantation, as suggested by John White. Aaron: That was an interesting parallel you came up with. If someone is enchanted and then magic is done to restore them, how does the magic spell "know" what the original form was? It is not likely stored in the new form, so the Magic Machine is our last hope. Now, if Wizard A changes me into a baboon and Wizard B hacks into the Magic Machine and makes that my "true" form, then I am in a lot of trouble... Aaron: I hope I did not suggest that the magic itself makes people happy, invoking images of a sci-fi book (I forget the name) wherein you are genetically designed to be happy and satisfied with your lot in life. I meant, of course, that the enchantment helps to create an enviornment where it is easy to be happy, since a lot of the misery has been eliminated (hunger, extreme hard labor, etc.). Eric and Rich: When I mentioned Trot as a Princess referring to EC, I meant Emerald City the place, although I should have meant Trot as a Princess of Oz itself. Of course, David suggestion (Sky Island) was a good one, as the Scarecrow probably knows of her adventures there. As David said, though, we never saw the actual ceremony where Ozma makes Trot and Betsy princesses, assuming that she does. Which she probably did. Chris D: Glad to see you back on the digest. Have you been getting the messages I'm sending you directly? On IWOC overstocking: Somebody mentioned getting rid of their excess inventory. What books do they have that they want to get rid of? David: That must be an interesting group of people. Everyone I have talked to or heard of has utterly despied OS/2, except for a MBA student who has been described as the "IBM worshipper". Danny and Dave: I don't remember any references to the Adepts skin color, only the color of their hair: gold, silver and bronze. --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 16:51:13 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-03-96 > From: RMorris306@aol.com > Subject: Recent Ozzy Digests > > <<_Laughing Dragon_ is an interesting case. While it has absolutely nothing > to do with any other Oz book, it can be argued that it is Historically > Accurate on the basis that it does not contradict anything in the FF. >> > That's what I'd say, too. Would anyone know if and when the non-Oz > version was published? It was not. (And remember, "Laughing Dragon" isn't complete, it's only the first half of the story that never got completed.) > Robin Olderman wrote: > < Now *that's* an idyllic place to live!>> > Yes, but do they still *bite* people? No. The Tin Woodman explains that they are so well fed that they don't need to bite anybody for food. > From: "< Badger >" > Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 05-30-96 > > From: Mark Anthony Donajkowski > Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-02-96 > > speaking of oz cdroms did anyone get the sillybus of oz cd rom??or know > where i can get a copy of it I manged to get a copy at a used CD-ROM store here in Redmond. Take a look around, they may be out there somewhere. > From: Dave Hardenbrook > Subject: Ozzy Things > > ERIC: > >Del Rey never got around to publishing "Silver Princess" or "Ozoplaning" > >before Judy Lynn Del Rey died. > > I didn't realize the publication of the Thompson books depended on one > individual! To be honest, I'm surprised Del Rey is still publishing the Baum books, she was that important to their publishing the Oz books. (I can't help wondering what would have happened if the Thompsons had been printed like the Baum books, not in oversized editions that were hard to stock on most shelves...) > Auxannah: You'd better write up something about us in your FAQ, Dave... :) > Audirfah: Call it, "What are the Adepts *really* like?" :) :) :) > Aunyetah: Allow us to introduce ourselves -- we are three MOPPeT's... :) :) :) Everybody, sing along: Three little MOPPeTs from school are we... --Eric "No, it ain't Gilbert & Sullivan" Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 23:39:00 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: For Ozzy Digest Dept. of Obscure Oziana: For those non-readers of Time Magazine, the May 20 issue contained an article on the nature of tornados. Apparently field meteorologists use a portable instrumentation package called a Totable Tornado Observatory (TOTO for short!). However in the current movie hit, Twister, this same device is called "DOROTHY." ====================================================================== Date: Mon, 03 Jun 1996 23:44:13 +0000 From: rri0189@ibm.net Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-03-96 Rich: I'm afraid I have to correct you. Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy never returned to Narnia in "The Magician's Nephew". That book was written later as a "prequel" (as the modern phrase is). Three of them came back in "The Last Battle" (under special circumstances -- no spoilers here) and did, indeed, reappear as their adult selves. None of the other children aged that much while in Narnia. Melody: We have the "Wizard of Oz" game, but I've never played it. John has, but he's out of town this week. Aaron: I doubt very much if Hashem is to be read HaSHEM. It is clearly part of the trio, to be read "Hash 'em". (Hash = cooking term, 'em = them, as in "Put 'em up.") [Oops, I see David Hulan's already brought this up. "Never mind."] Badger: Yes, Hans Conried did appear in an episode of "Lost in Space" as Sir Sagramonte, a knight in armor hunting a Questing Beast (which was voiced by June Foray). I don't remember the title. Coincidentally, I think that episode is one of Jonathan Harris' best. I could go into detail about what went wrong with the show (culled from various Sci-Fi channel specials and interviews), but this isn't the right forum. -- Eleanor (whew, my longest post yet) Kennedy ====================================================================== Date: Monday 03-Jun-96 23:35:27 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things CHARON: I am just about to send copies of my letter regarding making "People and Places from Oz" the theme for Pluto's moon Charon to various astronomers and scientifically-oriented Oz fans, and I just wanted to ask the Digest members for three things: 1. Any more suggestions for people to send the letter to -- So far I am planning to send it to Martin Gardiner, Ray Bradbury, Carl Sagan, Harlan Ellison, and astronomers Frank Drake, Jay M. Pasachoff (whom I have circumstantial evidence of being an Oz fan), and Patrick Moore (whom so far as I know is not an Oz fan, but is prominent enough an astronomy figure that he may worth writing to as well). 2. A mailing address for Martin Gardiner, the one person in the above list whose address I cannot find (He's NOT in _Who's Who_!!!) 