I'm a Frogman Frog, Man

[vovat]

You didn't think I'd forget to feature an Oz character this week, did you? This time around, it's the Frogman, the second protagonist to be an oversized animal. The first was the Wogglebug, and the two of them would later be joined by Wag and Percy. But for now, our focus is on this little green frog who was dropped into a hidden pond on the Yips' hilltop tableland, where he grew abnormally large and intelligent by eating of the magic skosh. (I believe the current meaning of "skosh" as "a little bit" originated in World War II, so it was probably just a nonsense word for Baum.) He then started wearing clothes, as described in the text of The Lost Princess of Oz:

"The Frogman's usual costume consisted of knee-breeches made of yellow satin plush, with trimmings of gold braid and jeweled knee-buckles; a white satin vest with silver buttons in which were set solitaire rubies; a swallow-tailed coat of bright yellow; green stockings and red leather shoes turned up at the toes and having diamond buckles. He wore, when he walked out, a purple silk hat and carried a gold-headed cane. Over his eyes he wore great spectacles with gold rims, not because his eyes were bad, but because the spectacles made him look wise, and so distinguished and gorgeous was his appearance that all the Yips were very proud of him."

He was also made the leader of Yips, and gave advice and settled disputes for them. Eventually, he gained a reputation for being much smarter than he really was, which he was all too glad to perpetuate. When he accompanied Cayke the Cookie Cook on a search for her lost Magic Dishpan, he had the idea that his wisdom would spread throughout Oz, but it turned out that most other Ozites did not have the same respect for the amphibian that the isolated Yips had. What's more, he accidentally bathed in the Truth Pond, which forced him to reveal that he wasn't anywhere near as wise as Cayke and the other Yips thought he was. He was still quite helpful in the defeat of Ugu the Shoemaker, however, and went on to visit the Emerald City for an extended period of time. In fact, Glinda identifies him as part of Ozma's council. It's not entirely clear whether he is perpetuating his visit from back at the end of Lost Princess, or just drops in from the Yip Country from time to time, but it does seem that Baum intended for him to become a fixture in the roster of Ozian celebrities. None of the other Famous Forty authors really used him, though, aside from a brief mention in one of Jack Snow's books, so he ended up becoming somewhat of an obscure character despite his promising beginning.

Not surprisingly, some post-FF authors have written of the further adventures of our froggy friend. March Laumer has a book called The Frogman of Oz, in which the enlarged amphibian plays a major role, and ends up pairing up with Gayelette, who had been given the form of a giant frog by Mombi. Laumer also gives the Frogman's name as Frederick Fruakx, despite the fact that Baum claimed "the Frogman" was "the only name he has ever had." Eric Shanower wrote a short story called "The Final Fate of the Frogman," in which the powers of the Truth Pond eventually force the Frogman to stop behaving in a human manner, and he ends up guarding the pond to make sure no one else suffers his fate. It's a well-written story, but I have to say I feel sorry for the poor Frogman. At least in a magical land like Oz, I suppose there's always a chance of redemption for the amphibian.

Comments

[alicornmoon.livejournal.com]

I wonder, do you have to be given the rights to write an official OZ book? It seems like they would be very picky...

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I don't think it would really be possible to write a book nowadays that would considered official by the majority of Oz fans. Sherwood Smith's Oz books were licensed by the Baum Trust, but I don't think that really affected their sales or anything. Since all of the Baum Oz books are now in the public domain, as are seven of Thompson's and both of Snow's, it's possible for anyone to write an Oz book and get it published, but I'm sure major publishing houses aren't especially interested in them.

[alicornmoon.livejournal.com]

Well, not that I was ever thinking of writing one, but it is a fun thing to think about :3. I wasn't so much thinking about offical to fans so much as official to like, the memory of the OZ books sort of..Nothing like Wicked (Wicked annoys me, I like the musical on its own but the book just seems so wrong to OZ) :P What is the cut off for what can be called the more classic stories though I wonder? I know Baum's are the golden ones...

[vovat.livejournal.com]

That's a judgment call, I'd say, but you have to remember that Wicked wasn't even intended to tie in with the main Oz series (although it does include some references to the original books). There are quite a few fan-written books that I think stick quite well to the spirit of the original books. I guess the toughest call might be a book that's consistent with the originals, but explores themes that are alien to Baum's world.

[alicornmoon.livejournal.com]

Well, it's just that so many people I know who have never read the books hold Wicked up like it is the god of OZ novels :P...
It's made me a little bitter...

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it does seem like Wicked is often more popular with people who aren't aware of the Baum books. To my mind, Maguire just can't keep a reader enthralled the way Baum could.

[alicornmoon.livejournal.com]

My favorite of all the adaptations is still this series :3

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I've never actually seen that version, although I'm pretty sure I've heard of it.

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

"a book that's consistent with the originals, but explores themes that are alien to Baum's world."

That's the type of book I want to write. In this thread you're touching on why I haven't written it: I know I can write a book (I have!), and I think I can write a good book, but how does one get it taken seriously by Oz fans, when so many different writers have tackled Oz? Add that to the other point -- that publishing houses wouldn't be interested -- which means tackling the challenge of self-publishing.

I don't think you can really call any new Oz book canon, anymore. Maybe that's freeing, in a way -- with Baum's books being in the public domain, writers are free to expand on his universe. But you can get so far from it that you end up with something like Wicked, which I enjoyed but which isn't in the original Oz universe at all.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

"a book that's consistent with the originals, but explores themes that are alien to Baum's world."

That's the type of book I want to write.

I think it's sort of what Laumer did, too.

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

That's what I've heard, and I still haven't gotten around to reading any of his stuff. Maybe I'm subconsciously afraid of discovering he's already done all the stuff I was interested in trying.

[kevenn.livejournal.com]

I've always liked the frogman, but I'm certainly glad that O'Neil never drew him wearing the shoes that Baum described - in order for those to work with an upturned pointed tip on a frog's already larger feet, they'd have to be ridiculously huge!

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I also only found one picture of his actually wearing spectacles on his eyes (at the beginning of Chapter 13), and it looks like Neill had to lower his eyes somewhat compared to how they look in other illustrations.

[annamatic.livejournal.com]

Frogman creeps me out quite a bit. D:

[vovat.livejournal.com]

Of the two pictures I posted, I think he looks kind of disturbing in the first one, but less so on the cover. Still, I guess a human-sized frog WOULD look pretty creepy by our standards.

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

I wonder if it's coincidence that both Wogglebug and Frogman became rather haughty and fancily dressed after growing to human size?

[billiedoll.livejournal.com]

Probably not. Baum was probably playing off of an existing stereotype of the time. An intelligent character who is not "with it" at all and assumes that the most colorful thing is clearly the most fashionable. Just a guess.

[vovat.livejournal.com]

I'd say that makes sense. They're also both animals trying to act human (to an extent, anyway), and perhaps not succeeding in every way. And the Wogglebug's taste for fancy dress might come at least partially from his time as a bug. As you might know, The Woggle-Bug Book is largely the tale of the insect's pursuit of a particular plaid fabric.

[ozma914.livejournal.com]

that's not just a stereotype of the time, I see it today! :-)