updated March 2005
Oz at the Macy's Flower Show
Promotion running through April 3rd
This
report on the Macy's Flower Show windows was written by TP pal Peter
Papazoglou, with pictures by Richie Buran. Click on the links
for nice big pretty pictures...
Flowers and Muppets and Merchandise, oh MY!
In honor of some festival that has something to do with flowers and maybe also gardening, the flagship Macy's department store in Herald Square has devoted its six Broadway windows to The Muppets' Wizard of Oz. As far as I could tell, there weren't any poppies, so I'm not exactly sure what the connection is. Nevertheless, I hear that there are some crazy people out there who are obsessed with the temporary preservation of formerly living things, and I'm sure that some of them like flowers too, so hopefully this will be good publicity for the Muppets.
The first window features Kermit, sitting on a bench underneath a sign that reads "Aunt Em's Diner -- Best Home Cooking in the Heartland." It's sparse and disappointing. But there are flowers. Oh, there are flowers.
But then. Oh, but then. As we inch northward (technically northwestward)
along Broadway, there it is.
The Munchkin Village. With a little house. And another little house. But this one says "Cheez Factory" on it. And the Yellow Brick Wall. With Rizzo. And a half dozen other rats. And they're all different. And one of them is in a tree. And there are many, many flowers. But no poppies.
And Miss Piggy. As the Good Witch of the North. And she's real. A real poser puppet. And she's beautiful.
Hard as it is to tear our eyes away, we are tempted by the promise of the Yellow Brick Wall. And the third window. Which does not disappoint. No, it does not.
For there is our Kermit,
as the Scarecrow -- and nay, he is not
a plush toy; he, too, is real. He bears his cross nobly. Next to the
Yellow Brick Wall. With a big, scary stuffed crow on it that we're
ignoring for right now.
But wait! What is his head made of? For it is not felt. No, it is not felt. It is green burlap!
Is this what love feels like?
Our pulse quickens. We move on. No! I have no patience for you, revolving doors. Make haste! Away!
You get the picture. Gonzo's next, and Fozzie after, and they're both beautiful. Gonzo has these adorable little silver sneakers, and this window-box where I think his heart is going to go. And Fozzie is just huge, and so detailed.
And the final window is our three heroes standing in front of the Gates of Oz, the doors cracked open. And flowers.
The whole thing really pops, and the displays look so professional. Lots and lots of people were stopping, and oohing, and taking pictures. Really, would it kill them to set an airdate already?
Downstairs, there's a Muppets'
Wizard of Oz store display, with exclusive plush
dolls of the Fab Four in their Oz costumes for $14.99 each. The Kermit
Scarecrow doll is the best likeness. He may be one of the best Kermit
likenesses yet. He's also the only one with a wire frame in his arms and
legs for posing. It makes him less squishy than he should be.
The Fozzie Lion dolls are big and cute and very huggable, but his eyes are weird. Piggy as the Good Witch is, well, a plush Piggy, but definitely on the prettier side of ugly. And some of the Gonzo Tin Thing dolls weren't abjectly terrifying.
There's a very nice mug, and a babydoll T-shirt that comes in purple, salmon and green(?) that has a sketch/outline of one of the Oz promo shots, minus Ashanti.
Thanks to Peter for the article,
and Richie for the photos!