The Wiz

:For the New York area electronics stores, see Nobody Beats The Wiz.

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The Wiz is both a 1975 Broadway musical and a 1978 film urbanized adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, featuring an all-African-American/Latino cast.

Related Topics:
1975 Broadway musical - 1978 film - The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum - African-American - Latino

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The Broadway musical opened in January 1975 with Stephanie Mills as Dorothy, Hinton Battle as Scarecrow, Tiger Haynes as Tin Man, Ted Ross as Lion and Mabel King as Evillene the Wicked Witch of the West. The production was directed by Geoffrey Holder. It ran for four years and over 1600 performances, and won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The most popular song from the production was "Ease on Down the Road", sung by the characters as they dance down the Yellow Brick Road.

Related Topics:
Broadway - Musical - Stephanie Mills - Dorothy - Hinton Battle - Scarecrow - Tiger Haynes - Tin Man - Ted Ross - Lion - Mabel King - Wicked Witch of the West - Geoffrey Holder - Tony Award - Best Musical - Ease on Down the Road

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The movie was directed by Sidney Lumet, written by Joel Schumacher and filmed at Astoria Studios in New York City. It was produced by Motown Productions and released to theaters by Universal Pictures. The decaying New York State pavilion from the 1964 World's Fair was used as the set for Munchkinland. Mabel King and Ted Ross from the Broadway production continued their roles in the film; the rest of the cast included Diana Ross (Dorothy), Michael Jackson (Scarecrow), Nipsey Russell (Tin Man), Richard Pryor (The Wiz), and Lumet's mother-in-law, Lena Horne, as Glinda the Good Witch.

Related Topics:
Sidney Lumet - Joel Schumacher - Astoria - New York City - Motown Productions - Universal Pictures - New York State - 1964 World's Fair - Diana Ross - Michael Jackson - Nipsey Russell - Richard Pryor - Lena Horne

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Quincy Jones served as the musical supervisor and music producer for the film, marking his first collaboration with Michael Jackson. Jones would produce three hit albums for Jackson: Off the Wall, Thriller, and Bad.

Related Topics:
Quincy Jones - Off the Wall - Thriller - Bad

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Despite the talent involved, critics panned the production. Many critics directed their venom at 34 year-old Diana Ross, who they believed was too old to play Dorothy. Most agreed that what had worked so successfully on stage simply didn't translate well to the screen. The Wiz was later nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, and Best Original Music Score, although it did not win any of those awards.

Related Topics:
Academy Awards - Best Art Direction - Best Costume Design - Best Original Music Score

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The Wiz proved to be a financial failure, losing ten million dollars upon its original theatrical release, and essentially marked the end of Hollywood's "blaxploitation" era. The pop single version of "Ease on Down the Road", sung by Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, failed to become a hit.

Related Topics:
Hollywood - Blaxploitation

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Today, the film is seen as a cult classic, particularly among African-American audiences. It has been available on home video since the 1980s, and is periodically broadcast on television.

Related Topics:
Cult classic - Home video - 1980s - Television

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