3. Please send me your name, E-Mail, and Snail mail address (optional) if you want your name to be included in my letter (Right now I have on my list: Tyler, Eric G., Gili, Dick Randolph, Barbara Belgrave, the Adelmans, Mike Turniansky, Barb DeJohn, William Wright, Ken Cope, and Laura Morrison). The Campaign For Putting Oz on Charon continues!!! :) IS RUGGEDO TINKERING WITH THE 'NET???: Did anyone receive yesterday (6/3) the following message (or one very similar): ===== begin clipped message ===== i OOi. Thanks anyway. Aaron. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman UOAE IAxx Ox xOIx Oxxx adelman@yu1.yu.edu ===== end clipped message ==== (Do not adjust your set. This *is* what it looks like!) Did anyone get this message, with a header including in the CC: field ALL the names on the Digest mailing list? I got this message, Herm Bieber did as well, and Dick Randolph wrote to me today saying "What was that???" (He did not elaborate, but Naroldi the Mind Reader says he got the same thing). Does anyone have any idea what happened? Nomes crossing Internet cables??? :) :) :) -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 5, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 12:34:09 +0300 (IDT) From: Avigail Bar-hillel Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 Dave - I got the weird message two, except the weird characters turned up on my screen in Hebrew (two nun-sofits, and Aaron's full name.) :-) I assume Aaron accidentally typed reply to all or something. Aaron and Tyler - about where your true form is stored while you are under a transformation: how about in your genes? This would not explain how you could be transformed clothes and all, nor how you could retain your memories. But then, how did you keep them in the first place when you were transformed? On a tangent: I remember reading a science fiction story, where an astronaut is duplicated before going on a dangerous mission, so that there would be a copy of him left at home in case he dies. Each time his duplicate on the mission dies, and each time he is duplicated again and sent on the mission. Finally he makes it back home alive, only to discover himself in a tragic position: his duplicate is already living in his home, with his wife and children ... The weird thing about this story is - who exactly is the narrator? The duplicate, or the original? (I think I got to thinking of this because of the image of duplicates of transformed people being stored on Lurlines machine. Thought: where exactly did Tip turn up from in "A Murder in Oz"? Was he stored somewhere too?) Whaddya know. I'd never heard of "Lost in Space" before the discussions here. Yesterday I turn on the T.V. and guess what was showing? "Lost in Space" (on the Asian/European cable channel "Star Plus"). Dave - maybe one reason you couldn't find Martin Gardner in the "who's who" is that you misspelled his surname: Gardner, like the person who tends your Garden, not Gardiner. Plus - isn't there another Physicist (not Christy) who suggested the name "Project Ozma"? Wouldn't it make sense to send him a copy, too? Do you have my snailmail, or should I send it again under seperate cover? Bye Digest! Gili ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 09:00:43 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Charon Another suggestion as to whom to send your letter: L. Sprague de Camp, whose address I unfortunately don't have available. He could probably be reached c/o one of his publishers. Same for Martin Gardner (note spelling of the latter name, btw), if you can't get his address elsewhere. And definitely add my name to your list of signers, since Bradbury and Ellison at least should recognize it, and some of the astronomers might. E-mail address is DavidXOE@aol.com; snail-mail is 1208 Ardmore Dr., Naperville, IL 60540. Incidentally, I suspect that the odd message from Aaron (which I got as well) resulted from him doing something wrong in the process of sending me an E-mail - at least, I got a full E-mail from him the same day that had the same last couple of words. No time to comment on the last couple of Digests; the movers brought our stuff to the new house yesterday and today I shut down the computer and we move the last of our other stuff from the apartment to the house. I hope to be up and running again by tomorrow, but no certainties. ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 11:30:33 -0400 From: "< Badger >" Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 Dave: IS RUGGEDO TINKERING WITH THE 'NET???: Did anyone receive yesterday (6/3) the following message (or one very similar)... ... Did anyone get this message, with a header including in the CC: field ALL the names on the Digest mailing list? I got this message, Herm Bieber did as well, and Dick Randolph wrote to me today saying "What was that???" (He did not elaborate, but Naroldi the Mind Reader says he got the same thing). Does anyone have any idea what happened? Nomes crossing Internet cables??? :) :) :) >> I got it. I just figured it was similar to a "Ozzy Digest Being Delayed" type message that was merely... odd. ============================== Eleanor Kennedy: << Hans Conried did appear in an episode of "Lost in Space" as Sir Sagramonte, a knight in armor hunting a Questing Beast (which was voiced by June Foray). I don't remember the title. Coincidentally, I think that episode is one of Jonathan Harris' best. >> Ah yes, now I recall the silly rubber suited biped "dragon." She tended to cry a lot, didn't she? (It's been years.) Anyway, I think Sean Connery's impressive Draco has her beat. -------------------- Thought for the Day.... "If I want your opinion, I'll ask you to fill out the necessary forms." < Badger > http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/vul ture.htm http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Badger_GLG_AmerNational_Freeman/pil l-1.htm All Rights Reserved Without Prejudice; UCC 1-207 ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 11:45:06 -0400 (EDT) From: Mark Anthony Donajkowski Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 david since you cant import into your email can you attach it as a file to someone who can? also whoever said they got the cd rom i mentioned sorry forgot who siad it how is it and how much did you get it for nad could you get another as its not ever been avaiable in my area hgus anthony van pyre ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 09:46:54 -0700 From: steller Subject: (no subject) Aaron: You don't remember Jenny Jump getting a title? Read the final chapter of _Wonder City_. Ozma makes her the first Duchess of Oz. On disenchantment: The Truth Pond, in _Road_ restores persons to the true forms. However, when the Frogman swims in it in _Lost Princess_ he does not revert to original Frog size although his extraordinary growth was caused by magic sklosh. I have often wondered what would happen if the cactine form of Ruggedo were watered with Truth Pond water. Tyler, On IWOC overstocking: Ask again after the board meeting in Louisville. DaveH: I got the message, but I didn't *get* the message. Steve T. ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 13:55:50 -0400 (EDT) From: BARRY ESHKOL ADELMAN Subject: The Isoceles Triangle in Oz For those of you out there collecting Oz references, in last Sunday's _Parade_ Maria vos Savant published a letter to her asking about the Scarecrow's garbling of the Pythagorean Theorem in the MGM movie. In her answer, she made reference to what occured in the analogous situation in the book, for which she will undoubtedly get letters asking "There's a book?" Yes, Dave, I got the cryptic message pretty much as you received it. The oracle I wear on my wrist disguised as a watch tells me that this is all part of a complex plot which involves time travel, aliens, and a visit to the Aaron Spelling universe. Line inspired by Herm's post: "Get the barometer, and TOTO too!" Tyler, I would presume that some magic would be needed to regulate behavior. Given Ozma's experiment in a moneyless economy where people work for the innate pleasure of it, something would have to be done to make sure things which are rather unpleasant get done (collection and disposal of night soil and treating people with severe behavioral problems come to mind; with characters such as the Lazy Quadling in _The Patchwork Girl of Oz_, just about any activity would fall into this category). One possible way of getting around this would be to enchant people to find this sort of work pleasing. (For comparison, a solution like this was mentioned in Stanislaw Lem's _The Star Diaries_, and in that case people rebeled against that kind of manipulation and the whole thing fell apart.) While I'm at it, does anyone in Oz have any major behavior problems (the bad guys and the Lazy Quadling excluded)? Regarding the singing mosquitos, they may be well-fed, but what are they being fed? ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 18:51:57 +0000 (GMT) From: Amanda Elizabeth Schaible Richard Bauman: The bookstore I was referring to was the Borders on Union Square. They had quite a few BoW things there when I was last in, but I may have bought them all up. I assume they will get more. I'm sorry it took sso long to get back to you, I was out celebrating my 21st birthday all weekend. Anyway, go visit them, it is a great store for things non'Oz as well. Dave: I think I still have a copy of the Windham Classics Oz game. I will begin a search for it, and if I find it will give it to you. I haven't played it in years, but when I was into it enjoyed it very much, though i can't remember much about it now. It was very Ozzy, and if I remember correctly, the magic slippers were even silver! Eric: Hi Eric!! ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 19:18:06 +0000 (GMT) From: Amanda Elizabeth Schaible Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 >i > >OOi. Thanks anyway. > >Aaron. > >Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman UOAE IAxx Ox xOIx Oxxx >adelman@yu1.yu.edu > >Did anyone get this message, with a header including in the CC: field ALL the >names on the Digest mailing list? I got this message, Herm Bieber did as well, >and Dick Randolph wrote to me today saying "What was that???" (He did not >elaborate, but Naroldi the Mind Reader says he got the same thing). Does >anyone have any idea what happened? Nomes crossing Internet cables??? :) :) : Dave I also received this odd message, but just dismissed it as an inside joke that I did not get. Thanks for letting me know I wasn't out of the loop. --Liz ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 15:33:01 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: Ozzy Digest Herm Bieber: How much are your hardcover copies of _Silver Princess_? Steve: What format and for what platform is your summary? You could mail me a disk and I could post it or mail it to people electronically. Narnian Aging: When the four kids went back to Narnia in _Prince Caspian_, they did not revert to their grown-up states (ironically, this would have been the reverse situation that Dorothy faced). In _Last Battle_, the four had by then achieved adult age in their own world, so would not have reverted. However, C.S. Lewis mentioned throughout the series that people who return are imbued with a strength that they earned while in Narnia before. So, in Narnia at least, there seems to be some sort of process that keeps track of age and ability to some extent. Dave: yes, received that weird message, and had no clue about it. Obviously, Rug is trying to take over the 'Net to facilitate his conquest of Oz. --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 16:02:01 -0400 From: DIXNAM@aol.com Subject: Ruggedo's Revenge or Adelmanian Madness? Dave, Naroldi the Mind Reader is correct, sir!! All that gibebrish you mentioned in today's (6-4-96) Digest is what I got. Possible Ruggedo IS interfering with the Internet, but IMHO, it is more likely the work of a deranged Woozy, having escaped from the Adelmanian Universe, expressing his displeasure with the Bros. Adelman for leaking so much of his story to the Digest!! (:-D (There were a series if small squares in the version I received!) Dick (or was it just the boogyman?) Randolph ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 18:20:28 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: The Mysterious Message Everyone, if you recieved a mysterious message from me, please ignore it. This UNIX box hates me and, in its finite wisdom, has apparently garbled a message I sent to one person and sent copies of the garbled version to it seems the entire Digest. Sorry for the inconvenience. Aaron. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 17:30:04 -0500 (CDT) From: Robin Olderman Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 Del Rey Oz: The reissuing of the Oz books was a labor of love for Judy Lynn Del Rey. Although Lester Del Rey was, at one time, involved in things Ozian, the force behind the project died, so did the project: it wasn't making enough money, I s'pose. Gili:I love what you wrote and wish I'd thought of it: >Your age in Narnia changes with Narnian time so long as you don't return >to earth. Yeah, O.K., but here's the concept I'd never thought of before.... >>This is somewhat like reading a book - you can identify with a character and "grow old" with this character, but the moment you stop reading the book, you revert back to your earth age, which is your REAL age. Cool!!! David: Guess what I'm reading and enjoying? (Thanks, Steven, for mentioning that Borders carries Emerald City Press titles.) :) :) --Robin ====================================================================== Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 18:42:23 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 > From: "Aaron S. Adelman" > Subject: Why Tedrow is the worst author of Oz Then you haven't read "Dorothy and the Lizard of Oz," have you? Everything you accuse Tedrow of, only 