We're Still "Over the Rainbow" for Oz

The Most Watched Movie of All-Time, "The Wizard of Oz" is Still a Part of Every American's Childhood

(CBS)  Seventy years after Judy Garland sang her way into stardom, the "Wizard of Oz" is still capturing the hearts and minds of audiences everywhere as CBS News Correspondent Kelly Wallace reports.

In fact, it's considered the most watched movie of all time.

Former munchkin Jerry Maren is now 89 year old. You may remember him from the movie. He sang, "in the name of the lollipop guild, we wish to welcome you to munchkinland."

He remembers being blown away his first day on the set.

"I had never seen a little person before and my God, I was in my glory, meeting eye-to-eye to everybody," Maren said.

Read Kelly Wallace's Oz Blog
"Wizard of Oz Goes Hi-Def
Munchkins Get Hollywood Star

The Empire State Building sparkled rudy red recently, as Jerry and his fellow surviving munchkins celebrated the 70th anniversary of "The Wizard of Oz."

Judy Garland's daughter, Lorna Luft, recalled some of her mom's memories from the set.

"She had a very, very hard time being afraid of Margaret Hamilton," said Luft. "Because Margaret Hamilton was such a lovely woman."

Luft added, "they would try and have tea on the set and Margaret's green makeup would fall in the tea and it all sort of became a disaster."

It could have been a financial disaster. Made for almost $3 million in 1939 - "The Wizard of Oz" didn't make a profit until 10 years later. To date, it's grossed over $227 million worldwide.

The Emerald City has gone blue. As in blu-ray, high-definition DVD.

The wizards at Warner Brothers got the original negative from the vault, and digitally scanned it at high-resolution. Now, the high-def version honors the movie for the Technicolor triumph it once was.

"So what we're able to see now, which was always in the camera negative, are the freckles in Dorothy's face. We're able to see the rivets in the tin man's costume," said Ned Price, VP of Technical Operations at Warner Brothers.

It's a far cry from the way it looked during its television debut in 1956 - when Lorna, her half-sister Liza Minelli, and their mother watched along with nearly 45 million others on CBS.

"I would watch her watch it, and she'd giggle and she'd laugh," said Luft. "My mom will always be Dorothy."

Three munchkins from the cast of "The Wizard of Oz" talk to Kelly Wallace:

[erasmus111]

It was said that on the anniversary they were going to show The Wizard of Oz for one night at the theatres, but I guess that was probably just in the U.S. or certain cities. I would have like to have gone. I guess I will just have to buy the DVD.

[el3ktric]

Has CBS ever heard of the phrase non sequitur? The reason the Empire State Building was glowing red was to mark the celebration of the 60 year anniversary of the Chinese Communist Republic. The controversy over the use of an American Icon to celebrate a communist holiday would make a much more interesting story than this one. It most certainly should not be slipped in with the misguided notion that it was at all related to this event. This is purely absurd. What poor disgraceful attempt at journalism.

I love the movie, I have met some Munchkins, and I can't wait to get it on DVD. There is an OZ celebration in Wamego, KS this month. They have an OZ museum there, as well. I have relatives nearby, so I want to go to the museum.

[erasmus111]

He remembers being blown away his first day on the set.

"I had never seen a little person before and my God, I was in my glory, meeting eye-to-eye to everybody," Maren said.
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Yeah, I heard the had a REALLY, REALLY great time. : )

[curse914]

Ten days before the massacre the editor of the Aberdeen Saturday Pioneer named L. Frank Baum, later the famous author of The Wizard of Oz, urged the extermination of all Native Americans. He wrote, "The nobility of the Redskin is extinguished, and what few are left are a pack of whining curs who lick the hand that smites them. The Whites, by law of conquest, by justice of civilization, are masters of the American continent, and the best safety of the frontier settlements will be secured by the total annihilation of the few remaining Indians."