Dorothy Gale

**Dorothy Gale** is the main protagonist of the broad Oz novels, written by L. Frank Baum. Her first appearance was in *The Wonderful Wizard of Oz*.

She is an ordinary girl from Kansas who runs away from home when her nasty neighbor Miss Gulch threatens to file a lawsuit to take/demolish her family's farm if they don’t let her kill her dog Toto. But when a kind gypsy named Professor Marvel convinces her that her family and friends care about her, she goes back. She is swept up in a tornado and sent to the magical land of Oz. Glinda, the good witch of the north, sends her on a quest to find the local Wizard to help her get home and escape the clutches of her archenemy, the Wicked Witch of the West (Miss Gulch in Kansas) who is after the Ruby Slippers Dorothy got from her late sister. Along the way she befriends the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion (Hunk, Hickory, and Zeke in Kansas) who all want something from the Wizard as well.

## Portrayals

In the 1939 Metro Goldwyn Mayer movie adaptation of *The Wizard of Oz*, and an M&M's commercial in 2004 with the candies lost their colors, she was portrayed by the late Judy Garland (who also voiced Mewsette in *Gay Purr-ee*). In the Disney 1985 movie *Return to Oz*, she was portrayed by Fairuza Balk.

She was voiced by Laura Bailey in *LEGO Dimensions*, who also voiced Blaze the Cat, Chun Li, Tohru Honda, and Odette, and by Maya Rudolph in *The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part*.

In the Tom and Jerry version, she was voiced by Grey DeLisle-Griffin who also voiced Daphne Blake, Mandy, Catwoman, Tootie, Red, and many others.

In *Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz*, she was voiced by Kari Wahlgren who also voiced Nova from *Super Robot Monkey Team Hyper Force Go!*, Mina Monroe from *Bunnicula*, and Tessa from *Skylanders*.

In *Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return*, she was voiced by singer Lea Michele.

In *Minnie's The Wizzard of Dizz*, she was played by Minnie Mouse who was voiced by the late Russi Taylor.

Kirstin Maldonado, the female member of Pentatonix, played Dorothy in Todrick Hall's *The Wizard of Ahhs*.

## History

Dorothy's name is a loosely based version of "Theodore" which means "Gift of the Gods". "Dorothy", therefore, as a female companion to Theodore would translate to "Goddess of Gifts". She was born before the turn of the twentieth century on June 10, year unknown. She shares her birthday with her iconic 1939 movie musical counterpart portrayed by Judy Garland. Like Garland, her Zodiac sign is Gemini. Surprisingly, her last name isn't revealed in the original 1900 novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. It was not mentioned until the 1902 stage version of the story Baum created after the book's publication and subsequent success; "My name is Dorothy Gale. I'm one of the Kansas Gales. " To which the Scarecrow replies, "Well, that explains your breezy manner. " In the later Oz books, Baum kept the name but mercifully spared his readers the pun.

In the film, she once contracted the measles, but thankfully her aunt helped her recover. Little else is known about her past in that continuity.

The many people Dorothy liberated and befriended had many more adventures after her departure. Each of her three traveling companions became the ruler of a country within the land. The Scarecrow (with his new brains) temporarily became the King of Oz to rule over Oz's Imperial Capital a.k.a. the Emerald City, until the long-lost rightful ruler, the Princess Ozma, was eventually found. The Tin Woodman (with his new heart) replaced the Wicked Witch of the West and became the monarch emperor to rule over the Winkie Country. And last but not least, the Cowardly Lion (with his new courage) became King of the Beasts and went to live in the wildernesses of Oz to rule over the animal kingdom, later aided by his best friend the Hungry Tiger.

Despite her vow to never leave home again, Dorothy made three more trips to the Land of Oz until ultimately deciding to reside there permanently. Each time Dorothy landed in a different enchanted neighbor country before returning to Oz proper.

## Personality

Dorothy is a sweet, good-natured, and kind hearted 12-year old-girl. She shows kindness such as freeing the Scarecrow from his pole, sticking up for the Cowardly Lion after the Wizard bellowed at him, and helping the Tin-Man after he fell in the Haunted Forest. Dorothy is also sensitive such as when Miss Gulch took Toto away from her, being trapped in the Witch of the West's castle, and when the "Wizard" betrayed her by leaving in his hot-air balloon without her. Dorothy though can be outspoken. She shows this by confronting Miss Gulch and the Lion respectively as well as the Wizard for bellowing at the Lion.

## Physical Appearance

In the 1939 movie adaptation, Dorothy is a pretty farm girl who has long curly brown hair in pigtails with blue bows, a white blouse with blue pinafore and black Mary Jane shoes, later the ruby slippers. In the 2014 CGI fantasy film, Legends of Oz, Dorothy's Return, Dorothy's appearances is modernized and she wears a blue denim overall dress with brown leather country cowboy boots.

## Trivia

* Dorothy appears in an M&M's commercial in 2004 when the M&M's lost their colors as a parody of the ending of The Wizard of Oz.
* The late Shirley Temple and the late Deanna Durbin were both considered for the role of Dorothy before the late Judy Garland was cast. Due to her age, Garland had to wear a corset-like device around her chest in order to appear less developed.
* Unlike the Oz books written by L. Frank Baum, Dorothy Gale ended up as a Damsel in Distress which kind of happened in the 1939 movie.

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