Hanging Around for the Holidays!

Earlier this year I had the good fortune of becoming acquainted with Fred Stone's granddaughter, Judy Sloane - the daughter of Fred's daughter, Paula. She was looking for some photos to use in a new book she had written for younger readers about her grandfather's experiences working in the circus when he was a boy.

I was able to help with the several photos, and Judy and I have since become cordial email acquaintances.

The book, Fred Stone and the Frontier Circus, is now available in hardcover, paperback, and eBook versions. Charmingly illustrated by Joseph Yakovetic, the book also has a foreword by actress Melissa Sue Anderson (best known as Mary on Little House on the Prairie.) Anderson was married to Fred Stone's grandson, Michael Sloan—brother of Judy. Sadly, Michael Sloan passed away in late October 2025.

I have not yet seen the final book. Some last-minute adjustments and the holiday crunch in publishing have led to delays in getting contributor comp copies sent out. 

I've been anxious to see the finished book, but the delay became wholly worthwhile when I received a small package from Judy Sloane a short time ago. An enclosed note read:

Hi David, Joe [the illustrator] made this for you for Christmas. One day, hopefully, a book will turn up!! There's a concept!! Thanks for everything and Happy Holidays, Judy

Inside the box was an ornament for my Christmas Tree, A clear plastic bottle full of red and white Scarecrow hay, featuring the front and back covers of the new book!

So, as I hit the 65,000 words mark in my own book, what fun it is to get a Christmas tree ornament in the mail from the original Scarecrow's granddaughter! Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to Judy and Joseph!

Copyright ©2025 David Maxine. All rights reserved.

Temperamental L. Frank Baum

L. Frank Baum, Playwright

Guest Blogger Eric Shanower

As a playwright, L. Frank Baum seemed to have little patience with editorial interference. When a script doctor revised Baum’s script of the stage version of The Wizard of Oz in 1902, Baum objected strenuously. In 1905, when The Wogglebug was being staged, Baum refused to let anyone else touch his script.

So in 1913, when producer Oliver Morosco wanted to make changes to The Tik-Tok Man of Oz script early in the rehearsal period, he approached Baum carefully. Morosco spoke softly and flatteringly before suggesting the possibility of condensing Act Two.

To anyone aware of Baum’s past displays of temperament, his reply was a surprise: “Oh, you want to cut it,” said Baum. . . . “Well, then, go as far as you like.”

This may have been when the part of the Ugly Man was cut down, turning it into a minor role. Charles Ruggles, originally cast as the Ugly Man, was shifted to the role of Private Files.

Of course, following opening night, The Tik-Tok Man of Oz changed even more. Baum seems to have been content for several months to work with Morosco, tightening and sprucing up the script while the production ran in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Chicago. Serious conflict seems to have arisen only toward the end of the 1913 summer season, when it grew evident that the show would not open the regular theatre season on Broadway and Baum relinquished creative control over the script.

NOTES

J. Rex James, “Morosco’s Invasion of New York Announced; Edison’s Kinetophone Replaces Bernhardt,” Daily Tribune (Los Angeles, CA), 15 March 1913, 13, 16; “Objects to Changes,” Syracuse (NY) Daily Journal, 3 June 1902, 6; O. L. Colburn, “Telegraphic News; Chicago,” New York (NY) Dramatic Mirror, 22 July 1905, 12; “Heard Back of the Curtains,” Los Angeles (CA) Daily Tribune, 20 March 1913, 15; “Behind the Scenes by the Genial Grouch,” Los Angeles (CA) Express, 5 May 1913, 10; Memorandum of Agreement among Oliver Morosco, L. Frank Baum, and Louis Gottschalk, Los Angeles, CA, 9 September 1913.

Copyright © 2025 Eric Shanower. All rights reserved.

Eric Shanower is the author of All Wound Up - The Making of The Tik-Tok Man of Oz

and the newly restored Performance Script and Piano-Vocal Score for the show.

Purchase individually or get all three at a reduced price.

All three volumes are offered as a set with a $10 discount of the total price. 

Click here for the complete set.