Watch Journey Back To Oz, FULL MOVIE on Internet Archive
Journey Back To Oz is a 1972 American animated adventure musical fantasy film produced by Filmation. Although L. Frank Baum received no screen credit, the film is loosely based on his second novel The Marvelous Land of Oz (1904).[1] While a commercial flop in theaters, the film received a better reception on television, premiering December 5, 1976 on ABC.[2]
For television broadcast, Filmation produced live-action interstitial segments with a celebrity playing the Wizard, flying in his balloon with two Munchkins. Filmation contracted with Bill Cosby for two airings of the live-action segments, while Milton Berle was cast for the live-action interstitials used in subsequent syndication.[3]
Plot
After a tornado in Kansas causes a loose gate to knock Dorothy unconscious, she awakes in the Land of Oz with Toto, and encounters a talking Signpost (voiced by Jack E. Leonard), whose three signs point in different directions, all marked “Emerald City”. They later meet Pumpkinhead (voiced by Paul Lynde), the unwilling servant of antagonist Mombi – cousin of the deceased Wicked Witches of the East and West. Toto chases a cat to a small cottage where Dorothy is captured by Mombi’s pet crow (voiced by Mel Blanc) and Mombi (voiced by Ethel Merman) herself. Pumpkinhead sneaks into the house in Mombi’s absence, and discovers her creation of green elephants, to use as her army to conquer the Emerald City. Pumpkinhead frees Dorothy, and they flee. After finding Dorothy gone, Mombi threatens that their warning the Scarecrow will not help when her green elephants “come crashing through the gate”.
Dorothy and Pumpkinhead acquire Woodenhead Stallion III (voiced by Herschel Bernardi), a former merry-go-round horse (a combination of the Sawhorse from The Marvelous Land of Oz and the title character of the last Oz book of all, Merry Go Round in Oz), who takes them to the Emerald City, where Dorothy warns the Scarecrow (voiced by Mickey Rooney) about Mombi’s green elephants. Mombi arrives moments later, and Toto and the Scarecrow are captured. Dorothy, Pumpkinhead, and Woodenhead flee to Tinland to convince the Tin Man (voiced by Danny Thomas, who sang, and Larry Storch, who spoke in the final film as Thomas’ speaking parts went missing when production resumed in 1970) to help them. He declines upon learning of the green elephants and suggests that they ask the Cowardly Lion (voiced by Milton Berle), who promises to slay the elephants, but he also declines when informed of the elephants being made with magic and suggests consulting Glinda the Good Witch (voiced by Rise Stevens), who appears to them with a “Glinda Bird” that uses its Tattle Tail to show what is occurring at the palace. She also admits she cannot help Dorothy fight Mombi, telling Dorothy that self-faith is the only thing she needs. As Dorothy understands this, Glinda then gives her a little silver box of “countermagic”, to open only in the Emerald City, and only in a dire emergency.
Mombi, having seen their progress in her crystal ball, brings the nearby trees to life; whereupon Glinda sends a golden hatchet to Pumpkinhead. One of the trees snatches it from him, but changes its fellows and itself into gold and turns them from bad to good. Woodenhead carries Dorothy and Pumpkinhead back to the Emerald City, where Mombi’s elephants surprise them. When Dorothy opens Glinda’s box, mice emerge, scaring the elephants. Mombi brews a potion to shrink Toto to mouse-size so she can feed him to her cat; but when startled, miniaturizes her crow and cat instead. Thereafter Mombi disguises herself as a rose with poisonous thorns, but Toto goads the elephants into fatally trampling over her, causing them to disappear, to which the Scarecrow explains that Mombi’s death has caused all her magic to die with her. Unfortunately, Pumpkinhead, another product of Mombi, also dies; however, he is revived by one of Dorothy’s tears.
The Scarecrow makes Woodenhead the head of the Oz cavalry and knights Pumpkinhead; and Dorothy and Toto leave Oz by another tornado (created by Pumpkinhead and Glinda), promising to return.
Cast
Liza Minnelli as Dorothy Gale
Mickey Rooney as the Scarecrow
Danny Thomas as the Tin Woodman
Milton Berle as the Cowardly Lion
Paul Lynde as Jack Pumpkinhead
Herschel Bernardi as Charelsworth Pinto “Woodenhead” Stallion III
Ethel Merman as Mombi, the Wicked Witch
Risë Stevens as Glinda the Good Witch
Margaret Hamilton as Aunt Em
Paul Ford as Uncle Henry
Jack E. Leonard as the Signpost
Larry Storch as Amos, Aunt Em and Uncle Henry’s farmworker
Dallas McKennon as Omby Amby
Mel Blanc as Mombi’s crow