'Wizard of Oz' lives in Indiana

How many funny lines from other movies are you reminded of when you think of “The Wizard of Oz”? Here are three off the top of my head:
• “We don’t call them elves, we say, little people”—In the movie, “The Santa Clause,” Charlie’s school teacher correcting him when he tells the class his dad is Santa Claus and the North Pole is filled with elves.
• “Thank heaven, for little girls ...” — sung by Peter Sellers as Inspector Clouseau when disguised as a very short man.
• “Oh, don’t go in there!” — Who could forget Robin Williams in “Good Morning, Vietnam,” singing one of the Munchkin songs, applying it to the invasion of Cambodia (or was it Laos?)
Anyway, it’s time once again for Chesterton, Ind., to celebrate my wife’s most (un)favorite movie, “The Wizard of Oz” (I hate dinosaurs, she hates green witches and flying monkeys — we are a couple).
This year, Munchkinland Market Days and the Wizard of Oz Festival will be Sept. 16-18.
Munchkins, of course, were the little people in “The Wizard of Oz.”
Market people are offering a free event guide. If you love Dororthy, Scarecrow, Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, Toto and the rest, send a self-addressed, business size, stamped No. 10 envelope to Munchkinland Guide, Yellow Brick Road Gift Shop, 109 E. Yellow Brick Rd., Chesterton, IN 46304 or visit the Web site, http://www.yellowbrickroadonline.com.
As you probably know, a big part of the festival is the opportunity to get the autograph of actors who appeared in the movie. When you consider the movie premiered 66 years ago, count yourself lucky if any of the actors can show up.
As you would expect, the theme continues with a life-size Picture Yourself in Oz tableau, Oz collectibles and Auntie Em’s Pie Booth. There are also kids games, face painters, Spitunia the Clown (I’m not sure I want to know how he got his name) and Mark the Magician. Not offered are Witches’ Warts or Toto’s Nuggets.
Chesterton is located on Lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana. The Yellow Brick Road Gift Shop & Oz Fantasy Museum is located at State Road 49 and the Indiana Toll Road, 2 miles south of Chesterton. If you plan to go, enjoy yourself and write a letter to the editor about your experience, but remember — “I’ll get you, my pretty (and your little dog, too!)”