The Wizard of Oz - Original Tornado Tests (1939)

[@bristowboy20]

One of the scariest tornado scenes in any movie. Possibly THE scariest.

[@iambored678]

Agreed! I was terrified of tornadoes as a kid because of this movie!

[@pugle1]

In my opinion, one of the most realistic. To think, this was created in 1939! That's what gave me my love of all things weather, and I still sit and watch in awe every time I see this segment of film.

[@brianhartman2960]

And thats the difference between CGI and practical effects. The W.O.O. tornado scene gave me wonderful nightmares as a child which turned into a love for tornadoes today.

[@ShawnPickettPauley]

@@iambored678 It's very important to take shelter from tornado🌪 storms⛈

[@Evan-bj7np]

I'm a 68 yr. old grown man and what hits me in the gut with icy fear is Ms. Gulch turning into the wicked witch before my eyes. The scene hasn't lost any power in 63-64 yrs. for me.

[@Guitarwizard55]

Its been 75 years and this Tornado looks better than the ones Hollywood puts in their films now.

[@Davidevgen]

i agree. even on blu ray it still look relistic

[@Davidevgen]

***** its more detailed if thats what you mean

[@Davidevgen]

***** oh it is. i have the 3d blu ray. its pretty impressive imo :P

[@Davidevgen]

***** yes. thats what 3d does lol. the bigger the 3d tv the better

[@Davidevgen]

***** same here. yeah if you have one get the 3d version its worth it :P

[@richardarnista9924]

When I saw this the first time at the age of 5 I was mesmerized and right there I wanted to become a meteorologist. Well it happened and 15 years later I received my degree in meteorology. For doing that scene of the tornado even by today's standards it was incredible especially trying to do it in 1939. Every year I couldn't wait until it came on again!

[@robtek7277]

to this day, this has been the main and only reason ive been terrified of tornados, as a kid this scared the SHIT ouy of me, and still does, amazing efx for the time period

[@rogerfancher2672]

When you think about it, tornadoes are the closest thing to a natural special effect.

[@greggbarnette5316]

Same here my phobia of tornados was instilled in me at a young age watching WOZ every year it aired

[@gforce7four]

@@greggbarnette5316 mine too

[@DarkDoge]

Not just the time period but for beyond this time point, it looks better and looks 100% more realistic than what we see in movies nowadays .

[@scottw9318]

I was just going to post this exact thing. All the darkness just getting darker...

[@waynebrasler]

What is truly amazing is no film footage existed of a tornado at the time and only a few photographers, none of them particularly helpful. The wizards at M-G-M, using muslim and piano wire to construct a funnel and a little car moving back and forth hung from a metal gantry to put it in motion, worked magic. Years later, when tornado footage became increasingly available, it was astounding to find how accurate the M-G-M twister was right down to the upward circulation in the funnel.

[@TaylorKnightCosplay]

It’s called muslin, not muslim.

[@MaskedMan66]

@@TaylorKnightCosplay Preach it, infidel!

[@josephastier7421]

The MGM tornado is anticyclonic, something that only happens 1% of the time in nature. I wonder if this was intentional to make the storm even stranger than it already appears.

[@MaskedMan66]

Tornadoes had been filmed, as a matter of fact, but MGM had a huge budget, and even then stock footage was considered a bit wasteful and unimaginative.

[@MaskedMan66]

@@josephastier7421 What do you mean "anticyclonic?"

[@DoubleDogDare54]

My very favorite tornado. Gave me nightmares through my whole childhood, it did.

[@mca1218]

You perfectly summed up what was my favorite part of the entire tornado scene: the approach. The long pan of Dorothy kicking the fence door open and running towards the house while the twister swirls closer and closer in the background (right around 1:13), opening the screen door, only to have it fly away, and the second half of the shot seen in the rear of the house as she bangs on the storm cellar and the sky is so dark you almost don't see the funnel at all. Buddy Gillespie was a genius!!

[@addiople]

This is absolutely terrifying. The fact that there is no sound makes it worse. Like a nightmare I had one time!

[@waynebrasler]

Arnold Gillespie, who created the tornado, said he didn't find any film on tornado and barely any photos. The 1936 film I believe was actually a waterspout over, I think, Catalina Island or some island, just a thin little funnel without much power. Gillespie based the film tornado on what he'd seen or heard about tornadoes. His tornado tops those in "Twister," a film I adore, by miles.

