Fans of the Ultra HD Blu-ray disc format had their collective prayers answered Friday with word that the original MGM classic movie The Wizard of Oz soon will be available in the format along with Blu-ray special background features on the treasured fantasy film.

The 1939 Victor Fleming masterpiece will be released in an Ultra HD Blu-ray combo pack ($41.99 suggested retail) and in a digital version on Oct. 29 by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, the studio announced.

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The 4K Ultra HD version will also carry Dolby Vision high dynamic range (HDR), with metadata supporting scene-by-scene color grading.

The Academy Award-winning film stars the legendary Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley, and Dorothy Gayle.

The picture received multiple Academy Awards nominations, including Best Picture, and captured two Oscars for Best Song (“Over the Rainbow”) and Best Original Score. It also received a special award for Outstanding Juvenile Performance by Garland.

The black & white film that famously changes to color once the story enters Oz was adapted from L. Frank Baum’s kids’ fantasy about a Kansas girl’s journey over the rainbow. There she meets the likes of the a singing Scarecrow (Ray Bolger), Cowardly Lion (Bert Lahr) and heart-seeking Tin Woodsman (Jack Haley).

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In 1989 The Wizard of Oz was part of the inaugural group of films selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant.

To create the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release, a new 8K, 16-bit scan of the original Technicolor camera negative was made, the studio said. MPI colorist Janet Wilson, who has supervised every remaster of the film for the past 20 years, once again over saw the latest process.

Among the special features will be commentary by John Fricke with Barbara Freed-Saltzman, Margaret Hamilton, Ray Bolger, Jack Haley, John Lahr, Jane Lahr, Hamilton Meserve, Dona Massin, William Tuttle, Buddy Ebsen, Mervyn LeRoy and Jerry Maren.

The package will also include the 1990 CBS Special “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The Making of a Movie Classic.”

The full list of Blu-ray special features include:

  • “The Making of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”;
  • “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz Storybook” (narrated by Angela Lansbury);
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Frank Morgan”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Ray Bolger”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Bert Lahr”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Jack Haley”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Billie Burke”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Margaret Hamilton”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Charley Grapewin”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Clara Blandick”;
  • “We Haven’t Really Met Properly: Terry”;
  • A music and effects track;
  • The original mono track;
  • Sing along tracks;
  • Audio jukebox;
  • The “Leo is on the Air” radio promo;
  • The “Good News of 1939” radio show;
  • The 12/25/1950 Lux radio broadcast;
  • Stills galleries and
  • Trailers.

By Greg Tarr

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