1000 times more heavyhanded. > 1) Eric, what I find so offensive about Tedrow's Dorothy--Return to Oz is > that it forces its moral standard upon the reader. No it doesn't. The reader is free to make up his or her own mind about the morals in the story. No book is capable of forcibly changing a reader's mind -- or at least readers as bright and independent as Oz readers . Maybe I just read D:RTO only on the surface, or I'm just more in agreement with what Tedrow was saying than what other authors might have said, and just didn't notice it or care, but the morality of the book made little impact on me -- partly because the REST of it was so dreadful... > And on top of that, Tedrow doesn't write very well, down to the lame > poetry in the magic spells and the near complete lack of decent names > for any of the characters. Maguire, Farmer, and even Heinlein, on the > other hand, can write decently. This I can DEFINITELY agree with you upon. (Oops, my opinions are showing...) > From: Dave Hardenbrook > Subject: Ozzy Things > > 2. A mailing address for Martin Gardiner, the one person in the > above list whose address I cannot find (He's NOT in _Who's Who_!!!) Good thing he IS in the Oz Club's membership directory! (I'll mail this under separate, private cover.) --Eric "Not that I advocate the willy-nilly use of the Directory for getting celebrity addresses..." Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Wednesday 05-Jun-96 01:08:19 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things THEOREMS OF OZ: Barry wrote: >For those of you out there collecting Oz references, in last Sunday's _Parade_ >Maria vos Savant published a letter to her asking about the Scarecrow's >garbling of the Pythagorean Theorem in the MGM movie. Is *she* an Ozzy-phile by any chance, and should I send the Charon letter to *her*? (For those who don't know Marilyn Vos Savant, she has the highest I.Q. in the world, and she has writen several books and many newspaper columns on many subjects...Most recently she wrote a book about the recent alleged proof of Fermat's infamous "Last" Theorem involving equations derived from the Pythagorean Theorem. ( Hey, if we want to know if it's really been proved, don't all we have to do is look in Glinda's Book of Records and see if it says, "Fermat's Last Theorem has been proved" or "A faulty proof of Fermat's Last Theorem has been submitted that many are wrongly accepting as legit."? :) :) ) >In her answer, she made reference to what occured in the analogous >situation in the book, for which she will undoubtedly get letters >asking "There's a book?" Sad but true. DEL REY'S OZ BOOKS: Robin wrote: > ... it wasn't making enough money, I s'pose. This also seems to be the case with Dover's re-issuing of the Baum 14 (They stopped after _Tik-Tok_, saying "It isn't profitable"). So my question is: Why do attempts at an "Ozian Renaissance" turn out to be, to paraphrase Victor Hugo, "a sunset instead of a dawn"? Is there something about Oz that is fundamentally incompatable with peopel living in the 1990's??? -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 6, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Tue, 04 Jun 1996 23:55:50 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: For Ozzy Digest Shalom Gili: The German Wizard was published in 1994 by J. F. Schreiber, Postfach 285, 73703 Esslingen, GERMANY. The ISBN is 3-215-11441-0. It is available in Switzerland; in fact, I bought my copies in Davos last month. Best, Herm ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 02:02:58 -0400 (EDT) From: Richard Bauman <72172.2631@CompuServe.COM> Subject: TODAY'S GROWLS Gee! I think some of our members have been in the Emerald City too long. The color seems to have rubbed off on them when they contemplate Bill Gates. Tyler >In other words, I've often thought of the average Ozian's lifestyle as peaceful and idyllic. It is simple, but very easy with little or no toil. Very little changes from day to day. People are just generally happy. Golly Tyler, this sounds like a barrel of fun for the just plain folks. Does this really sound great to you or just for the proletariat? Dave - If you are in California I am surprised you missed the article. It was about state schools charging profs for INTERNET connect time, as I recall. It was in the San Jose Mercury, but I can't retrieve it now. I have been gone for four days. I would guess it appeared on May 31st. I'll ask around. Aaron & Barry - Only if you have a vorpal blade! Aaron >As I belong to a school of thought which holds that nothing is intrisically moral or immoral, that is, all morality is a matter of opinion, Just out of curiosity, what "school" is that? Dave - I got the "cyberspace burp" too. :) :) Ah, it's good to catch up. I spent the last three days in "Lost Wages." We went to the MGM and saw the Oz exhibits. All were great except Dorothy who looked like she was about 28. Too bad we can't include photos in our posts. Regards, Bear (:<) ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 00:24:53 -0700 From: Ken Cope Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 Spinning sides your way courtesy of Victor Columbia Edison. scratch scratch scratch... I'm rappin' Aaron A, I'm no L. Frank B, Gonna nail the coffin shut on the Oz story. You'll have to listen while I'm dissin' Those who disagree, because this soapbox here Only belongs to me. And the book that I'm writing (Between posts that are biting All the hands that are feeding me The sources that I'm citing) Would be done; Except I find it so exciting to collect all the mail spawned from the tempers I'm igniting. And don't you offend My sensibility, If you're typing without clothes, You're sans morality! Whatever you do don't state your point of view. You might make me think of things That make me blush Bright blue. Who do you think you are, Mr. Robert Heinlein, For putting naked people In your Future Timeline? I'm afraid a luscious stargirl with a pagan lifestyle, Might make me think for myself; I'd better stick with juveniles. It's much safer here, without the contradictions. I've got my Pooka pal Harvey, to back up my convictions. Tedrow, Laumer, Volkov are no use to me Unless they've got Oz names to use copyright free. (The lawyers for her estate will Subpoena me Glumly If I use the folks created by Ruth Thompson, Plumly) I'm rappin' Aaron A, I'm no L. Frank B, Gonna nail the coffin shut on the Oz story. You'll have to listen while I'm dissin' Those who disagree, because this soapbox here Only belongs to me. scratch scratch scratch... ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 05:55:22 -0700 (PDT) From: Eric Gjovaag Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-05-96 > From: Mark Anthony Donajkowski > Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-04-96 > > david since you cant import into your email can you attach it as a file to > someone who can? also whoever said they got the cd rom i mentioned sorry > forgot who siad it how is it and how much did you get it for nad could you > get another as its not ever been avaiable in my area That was me. No, I can't get any more, seeing as how I bought out all their socks already, and the extras have all gotten good homes now. It was barely worth what I paid for it -- six dollars, used. If it's not available in your area, try used CD-ROM stores (if there is such a beast), or ask at your local software outlet to see if it can be special ordered. If that doesn't work, try the company: Multicom Publishing, Inc. 1100 Olive Way, Suite 1250 Seattle, WA 98101 BTW, the disc is called "Legends of Oz." > From: BARRY ESHKOL ADELMAN > Subject: The Isoceles Triangle in Oz > > While I'm at it, does anyone in Oz have any major behavior problems (the bad > guys and the Lazy Quadling excluded)? There are Rigmarole Town and Flutterbudget Center, and in "The Emerald City of Oz" the Wizard implies that there are similar centers for people otherwise shunned by polite Ozian societies. > From: Tyler Jones > Subject: Ozzy Digest > > Herm Bieber: > How much are your hardcover copies of _Silver Princess_? Why are you asking Herm? They are not his, but the International Wizard of Oz Club's. He was reporting on the Club's current stocks. For ordering information, check out the Club's page on the WWW (that's World Wide Web for those wiseguys out there who were thinking of asking what the Wicked Witch of the West is doing on a computer...) > From: Dave Hardenbrook > Subject: Ozzy Things [re: Marilyn vos Savant] > Is *she* an Ozzy-phile by any chance, and should I send the Charon letter to > *her*? To answer your questions in the order asked, I have no idea, and why not? [re: publishers stopping reissues of Oz books] > This also seems to be the case with Dover's re-issuing of the Baum 14 > (They stopped after _Tik-Tok_, saying "It isn't profitable"). They did not stop it at "Tik-Tok," Dover also put out an edition of "Rinkitink in Oz." No, I don't know why they didn't issue "The Scarecrow of Oz." --Eric Gjovaag ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 10:47:45 -0400 From: HermBieber@aol.com Subject: for Ozzy Digest Tyler, Re Silver Princess, not sure what you mean by "your copies". My last posting referred to the IWOC inventory (I'm on the Board). I think those hard covers were $20, but the stocks are either exhaused or near gone. As far as my personal "for sale" stock is concerned, at the moment I only have first editions of Silver Princess. If you are interested in these, please e-mail me privately. If I find any cheaper reprints, I'll let you know (although there are others waiting in line!). Cheers! Herm ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 13:02:06 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: The Mosquitoes of Oz 1) Barry, Kiki Aru certainly had behavioral problems, at least before he drank from the Fountain of Oblivion. Same goes for Ugu before he became a dove, and a lot of the small, strange countries in Oz are suffering for group disorders. Also: Perhaps the mosquitoes are fed tomato juice. 2) Eric, I haven't read Dorothy and the Lizard of Oz yet. I haven't even got an author listed for that. Also: Tedrow and Heinlein don't force the reader to adopt their moral standard; they APPLY their morals to the reader. ("Anyone who does not believe in/observe system X is immoral/sick.") 3) Dave, I'm hoping that whoever publishes Lurline's Machine has enough sense to advertise the subseries so that we don't get cut off in the middle due to lack of sales. Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 14:13:45 -0400 (EDT) From: BARRY ESHKOL ADELMAN Subject: _Oz_ comics I recently saw some issues of _Oz_ comics and to be honest, they frighten me. For some reason most of the male characters were made into muscle-bound mesomorphs and there seemed to be an awful lot of infighting. I am very scared of what they will do to the Shaggy Man (who will probably look like Rambo with a bad haircut and in rags) and Scraps (who will probably resemble more than anything else Catwoman from _Batman Returns_). On top of this they made the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger look like Thundercats and Tik-Tok either like a fairly dopey kid or a stand-in for Marvin from _The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy_. Ozma, save us! More to the issue, in the back of one of those scary comics it mentioned that the Baum 14 were available NOW from Del Rey. Are they reissuing them again? (That would certainly be a good start...) Eric, who wrote _Dorothy and the Lizard of Oz_ and where can I get a copy? (ILLed, of course.) Dave, I have no idea if vos Savant is an Oz fan. I'm not particularly impressed by a high IQ (they do not measure "intelligence", more like potential in an ordinary school environment), but she did (as usual) give a good answer, and on top of that she apparently read the book. Would someone who's seen both tell me if the way the characters look in _Oz Squad_ is less unorthodox/scary than _Oz_? ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 15:35:21 -0400 (EDT) From: Tyler Jones Subject: Ozzy Digest On your "true" form: This is really the best evidence we have for the existence of Aaron's machine. If you are transformed, it is doubtful that the information relating to your true form is stored in you, since every part of you is changed. If you are changed into an animal, though, your memories and knowledge remain intact, but you are still a fox, right down to your genetic code. What if you are turned into a rock? Somewhere, information must be kept that says that you are "really" a person. It seems likely that it is kept in some form of Aaron's machine. ********** SPOILER FOR MURDER IN OZ ********** IIRC, Tip's "spirit" was released during the transformation by Mombi, and wandered around Oz for a while. It is not mentioned if Ozma's spirit did the same thing when SHE was transformed, but perhaps as the original spirit, it stayed and Tip's spirit, as one that was "created", was free to roam. ********** END OF SPOILER ********** David: moving is a very "moving" experience (no pun intended). Hope to see you back up soon. Steven: Perhaps the Truth Pond recognized that the Frogman retained his true shape and did not care about the size. Also, his growth was not the result of having a spell cast upon him. Barry: Most people would question if Ozma would do that to people (forcing them to enjoy doing stuff they normally would not), but Ozma and others in the series have made some arbitrary decisions before. Ozma: Tyler, we need someone to empty out the sewers every day. Tyler: But I'm a software developer. I don't want to... ZZZZZZAAAAAAPPPPPP! Tyler: Oh, boy! Let me at those sewers! I can't think of anyone similar to the lazy Quadling, except perhaps the grumpy ferryman in _Land of Oz_. This guy is a little different. The lazy