Tag Archives: mogodore

The Offbeat Officials of Oz

The Oz books have a lot of small royal courts with unusually-titled officials. This is something we see much more often in Ruth Plumly Thompson, but L. Frank Baum did have a few examples. In John Dough and the Cherub, … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, C.S. Lewis, Characters, Chronicles of Narnia, Humor, L. Frank Baum, Magic Items, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

I Like Birds

When I linked to my last Oz post on Facebook, people gave a few more examples of birds I hadn’t mentioned, including some people turned into birds and other birds from authors outside the Famous Forty. I believe the first … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Characters, Chris Dulabone, David Tai, Edward Einhorn, Eloise Jarvis McGraw, Eric Shanower, Gina Wickwar, Hugh Pendexter, Jack Snow, Jared Davis, L. Frank Baum, Magic, Magic Items, Marcus Mebes, Melody Grandy, Oz, Oz Authors, Phyllis Ann Karr, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

A Dictionary of Ozian Marriage

There was a discussion on marriages in Oz at this year’s OzCon International, partially inspired by how The Tin Woodman of Oz includes two seemingly bad marriages. Mrs. Yoop is glad her brutal, uncouth husband, who used to kick her … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Characters, Economics, Families, Jack Snow, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Oz, Oz Authors, Relationships, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Etymology in Oz

I bought a few old Baum Bugle issues at OzCon in Portland, and they have some interesting content. There was apparently a sometime recurring feature called “Footnotes to Oz” that explained names in the Oz series, written by Jerry Tobias. … Continue reading

Posted in Authors, Characters, Etymology, Humor, J.R.R. Tolkien, Jack Snow, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Language, Names, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Bah! There’s Always a War!

In addition to Glinda’s army, there are a lot of armed forces that show up in minor Ozian countries. Many are simply palace guards, but there are some more specific military units as well. Utensia has the Spoon Brigade, made … Continue reading

Posted in Characters, Dick Martin, Eloise Jarvis McGraw, Gina Wickwar, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Melody Grandy, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Going on a Hozliday

So, the 2013 issue of Oziana is out now, and I have a story in it. “Jinnicky Saves Christmas” was an idea I came up with around the holidays two years ago. The theme of this issue is described on … Continue reading

Posted in Characters, Christmas, Gina Wickwar, Holidays, Jared Davis, Jeff Rester, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Magic Items, Marcus Mebes, Melody Grandy, Oz, Oz Authors, Phyllis Ann Karr, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Roots of Language in Oz

My recent post on language in the Oz books has led to some interesting discussion on this topic. Many of the names of native Ozites are either descriptive of the characters or puns, if not both. There are also frequently … Continue reading

Posted in Etymology, L. Frank Baum, Language, Magic Items, Oz, Oz Authors, Places, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

The Rare Beauty of Ozma

Ozma’s birthday is one of the few specific dates we have for anything in an Oz book, and even that is based on two references in completely different parts of The Road to Oz. Anyway, it’s today, so happy birthday … Continue reading

Posted in Characters, Eloise Jarvis McGraw, Eric Shanower, John R. Neill, L. Frank Baum, Oz, Oz Authors, Ruth Plumly Thompson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Emerald Security

Even though Ozma has a Magic Picture that she can technically use to spy on anyone at any time, her palace and capital don’t appear to have much in the way of security. The Magic of Oz describes the royal … Continue reading

Posted in Oz | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

The Battling Barons of Oz

Today, we turn to Jack Pumpkinhead of Oz, the twenty-third book in the Oz series, and to the Land of the Barons. This land of fertile hills and valleys in the Quadling Country, stretching into the peaks of the Red … Continue reading

Posted in Characters, Oz | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments