Return to Oz (1985)- Fabricated and Real Props- Identification and Builds

[OzReturner]

If you made the ruby slippers you did a good job. On the originals as you probably know are over two thousand sequins.
I love the original Wizard of Oz and my favorite character is the wicked witch of the west played by Margaret Hamilton. She did such an amazing job as the witch. I am considering being the witch next year and found someone who makes the replica costume including the hat.
I found several photos of a replica broom and I'm sure I can make one very similar to it. However, I can't find any information on why there are red bands on the broomstick. What is the significance?
It looks to me like the 'straw' of the broom was made of natural raffia and was quite long so it hangs over itself. Two metal bands of different thickness and sizes are on it and the crisscross design looks like it could have been made of leather.
Rich Correll owns the original witch costume including the hat and it's in his museum in California. The original broom is owned by someone he knows and the guy refuses to sell it to Rich. It's valued at several million dollars. However, we can replicate this broom fairly easily.

Thank you for looking! I did not make the shoes- they were an ebay purchase that looked good enough to me. As for the Wizard of Oz broom, I really can't say what the significance of the red stripes is, or why they are there. My interest / obsession is only regarding Return to Oz. I definitely like Wizard of Oz, but focus all of my attention on Return. Sorry, but I have no insider input to help you on your broom build. Best of luck to you!

 

[OzReturner]

Cabinet 31 Contents- Fan Theory

Continuing forward, as I have no other "public" outlet for my Return to Oz musings, I will be posting random thoughts and theories in this thread in addition to the usual prop entries. I feel like there is someone out there who will appreciate this stuff, and not just keep it pent up in my head. Anyway, moving along.

As previously mentioned in earlier posts, there are skulls in Mombi's real head cabinet. To the left is what appears to be a fangless vervet monkey skull, in the center looks like a monkey head with skin still on, and to the right looks to be a bloody 35-40 week fetus skull.

Now, I honestly haven't read any fan theories regarding this movie, so I have no idea if I am the only one to think of this. 2 thoughts:

-Where else in Oz have we seen monkeys?

It might be a gruesome stretch, but maybe Mombi had all of the flying monkeys of the Wicked Witch, from Dorothy's first visit, wiped out. This skull she sleeps next to, along with the skin on one, is a memento of her simian genocide. I know it's dark, but it gets worse.

-Where else in Oz have we seen small people?

Ok, sure. They are not as small as a fetus, obviously. And we do see some Munchkins in the background of the coronation scene at the end of the movie. Maybe Mombi gathered up and killed a bunch of them, but some escaped and survived elsewhere. Maybe their skulls happen to look like a fetus? Because they are not human. They are an entirely separate species of beings- Munchkins. She kept another trophy, like some kind of Oz based Predator.

It's such a short scene, but I feel like this was an easter egg of sorts put there by the set dressers as a nod to Wizard of Oz. I have zero proof of this, just random thoughts to entertain you all. Apologies of this is too grim. But so is the movie.

 

[KOMakesThings]

That's a really fun (okay, maybe fun is not the right word, given the possible munchkin-murder) theory to ponder. Makes you wonder why she keeps those particular skulls in the cabinet with her, are they trophies of some sort? Are there any other shots of the debris around her head? I can't really make out what else is there, it looks like an assorted pile of junk... Is Mombi a bit of a packrat?

 

[OzReturner]

That's a really fun (okay, maybe fun is not the right word, given the possible munchkin-murder) theory to ponder. Makes you wonder why she keeps those particular skulls in the cabinet with her, are they trophies of some sort? Are there any other shots of the debris around her head? I can't really make out what else is there, it looks like an assorted pile of junk... Is Mombi a bit of a packrat?

The contents actually change scene to scene. When we see the powder of life can, there are a bunch of regular and brown paper wrapped bottles in the cabinet, and then we see the skulls when her head is busted out by her body. Much of it is indistinguishable in the murkiness. I think they are trophies.

 

[OzReturner]

I have updated the collection photo in post #1, but here it is as well for the followers.

This is all of my items, with the exception of the poultry crate plaque, which is too big, and is on the wall next to this display case. Since my first post, I have just expanded the display into 3 shelves vs. 2. I like the crammed look of the middle shelf, so I didn't want to make the shelves evenly filled. The bottom one is sparse, but I'll get there!

 

[OzReturner]

*Update* Nome King's Hospitality Setup- Drinking Goblets

Please see HERE for the original post about these goblets, as most of the info will not be repeated.

A brief recap, though, is the Nome King sets out some food and drink for Dorothy and Co. which includes these boar head stirrup cups.

At the time of the original posting, there weren't really any boar head cups to be found, or if there were, they were silver plated and unreasonably expensive. But after a year of on/off searching, I found a boar cup at a super steal of a price, that arrived shinier than expected! It really puts the placeholder wolf head cups to shame. The wolves are a hollow cast (I think) head adhered in some way to the cup body. I suspect these were cheaper, knockoff type cups, as there is even a visible seam line from casting. The boar cup is much heavier, solid cast as one unit, head and cup together. It is all one piece and feels much more "in universe" than the others, with no seams. It matches in every way, and I could not be happier!

And the gang all together!

I am going to remain on the lookout into the future for 2 more boar cups to complete the scene, but for now I am extremely pleased. It makes a big difference in person, and if I can have a set of 3, like in the scene, it will be even better!

I have in the works at the moment a commission piece that should, if all goes well, be ready sometime in April. If she can pull it off, it will be a huge win for me. No hints for now, just a teaser of what's to come!

 

[KOMakesThings]

*Update* Nome King's Hospitality Setup- Drinking Goblets

Yess, love that you finally snagged one of these! Every so often I'd think of these cups and do an eBay search to see if the boar's head popped up, even without screen accuracy the boars head just seemed way cooler. Keeping my fingers crossed you can get your full set eventually.

Also, looking forward to seeing what the commission piece is!