My friend Ginny Christensen reminded me that 75 years tomorrow The Wizard of Oz premiered in Movie Theaters. This movie has always held a very special place in my heart. It was one of my parents favorite movies growing up and it became one of mine as well. Once a year the entire family would gather around the TV and watch The Wizard of Oz And Id watch each year as my Dad would sing along with Judy just as the movie was getting started. One year I figured out how to use alligator clips to tap into the audio lines leading into the TV speaker of our ancient Black and White Dumont TV, which my parents purchased in 1951, and which just refused to die, so that I could tape that song for my Dad on his Reel-to-Reel Tape Recorder It was one of his favorite songs growing up, so I knew he would just love being able to listen to it again and again. And Mom would fry up a batch of popcorn, in an old copper clad Revere frying pan just before the show, and wed turn off all the lights in the den and make believe we were at the movies. Near the end of my Dads life, when he had reached his advanced stage of Alzheimers and I could only communicate with him with music, I purchased the original Wizard of Oz version of this song from iTunes, and went to see him at his nursing home, with my iPod and pocket speaker in hand. I found him in the public area, with all the other advanced stage patients, in their usual daze. But as soon as I started to play that song, at full blast, all of their eyes woke up. And they all started to smile, and nod their heads in perfect time to the music, And I even caught him, and a few others singing along under their breath. For those few minutes they were young again! Somewhere over the rainbow . . . https://youtube/watch?v=PSZxmZmBfnU
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 16:26:39 +0000