Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!
While traveling across the state of Kansas, visitors often stop by Wamego, Kansas and visit the Oz Museum. This museum has one of the largest privately owned collections in America and thousands of artifacts of “The Wizard of Oz” memorabilia. Several of the pieces date back to the early 1900s when L. Frank Baum originally wrote his series of books based on The Wonderful World of Oz.
The museum was founded in 2003-2004 and the original collection for the museum was compiled by a man born and raised in the city of Wamego. In 2008, the museum changed exhibitions and displays the collection of Friar Johnpaul Cafiero, a Franciscan Priest of Chicago. He loaned his large collection of Oz memorabilia to the museum and was at the 2010 OZtoberFest where he discussed his compilation.
Friar Johnpaul Cafiero
"Why is Oz so special?” Cafiero said. “(We watched the movie and) it was family night, with big chocolate chip cookies and hot chocolate. It was the place I could go, when ‘Kansas got crazy.’ It was that place ‘over the rainbow … where troubles melt like lemon drops …,’ it was a place of magic.” (Quotation courtesy of 2010 OZtoberFest website)
Cafiero said that he grew up in an alcoholic family but when the “Wizard of Oz” came on, everyone in the house would stop to enjoy and watch the film. Since his childhood and his career in the ministry, he has used scenes remembered from the movie to help inner city youth in Chicago.
“I ask them to look to the Wizard (God) for advice and the way home,” Cafiero said. “Yes, Oz is a very special place for me, my family and all those ‘young at heart’ in search of the magic in life." (Quotation courtesy of 2010 OZtoberFest website)
Life-sized figurines
The museum includes life-sized figures of Dorothy, the Witch, goblins, the Tin Man and Scarecrow. They stand in appropriate background settings, and the children and adults can see the Wicked Witch of the East and her legs out from under the wall of a house.
Another added attraction for the museum is an enormous bust of the Tin Man located near the gift shop when visitors first enter.
“The Wizard of Oz” film
In 1939, “The Wizard of Oz” was released as a musical starring Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, Frank Morgan, Bert Lahr, and Jack Haley. This film was an important step in Hollywood cinema that invented many unusual techniques and introduced the overwhelming talent and voice of Garland.
The museum in Wamego contains memorabilia from the movie, magazines and bric-a-brac, and continuous viewing of the film of earlier and later versions. Other memorabilia are copies of Baum’s remarkable books on the adventures of Dorothy and Toto.
Other film and memorabilia items on display include an early silent film of the Wizard of Oz starring Oliver Hardy as the Tin Man and mementoes of Diana Ross and Michael Jackson from “The Wiz.”
Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!
When walking through the “dark forest,” visitors can almost hear the chanting of “lions and tigers and bears, oh, my!” that sent shivers through many adolescent hearts growing up.
The trip to Wamego, Kansas from Kansas City metro area along Interstate-70 takes over an hour and sometimes seems tedious. However, travelers will enjoy the relaxing drive through the rolling hills of Kansas and chasing the shadows along the grassy plains caused by the sun peaking through the clouds.
It is wise to take beverages and snacks and fill up on petrol because the rest areas are few and far between, however, Wamego’s Wizard of Oz museum and other attractions more than make up for any inconvenience.
Click here to see the Oz Museum’s website.
Other attractions in Wamego, Kansas:
- The Columbian Theatre
- The Oz Museum
- Oz Winery
- Wamego City Park and Windmill
- Poppyfield Gallery
- Vin Vivante and Little Apple Winery
- Walter Percy Chrysler boyhood home
