The 1939 Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) film The Wizard of Oz, based on L. Frank Baum's 1900 book was hugely influential. Its simple message—that there is no place like home, and that you have the power to achieve what you most desire—had a general appeal to the American public. Starting in 1956, a new generation of American children was annually entranced by the television showing of Dorothy's journey down the Yellow Brick Road.

In the film, after a cyclone carries her to Oz, Dorothy meets the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion, and they set off together for the Emerald City in search of what they most desire: for Dorothy, a home; for the Scarecrow, a brain; for the Tin Woodman, a heart; and for the Cowardly Lion, courage. When they kill the Wicked Witch of the West and...