Fans of the beloved “Oz” franchise will get a glimpse of the Emerald City with the official unveiling of the Dorothy of Oz limited edition comic book Saturday, April 2 at San Francisco’s 2011 WonderCon. Ten lucky Ozians who can’t make the voyage to San Francisco will also win the comic in an exclusive Facebook Fan contest. Entrants must submit a personal video explaining in 60 seconds or less why they are excited about DOROTHY OF OZ and why they are the biggest OZ-fans on Facebook. It will run worldwide from Wednesday, March 30 through Wednesday, April 6.
There is also a forthcoming animated feature film starring Lea Michele (“Dorothy”), Martin Short (“The Jester”), Jim Belushi (“The no-longer Cowardly Lion”), Dan Aykroyd (“Scarecrow”), Kelsey Grammer (“The Tin Man”), Oliver Platt (“Wiser the Owl”), Hugh Dancy (“Marshall Mallow”), Megan Hilty (“China Princess”) and Patrick Stewart (“Tugg”).
Now, it has been a while since I’ve collected comics, so I’m not sure if this will be as big a buzz as the Godzilla one (which completely sold out in one day!), but it is an interesting concept based on the old classic. The complete press release follows the jump.
DOROTHY OF OZ — The comic, produced by publishers IDW and Summertime Entertainment, is the first in a series of five progressive books carefully designed to bridge the gap from the classic L. Frank Baum “Wonderful Wizard of Oz” tale to the upcoming 2012 release of the animated Dorothy of Oz, based on the book by his great-grandson Roger Stanton Baum.
“There’s a lot of overlap in the worlds of Oz-lovers and Comic book fans, so we figured this was an ideal medium to help set the story framework for where next year’s Dorothy of Oz film will begin,” said Transmedia Producer James Jones. “The comic series will continue to reveal what happened in Oz once the wicked witch was gone, and its people fell under the control of a new menacing villain. The film will essentially pick up where the last comic left off.”
In addition, Summertime Entertainment will be launching a fully immersive, interactive virtual world called “Adventure in Oz.” The platform will offer children and adults a virtual land to play games and learn throughout several new, unseen corners of Oz, while introducing them to the wholesome characters their parents already know and love.
“Oz is one of the most beloved franchises of all time, and we’re thrilled to help carry it on for a new generation through multiple modern-day platforms,” said Ryan Carroll, Summertime Entertainment’s head and Producer of DOROTHY OF OZ. “We believe that between a new comic book series, a 3D animated musical film, and an online virtual world, fans of all ages and countries will be able to enjoy Oz as it’s never quite been experienced before.”
For more information, visit www.dorothyofozmovie.com and www.adventureinoz.com.
This is gonna be an exceptional project, way to go Ozians!