Film: The Wizard of Oz
Released: 1939
Director: Victor Fleming
Actors: Judy Garland (Dorothy), Frank Morgan (Wizard of Oz), Ray Bolger (Scarecrow)
Three of the main actors in The Wizard of Oz are Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, and Ray Bolger.
Judy Garland: Star
Frank Morgan: Impersonator
Ray Bolger: Wild Card
Judy Garland is classified as a star because of her popularity amongst moviegoers during the time period. She is not only famous on screen as her role as Dorothy, but she was also famous off screen because of her star quality (Goodykoontz, 2011). In the film The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy is the main character that the story revolves around. Judy Garland plays a lovely sweet American girl that the audience easily falls in love with.
Judy Garland
Frank Morgan is classified as an interpreter because of his ability to handle roles of fictional characters and makes them believable. Frank Morgan plays the role of the Wizard and puts his familiar spin on the character. The ability to put your mark on a character is what identifies the interpreter style actor (Goodykoontz, 2011). Frank Morgan was known for a flamboyant cast of characters in his movies. As the Wizard, Morgan makes the audience believe that the Wizard is a larger than life personality. In the end, the audience finds out that the Wizard was actually a small man hiding behind a façade of special effects the entire time.
Ray Bolger is classified as a wild card actor because he brings a distinctive personality to the screen based on his background as a Broadway performer. Bolger played the Scarecrow and had the ability to interpret the role, impersonate, and carry out a variety of styles making him defy the categories (Goodykoontz, 2011). Bolger did not have the lead role but easily fit into the musical role that the Scarecrow demanded.
Focusing on just Judy Garland’s array of films, it is easy to tell that she consistently displays the quality of a star. Since she falls into the same category throughout her career, this is indicative of the star categories ability to remain consistent throughout performances.
References
Judy Garland – IMDb. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000023/
Judy Garland – Singing In The Rain (Little Nellie Kelly, 1940). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQDrBJwYqm0&feature=youtu.be
The Wizard of Oz (1939) – IMDb. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032138/
Wizard of Oz 