Myths Surround 'Wizard of Oz' As Festival Opens

Quick!

Dorothy was a) a stand-in for the naïve, gullible American or b) the daughter L. Frank Baum, author of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz," never had.

Did the Tin Woodman represent the Industrial Revolution, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) or, because he was creaky from lack of oil, the evils of John D. Rockefeller and Standard Oil? And the flying monkeys, were they stand-ins for the members of the American Bar Association?

Good Witch Glinda, so beautiful and kind to Dorothy – turns out, she may have been making a power move on the wicked witch and using the innocent girl from Kansas as a sap.

Pink Floyd 's "Dark Side of the Moon" and the movie synch up so well, is there a psychic connection? It's right there, for all to see on YouTube.

Finally, where did the real yellow brick road actually go?

These, and other questions, will no doubt come up this weekend in the tiny upstate New York town of Chittenango, where Baum was born in 1856. The three-day festival, Oz-Stravaganza, will feature pancake breakfasts and spaghetti dinners; a silent auction; and a 5:30 a.m. hot air balloon ride. Plus, there are visits from great-grandson of Robert Baum; Caren Marsh-Doll, Judy Garland's stand-in; and surviving Munchkins from the 1939 movie.

Robert Baum, a retired schoolteacher from Los Angeles, sees all the interpretations and myths surrounding his great-grandfather's novel and 1939 movie as amusing, if misleading. But it's good for keeping the man and story alive.

1. The Wizard of Oz is a populist parable.

This is the most popular myth. Populist William Jennings Bryan, running for president in 1896 and 1900, was the Cowardly Lion. The yellow brick road symbolized the gold standard; the silver slippers (ruby in the movie) looser money. The Wizard was the president, the tin man the industrial worker, the scarecrow the farmer.

Not true, says Evan I. Schwartz, who wrote "Finding Oz: How L. Frank Baum Discovered the Great American Story." "The whole parable of populism is a mistake," he told ABCNews.com. "It was started in 1964 by a high school history teacher named Henry Littlefield, who was trying to get his kids interested in populism."

Dewar MacLeod, who teaches history at William Patterson University, in New Jersey, concurs. "It sounded so clean and neat when it first came out, and teachers still use it because it's one of those things that helps explain a concept -- populism and the cross of gold and the idea of gold being a tool of liberation or oppression. But in looking at the story itself, I don't get how this is a populist story.

If I Only Had a Heart: The Real Truth Behind Lawyers and Pro Bono Work

As Dorothy, Toto, and the Scarecrow bound through the forest on their way to meet the Wizard, they happen upon a frightening site: a man, made of metal, frozen in place, with his giant ax stuck in tree that he had felled at some unknown point in time. They begin to examine this strange tableau and nearly jump through the forest canopy when the man starts to speak, asking to be oiled. We all know how the story ends: they oil the tin man, he tells the tale of wanting a heart, and accompanies them on their way to the Emerald City.

In many ways, lawyers are like the tin woodsman: we come across as thick skinned, can be an imposing force, and are often thought of as not having a heart. A new study by Pro Bono Net and LexisNexis may just prove these perceptions wrong.

Where most of us would think that lawyers do pro bono work either because “they have to” or are motivated by enhancing their career through getting valuable, hands on experience they might not have otherwise gotten if a paying client’s money was on the line, the study found quite the opposite.

With an overwhelming majority of 75%, pro bono lawyers made it clear that their commitment to pro bono work is mainly driven by Personal Fulfillment. This was followed by a distant second influential factor—Commitment to a Specific Cause with 43%— and, in third place, with only one-third of lawyers citing it—Meeting an Ethical Obligation (37%).

These results show that lawyers do care. Rather than pro bono being a tool to get ahead in their careers, lawyers are seeking pro bono opportunities really give back, and perhaps do the kinds of meaningful work they once pictured themselves doing while in law school, but had to defer in the face of accepting that big firm job to pay back student loans.

Don’t believe me?

Take a look at these guest posts from this week’s Pro Bono theme:

Volunteering with LiveHelp at LawHelp/NY

Abby Biberman writes:

LiveHelp provides up-to-date referral information on approximately 650 legal services projects and other helpful organizations throughout the state, along with over 3,000 Know Your Rights materials, self-help resources, and easily accessible court information; all fundamental requirements for access to justice. LiveHelp is an online, real-time chat service, staffed by myself and 49 volunteers, who direct users towards relevant self-help materials, legal assistance organizations and court information. Thousands of unrepresented New Yorkers come to the LawHelp/NY website looking for help with legal problems that require either a court or administrative hearing experience. They often feel overwhelmed and frightened about what will happen. LiveHelp connects these visitors with trained volunteers who can point the way towards resources written in plain language about their legal problem and/or help them identify a free legal aid organization for representation or more in-depth advice.

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