Quadling apaprantly does nothing and is happy to do it, but I got the impression that the grumpy ferryman does not like being a ferryman. Perhaps someone forced him to do the job, although this was before Ozma. You could beat _Parade_ to the punch by writing them a letter explaining that there _IS_ a book out there :-) Ozian "Sunsets" versus "Dawns": IMHO, there was not enough marketing press behind the releases of the Oz books. Also, it is parents that buy the books for their children, so we may not be reaching the people who have the spending power. I believe that the Oz books have a palce, even in the 90's. We just need to make people aware of it. --Tyler Jones ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 14:47:02 -0700 From: steller Subject: Dorothy and the Lizard of Oz While it is true that _Dorothy and the Lizard of Oz_ is more moralistic than _Dorothy-Return to Oz_, it is less offensive because it has fewer pretensions. _Lizard_ is a child psychology book based purely on the MGM film. _Dorothy-Return_ claims to be a real Oz book, written for pleasure by a person who claimed to live the Oz books, but gave no sign of ever having read them. _Lizard_ is *not* an Oz book (even though I included in it my apocrypha list); _Dorothy-Return_, unhappily, is. Steve T. Note bene: This is an *Ozzy* digest. It is not the forum for Apple lovers to dump on IBM clone users, or their equiptment. Let us live and let live. ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 19:35:22 +0000 From: rri0189@ibm.net Subject: Correcting myself (furiously washing egg off of face) Yes, of course. The aging takes place in "Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", not "Prince Caspian", and when they return in "Prince Caspian" they return as children. I knew that. No, really I did. That's the *last* time I compose a message after midnight. -- Eleanor Kennedy ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 19:52:26 -0400 (EDT) From: "Aaron S. Adelman" Subject: Just a thought... Does anyone have any idea what would happen if a plastic plant were sprinkled with Powder of Life? Aaron Solomon (ben Saul Joseph) Adelman adelman@yu1.yu.edu ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 20:16:22 -0400 (EDT) From: Richard Bauman <72172.2631@CompuServe.COM> Subject: Today's Growls Amanda - Thanks for the bookstore tip in SF. Ah, synchronicity. Today is the opening of a gigantic Borders on University in Palo Alto. It has taken over the site of the old theater that used to show "Rocky Horror" at midnight, much to the consternation of the local preservationists. I'm going by there tonight. By the way, happy birthday. By the way Aaron, Gates read what you said about him and flipped the switch on your UNIX box! That's what you get for imputing evil. :) Eric - speaking of IWOC member directories. Those used to come in the mail regularly, has that practice been discontinued? Dave >Is there something about Oz that is fundamentally incompatable with peopel living in the 1990's??? Surely you jest! Regards, Bear (:<) ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 20:46:08 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-05-96 Gili: Actually, the person who tends your garden is a gardener, not a gardner. I've never seen the latter as anything but a proper name (probably derived from "gardener", of course). Steve: Ozma creates three titles in books - Dorothy as princess in OZMA, Peter as prince in GNOME KING, and Jenny as duchess in WONDER CITY. The interesting thing about this (as I had Bungle remark in GLASS CAT) is that in each of these cases the person given the title had just done something important to save the realm, so to speak - Dorothy stealing the magic belt and fending off the nomes with it, Peter silencing Ruggedo, and Jenny transforming the chocolate soldiers. Neither Trot nor Betsy ever did anything comparable in the FF, so there was no real justification for granting them titles. Neither did any of the other mortals who came to Oz, whether to stay or just for a visit, except the Wizard - and I think in his case the title of "Wizard" is all he'd want. True, Trot and Betsy were along with a crowd of others in LOST PRINCESS and GLINDA when Ozma was rescued, but in neither case did they play a significant rold in the rescue. Trot's other adventures in MAGIC and GIANT HORSE were pretty passive, as was Betsy's in HUNGRY TIGER. Billina, of course, deserved even more credit than Dorothy for the rescues in OZMA, but apparently Ozma doesn't grant titles of nobility to non-humans. Robin: Since you addressed it to me, I'd guess you're reading GLASS CAT. And I'm glad to hear you're enjoying it. (Want to write a rave review for the BUGLE? ) Dave: I don't think there's any fundamental incompatibility between Oz and the 1990s; there may well be an incompatibility between the number of copies a mass-market operation like Del Rey/Ballantine or Dover needs to sell and the number of people who have ever been serious fans of the books. My recollection is that most of the original books sold on the order of 50,000 copies or less in the first year or two of publication - that's way too few to be profitable for a mass-market PB publisher, and probably on the margin for a trade PB publisher like Dover. I assume, though, that the BoW/Morrow hardcover reprints are reasonably profitable, or they wouldn't be planning to continue them. I'm sure that BoW, being owned by Oz fans, doesn't demand the level of profit from their publication that Megacorp Conglomerated might, but I doubt if they're showing a loss on it. Maybe Peter will enlighten us on this? David Hulan ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 20:54:49 -0400 From: DIXNAM@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Miscellany The FX cable network's program, "Personal FX, The Collectible Show", originating in New York, (but, oddly enough, not seen there,) had a guest expert on today informing viewers on the proper care of books. It was non other than Books of Wonder's own, and fellow Digest subscriber, Peter Glassman! In explaning the do's and don'ts in book handling, repair, etc. Peter used, for demonstration purposes, LFB's The Scarecrow of Oz, and Sea Fairies as well as RPT's The Hungry Tiger of Oz. Great job, Peter, and very informative and well done!! Dick Randolph ====================================================================== Date: Thursday 06-Jun-96 01:52:46 From: Dave Hardenbrook Subject: Ozzy Things AN "ENCHANTED APRIL" IN OZ: Has anyone seen the movie _Enchanted April_? Everyone talks about other movies being influenced by the _The Wizard of Oz_, like _Star Wars_ (Could someone *explain* this one to me please?), but if there's any movie showing an Oz parallel, it's this 1992 British "sleeper" in which a group of people take a break from their dreary lives in London and vacation in an idyllic near-paradise in Mediterranean Italy. At the start of