From a very young age, Lyman Frank Baum was determined to write a different type of fairy tale. According to the biography, To Please a Child: A Biography of L. Frank Baum Royal Historian of Oz, he wrote, "I demanded fairy stories when I was a youngster... and I was a critical reader, too. One thing I never liked then, and that was the introduction of witches and goblins into the story. I didn't like the little dwarfs in the woods bobbing up with their horrors." Eventually he wrote and published his fairy tale, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, but getting there was a circuitous journey full of obstacles, much like the characters' quest along the yellow brick road to reach the Emerald City.
Lyman Frank Baum was born May 15, 1856 in Chittenango, New York to Cynthia and Benjamin Baum. His father was a barrel maker who later became wealthy from an oil business. Young Baum was a sickly child with a weak heart, and because he could not engage in physical activity, he occupied himself by reading and inventing stories. His literary influences were fairy tales and British authors including Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare. His parents did not like their son's fanciful nature, so they sent him to Peekskill Military School with the hopes of squelching it. Prior to that, Frank had been home schooled and was not used to the strict regiment and physical discipline. He suffered a heart attack. Some sources say it was a nervous breakdown. His parents withdrew him and allowed Frank to explore his creative talents.
Lyman Frank Baum was born May 15, 1856 in Chittenango, New York to Cynthia and Benjamin Baum. His father was a barrel maker who later became wealthy from an oil business. Young Baum was a sickly child with a weak heart, and because he could not engage in physical activity, he occupied himself by reading and inventing stories. His literary influences were fairy tales and British authors including Charles Dickens and William Shakespeare. His parents did not like their son's fanciful nature, so they sent him to Peekskill Military School with the hopes of squelching it. Prior to that, Frank had been home schooled and was not used to the strict regiment and physical discipline. He suffered a heart attack. Some sources say it was a nervous breakdown. His parents withdrew him and allowed Frank to explore his creative talents.
In 1902 L. Frank Baum collaborated with Julian Mitchell to write the original musical version of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, years before Judy Garland would make Dorothy famous.
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