For those of us brought up with the 1939 version of The Wizard of Oz, we already have embedded in our brain the characters, songs and magic that has made that movie watching experience so memorable. Things were quite different in 1925, though, when popular comic actor/director Larry Semon brought this story to life.
The movie going public was already familiar with the L. Frank Baum books and possibly the 1910 and 1914 film adaptations. However, Larry Semon's version would be different in many ways. First of all, unlike the earlier film versions, it had the large budget that was needed to bring this magical story to life. And with that budget came the publicity to bring in the crowds. What it brought instead was disappointment.
The 1925 version of The Wizard of Oz was a critical and financial failure. And watching it today it's even more of a disaster. For some reason, Larry Semon (who also played the Scarecrow) decided to change the entire story. There is no Wicked Witch and the villain is the Tin Man (played by Oliver Hardy years before he teamed with Stan Laurel).
Racism ran rapid in the old silent films with most of the victims being the African American and Chinese race. And this version of The Wizard of Oz is no exception. For example, in this film there is no Cowardly Lion, but instead a black man that is afraid of everything. To make matters worse, that actor, Spencer Bell, is listed in the credits as G. Howe Black.
Other than the performances and special effects, the 1925 version of The Wizard of Oz is a train wreck that is all over the place. This film should only be viewed as a curiosity piece, or as a test to see how far your jaw can drop while watching it.
The movie going public was already familiar with the L. Frank Baum books and possibly the 1910 and 1914 film adaptations. However, Larry Semon's version would be different in many ways. First of all, unlike the earlier film versions, it had the large budget that was needed to bring this magical story to life. And with that budget came the publicity to bring in the crowds. What it brought instead was disappointment.
The 1925 version of The Wizard of Oz was a critical and financial failure. And watching it today it's even more of a disaster. For some reason, Larry Semon (who also played the Scarecrow) decided to change the entire story. There is no Wicked Witch and the villain is the Tin Man (played by Oliver Hardy years before he teamed with Stan Laurel).
Racism ran rapid in the old silent films with most of the victims being the African American and Chinese race. And this version of The Wizard of Oz is no exception. For example, in this film there is no Cowardly Lion, but instead a black man that is afraid of everything. To make matters worse, that actor, Spencer Bell, is listed in the credits as G. Howe Black.
Other than the performances and special effects, the 1925 version of The Wizard of Oz is a train wreck that is all over the place. This film should only be viewed as a curiosity piece, or as a test to see how far your jaw can drop while watching it.
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