the film, when they're in London, it's very dark, bleak, and although not Sepia tone, the muted colors make it look like an "urban Kansas". Then when they are travelling by coach at night to the seaside resort in Italy, it is rainy, dark, turbulent--almost as if they were caught in a tornado. Then the next morning at the resort, Lotty--who is in many ways the "Dorothy" in the story--awakens in a darkly-lit room with only a sliver of light shining in. She goes to the shutters, and opens them to a burst of light and color as she glimpses the fantastic countryside for the first time, like opening the door into the "technicolor" of Oz. There is no actual transtion from B&W to color, just a change of lighting from dreary London to sunny Italy--it is very dramatic, and so remeniscent of the early part of _The Wizard of Oz_, I can't help wondering if there was a conscious influence. Just an observation. :) THE TRUTH POND: Steve Teller asked yesterday what would happen if the cactus that is Ruggedo enchanted were to be watered with water from the Truth Pond... To find out the answer, read my book, _Locasta and the Three Adepts of Oz_ (when it comes out) because that's exactly what happens! ERIC AND "LEGENDS OF OZ": Eric wrote: >That was me. No, I can't get any more, seeing as how I bought out all >their socks already ... Er, I gather you mean, "I bought out all their *stocks*" :) :) IQ'S: Barry wrote: >I'm not particularly impressed by a high IQ... Actually neither am I, but in Marilyn Vos Savant's case, I think there *IS* a correlation between IQ and intellegence. :) BTW, the Adepts asked Glinda to look it up today, and sure enough, the Book of Records says, "Fermat's Last Theorem has been *PROVED*!!!" The bad news is that now my favorite "Pact with the Devil" story, "The Devil and Simon Flagg" (Simon challenges Old Scratch to prove or disprove Fermat's Last Theorem; he fails), is dated. :) OZ IN THE '90'S: Tyler wrote: >I believe that the Oz books have a palce, even in the 90's. We just need to >make people aware of it. I agree!!!! David H. wrote: > ... there may well be an incompatibility between the number of copies a >mass-market operation like Del Rey/Ballantine or Dover needs to sell and the >number of people who have ever been serious fans of the books. But shouldn't there be a drive to recruit *NEW* Oz fans? :) POWDER OF LIFE: Aaron asked: >Does anyone have any idea what would happen if a plastic plant were >sprinkled with Powder of Life? Wouldn't it become a living plastic plant? (But it wouldn't have to eat, drink, breathe or photosynthisize) :) TO BEAR: Thanks for sending me the Internet article! -- Dave ====================================================================== ] c/ \ /___\ *** THE OZZY DIGEST, JUNE 7, 1996 *** |@ @| | V | \\\ |\_/| | ;;; \-/ \ ;/ >< ] ============================================================================= Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 23:57:52 -0400 From: ScottO1440@aol.com Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-05-96 Dave-- Had to reply to your quote about the "Ozian Renaissance" turning out to be a "sunset instead of a dawn..." And your question that "is there something incompatable with [Oz and] people living in the 1990's....?" Well, I can only answer for myself, and I believe there has never been as wide an array of Oz items and books on the market as there is now. Many of us have forgotten (or perhaps weren't born) but the late 1960's and early 1970's were terrible! All the post-Baum Oz books were out of print. The only Baum Oz books available in color were 2 Dover reprints. I frankly never thought I'd see the day when the books would be published in color again, but the Oz club would actually have a hand in doing so! In addition, many of us complain that the 1939 Oz movie has eclipsed the popularity of the books but, whether this is true or not, this move wasn't even taken seriously until the last 20 years or so... Older movie references seldom, if at all, referred to it, and certainly not as the classic it is referred to as nowadays.... This is certainly the best of times.... --Scott Olsen ScottO1440@AOL.com ====================================================================== Date: Wed, 05 Jun 1996 22:43:20 -0700 From: glassman@ix.netcom.com (glassman ) Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-05-96 Dave Hardenbrook: >This also seems to be the case with Dover's re-issuing of the Baum 14 >(They stopped after _Tik-Tok_, saying "It isn't profitable"). So my question >is: Why do attempts at an "Ozian Renaissance" turn out to be, to paraphrase >Victor Hugo, "a sunset instead of a dawn"? I disagree strongly with this last statement! For over 10 years we (Books of Wonder) have been successfully publishing Oz books and now have over a third- of-a-million Oz books in print with the Books of Wonder imprint. And we (with William Morrow and Company) are definitely committed to issuing ALL the rest of the Baum books with all their original color illustrations over the next four years. How can you call that "a sunset instead of a dawn"? Don't blame Oz or today's culture, rather blame the other publishers who didn't have a clue on how to market and sell the Oz books. That's why Morrow teamed up with us. We know a "few" things about the Oz market and how to interest people in Oz. Also, as to the Del Rey paperback editions of the Thompson's, the problems with those had far less to do with Oz than with bad marketing, the wrong sales force and a poor choice of format. Judy-Lynn DelRey realized that the format was a mistake (she asked me for help with the marketing of the Thompson's when they - Del Rey Books - ran into trouble with their sales; it turned out that BOW alone was accounting for a large portion of their nationwide sales!), but once they had started on that path they felt they couldn't change formats. Also, Del Rey had another basic problem which has to do with the policy of their parent company, Random House. Random House will not allow their sales people who sell children's book to take orders for Del Rey titles - including the Oz books - because technically Del Rey is part of a different group within Random House. And the sales people who sell Del Rey titles can not call on children's book buyers because those buyers are the "exclusive" clients of the children's book sales people. So you can see why Del Rey might have had some trouble getting their editions of the Thompson's out into the market. The science fiction dept. buyers were reluctant to give more space to the Oz books (14 books takes up a significant amount of space on a shelf!) and the children's book buyers didn't know that the Thompson's were being issued. By the time they did, it was old news and most figured that their die hard Oz fans (translate that to mean "easy sales") had already found them elsewhere. The result was poor sales of the Thompsons and the decision by Del