MovieChat Forums > The Wizard of Oz (1939) Discussion > Time constraints...

Time constraints...

posted 4 years ago by modica (4169)
3 replies | jump to latest

are the reason why the Jitterbug was cut and the Kalidahs and the Hammerheads weren't in the film. I would have loved to seen the Hammerheads especially.

[–] strntz (12255) 4 years ago

The real sad thing is that when a scene was cut, it literally was. The vast majority of cut or deleted scenes were swept up and thrown out. I guess they didn't foresee director's cuts or DVD bonus features.

I heard there was over an hour of Gone With the Wind edited and scrapped. What fan of that film wouldn't love to have gotten a version with those scenes restored.

[–] jonathan_k80 (6436) 4 years ago

At the time the movie was produced, nobody saw any value in edited footage so when a scene was cut that particular section was discarded. Had they known the Wizard of Oz would become the iconic film it is today, they would have saved it.

Once in a while lost footage will show up. The longer original version of the Scarecrow's dance in the "If I Only Had a Brain" sequence was found and can be viewed here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSFQy_cLvLU

The "Jitterbug" sequence is lost, but you can get an idea of what the dance routine looked like thanks to some silent home-movie footage of the rehearsals, taken by songwriter Harold Arlen. The jitterbug itself was a cartoon insect; the scene was designed to have been a blend of animation and live action.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYHeW5_lYaY

[–] modica (4169) 4 years ago

Yes, I have seen both of these. I still wish that The Kalidahs and The Hammerheads from the book were included. I know they were never filmed and when the original script was written they weren't included. I think the Hammerheads would have been cool especially.