Now’s Your Chance to Visit “OZ”
A North Carolina theme park devoted to L. Frank Baum’s books and the beloved MGM musical is readying its annual fall festival
The weekends of September 6–8, 15- 17 and 20–22, OZ will be open for business.
No, not that land somewhere over the rainbow, the Land of OZ.
It’s theme park atop Beech Mountain in western North Carolina inspired by the L. Frank Baum books and, especially, the iconic 1939 movie musical The Wizard of OZ.
There’s a real Yellow Brick Road, a real poppy field, costumed OZ characters wandering the verdant grounds, and a stage show in which a cast of singer/actors perform classic songs from the movie as well as new tunes composed expressly for the park.
Autumn at Oz has been an annual event for more than two decades, but the theme park itself has been around, off and on, for more than 50 years.
Off and on? Folks, its back story rivals the financial ups and downs of Oz mastermind Baum, who lost his shirt more than once. It has a history that would make a fascinating movie all its own.
Devised by designer Jack Pentes and built by brothers Grover, Harry and Spencer Robbins under the aegis of Carolina Caribbean Corporation, the theme park opened to considerable fanfare in 1970.
It got written up in The Washington Post, no less, and was dubbed a top new tourist attraction. It featured rides, a movie-costume exhibit and roving actors portraying the famous OZ characters, much as Walt Disney World has its wandering Mickeys and Goofys.
Ray Bolger, the MGM movie’s beloved Scarecrow, participated in the groundbreaking. Another MGM musical star, Debbie Reynolds, along with, her daughter, Carrie Fisher, did the ribbon cutting and loaned the park Wizard of Oz costumes and memorabilia from her private collection.
Open only in the warm months, the Land of OZ nonetheless attracted 450,000 visitors its best year.
The park weathered the infamous early ’70s gasoline shortage, but Carolina Caribbean went bankrupt in early 1975 because of other investments that went bad.
That same year, just after Christmas, vandals set fire to the unguarded main building and ransacked the museum/gift shop, stealing many of the film costumes, including a Dorothy dress, and a bronze bust of Judy Garland as Dorothy commissioned after the actress’s death in 1969.
New owners rebuilt the park in 1976, but failed to adequately maintain it. It began to look frowzy and ramshackle, and word got around. Attendance plummeted. In September 1980, the cast was given notice and the park was shuttered.
The park sat unused and fading until the late 1980s, when developers hatched the idea of converting the Land of Oz from theme park to upscale, gated residential community.
Houses were built — on streets with Ozian names like Emerald Forest Lane — but a memorial walk-around at the run-down park in 1991 drew 4,000 visitors, and the idea for limited Land of OZ seasons was born.
A one-time Autumn at Oz Festival in October 1993 grew over the course of 20 years into an annual events spanning multiple fall weekends.
The park is currently owned and operated by siblings Carter, Page, and Frances Leidy, who inherited it from their mother, Frances “Archie” Hufty Leidy, who took it over in 1997 and co-produced the original fall events.
They have no plans to revive Land of OZ as a full-time attraction, but they seem to be committed to keeping the tradition and the idea alive.
“It’s a nod to the era when the park was fully operational and is intended to stay a part-time operation,” Francie Leidy told me.
“Right now,” her sister Page added, “the business focus for us is, primarily, restoring the park, preserving and protecting its magic, and creating a legacy for future generations.”
The Land of OZ has interesting historical information and photos in addition to details about Autumn at OZ. Here’s the link:
Tickets:
This article is excerpted and adapted from Noel Holston’s latest book, OZmosis: The Enduring Appeal and Ongoing Artistic Impact of The Wizard of OZ, to be published in October 2024.