Rey not to issue the last four titles. As I said, don't blame Oz and the public. It's just been bad marketing and sales policies. - Peter Glassman ====================================================================== Date: Thu, 06 Jun 1996 15:13:47 +0300 (IDT) From: Avigail Bar-hillel Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-06-96 Hi Digest! Wiping egg of MY face, Martin Gardner is not a gardener. :-). Whooops! OOOh, Ken's mad! What ticked you off, Ken? I didn't think Aaron was trying to force his opinions on us. Then again, I don't know if you've read Tedrow's "Dorothy - Return to Oz". IMHO, it is such a bad book, that as far as I care the more negative things written about it the better. (Gili's demonic aspect appears over her left shoulder, egging her on): THAT BOOK REALLY STANK! IT WAS HORRIBLE! IT PROBABLY SPOILED OZ FOR ANYONE WHO READ IT NOT KNOWING ABOUT BAUM'S BOOKS! THAT WAS A BAD BOOK! Thinking about that book makes me so mad that I may have been blinded to anything else offensive which may or may not have been included in the same discussion. :-) . An example of one kind of thing which I thought was bad about the book, and may have offended Aaron as well: at one point, someone says of one of the small towns in Kansas (and I can't give and exact quote or page number because I read the Hebrew translation of the book and I don't have it here with my anywat): "[this town] has had its share of shameful incidents -the Republican party was first founded here." Really now, this is the Reepublican party you're talking about here, not the KKK. I'm not out to defend the Republican party or anything, I'm not even American, but that's not literature - that's propaganda. For children. And it stinks. (End demonic phase. Gili reverts back to usual sweet self.) Bye digest! "Hugs", as Anthony would say! ====================================================================== Date: Thu, 06 Jun 1996 16:02:09 +0200 From: Bill Wright Subject: Hi all, I'm back hooked up to the I'net now in Norway. Please note my new email address, which is different that the one I advertised earlier. The piglet@piglet.com will also work because I have set it up to forward all mail to my Norway mailbox. Bill W. ====================================================================== Date: Thu, 06 Jun 1996 11:06:45 -0400 (EDT) From: Mark Anthony Donajkowski Subject: Re: Ozzy Digest, 06-06-96 eric im positive the oz cd rom i was talking about was syllybus cause it was in a ad though now i have more to look for thanks to you thanks hugs anthony van pyre ====================================================================== Date: Thu, 06 Jun 1996 11:06:10 -0400 From: DavidXOE@aol.com Subject: Ozzy Digest, 06-06-96 52d Anniversary of D-Day, for those few of us who can remember back that far... Ken: In fairness to Aaron, he said nothing about objecting to Heinlein's having his characters run around in the buff; he was objecting to Heinlein's saying ad nauseam that people who didn't run around in the buff when the temperature conditions allowed were immoral and/or sick. I'll have to say that I found most of Heinlein's later work intolerably preachy myself, though since the man was an extremely readable writer and a great story-teller I nevertheless have read all of those books. I doubt, though, that I'll ever reread much of anything later than THE DOOR INTO SUMMER. (Heinlein was preachy even in his earliest work, but it didn't get in the way of the story until up around 1960.) Aaron: Barry's question about Ozites with behavioral problems included the proviso "(the bad guys and the Lazy Quadling excluded). I think "the bad guys" can be assumed to cover Kiki Aru and Ugu (along with the Yoops, King Krewl, Blinkie and her associates, Googly-Goo, the Su-Dic and his wife, Coo-ee-oh, Glegg, Mustapha of Mudge, the Uns (except for Unselfish), Crunch the stone man, Gorba/Abrog, and so on and on. Of those who were not bad I think you could say Queen Ann and Chopfyt from Baum had something of behavioral problems, and probably others from later writers, though I'm not going to go through all the later books mentally to think of them. (The little knight from MGR who ended up king of Roundabout - name escapes me, and my Oz books, though in the room with me at last, are still packed - is one.) If Ozian mosquitos have metabolisms resembling those of our world, tomato juice wouldn't work. They need the blood of warm-blooded vertebrates for food, and nothing else works. Perhaps in Oz there are blood-trees for mosquito food, like the meat gardens... Barry: As far as I know, the Baum 14 have been continuously in print from Del Rey since they started issuing them. It's only the Thompsons that were allowed to go OP. I know the Baums have been on the shelves in decent bookstores every time I've looked for the last eight or ten years at least. Having the highest IQ ever recorded doesn't mean vos Savant is the most intelligent person living, of course - but she -is- clearly an extremely intelligent person. (And IIRC, she's also a Babe...) Tyler: I didn't make this comment to Barry yesterday, since I was rushed, but you reminded me of it. I don't think night-soil removal should be a necessary task in Oz. I believe that part of Lurline's enchantment includes the transfer of bodily wastes from all inhabitants by magical means; as evidence I note that nowhere in the entire FF does anyone ever show any sign of the need for elimination, even when, for instance, stranded somewhere for days at a time. :-) (And Kabumpo lives in a suite in the palace of Pumperdink...) I agree that the publicity for Oz books leaves a good bit to be desired. I think I mentioned earlier that when a friend who's a schoolteacher read GLASS CAT to her fifth-grade class, it produced a run on Oz books at the school library. (Of course, those old Baums aren't up to the standard of GLASS CAT, but the kids seemed to like them OK. :-) :-) :-) ) Also, I remember a conversation I overheard at a bookstore a couple of years ago - a little girl, about 9-10 years old I'd say, was there with her mother and said, "Mommy, -that's- what I really want! Oz books!" Her mother said, "But your brother already has them all." "I know, but he won't let me into his room to read them! I want my own!" The mother did buy her at least one for herself, though I don't know whether she ever ended up with the whole (Baum) set. Aaron again: I'd assume a plastic plant sprinkled with the Powder of Life would become a live plastic plant - probably with enhanced mobility and the ability to speak, a la Victor Columbia Edison. Bear: I haven't seen an Oz club directory in several years now. It may be a coincidence, but they stopped coming out annually the same year the Royal Club of Oz started, and I've always had the sneaking suspicion that it might have had something to do with wanting to prevent the RCO from trying to recruit IWOC members. I could be wr