[@TaylorKnightCosplay]

Wayne Brasler I still miss the Twister attraction at Universal Studios.

[@rmiddlehouse]

Wayne Brasler amazing to think he couldnt find any video, and barely a picture. A different time. You could believe in Bigfoot and such back then because.. who knows? Now, everything is exposed. Every person’s back yard is a click away on your phone

[@AllenMQuinn]

There's just something about these effects that I admire and respect. It's down to the craftsmanship. You know it wasn't easy and it took intelligence and a lot of hard work to achieve, which is why I appreciate older films a lot more at times than today's films.

[@CheapCheerful]

Todays effects are far more sophisticated, requiring alot more hard work and the artistry of many. Just because it's done digitally, on a computer, instead of physically does'nt make it easier.

[@missnancy-g9w]

@@CheapCheerful Yes but I sure am glad that Lord of the Rings was made when it was - at the perfect time because miniature models were still used for a much better effect and specialness. By the time The Hobbit was made, it was all CGI and that just lacks the sincerity and just doesn't cut it in my opinion.

[@dboboc]

It it easier. People today are more lazy and don’t do a lot physical work, so working on a computer is considered hard.

[@hardlines4]

No one EVER will make a tornado that looks this real ever again!! And this was in 1939........ Pure Genius !!!!

[@Tr0nzoid]

The tornado looks so spooky when it is still. I wish there was a picture of a person on stage next to it.

[@eyecomeinpeace2707]

A six foot person would look 6 times smaller than the prop as the "twister" was about 35 feet long.

[@Tr0nzoid]

@@eyecomeinpeace2707 That would be a neat image.

[@ArlecchinoDMP]

2:36 I like how you can actually see the muslin sock wrapped in chicken wire more and more celarly!

[@RTD8481]

Ive had horrible nightmares of this. I still do today!

[@a.j.b7903]

The tornado scene gave me nightmares too as a kid! Repeatedly.

[@TheTWISTEDCREECH96]

1:03 I love how the tornado appears to be getting "rain-wrapped". For 1939 when there wasn't really that much knowledge on tornadoes its pretty impressive.

[@eyecomeinpeace2707]

They did have quite a bit of knowledge about these "beasts" it's just that there were very few usable photographs or film about them to use as stock footage for the movie.

[@tmpalao1]

I don't use that word loosely but I AM amazed to learn that. All the more so because the sophisticated realism of that scene never ceases to blow me away (pun not intended). When I was a kid that twister scared the hell out of me a lot more than the wicked witch ever did.

[@sunburstpixel822]

It is incredible what they were able to achieve with traditional, in-camera special effects in 1939.

[@raun8603]

Sunburst Pixel nikit

[@elijahnicholson6453]

It was actually practical effects.

[@unionrdr]

And to be honest,it does my heart good that you young folks today still are engrossed by this film. It was on every year when I was a child more than 50 years ago. Just like Mr Magoo's scrooge,etc.I don't think anyone will be able to produce a movie ever again that captures a true slice of Americana like this one. The fella that wrote "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" should be canonized for this great work from 1908.

[@OmegaWolf747]

L. Frank Baum.

[@franciscoflores4513]

Judy Garland had something no one! even now has ever matched. I’m 29 and this movie was, is and forever will be one of my all time favorites ❤️

[@terryperring104]

Searched for this cos i always wondered if it was real or not. Brilliant special effect for ANY era. No CGI at all-genius.

[@DanielSelk]

Even to TODAY'S standards this scene is pretty convincing. =)

[@inaciosthirdstudio]

Yeah. Warner Bros and MGM specialized in using a few props such as a giant sock and I think at one point a wind machine. Did wind machines exist back in the late 30s and early 40s?

[@lemmythebulldog8812]

@@inaciosthirdstudio yea they were called large fans

[@CairnTerrier69]

For those saying tornadoes do not “whip around” like this one here....the Western Massachusetts tornado of 2011 sure did. I had a front row seat for it when it came through downtown Springfield. With this footage, they got every detail....the RDF and outflow is evident. And the last shot of the massive funnel bearing down on the farm is intense!

[@j.fhernandez3457]

RDF?

[@shaungerald23]

That one destroyed my house while we were in it.

[@CairnTerrier69]

@@shaungerald23 The Springfield tornado was brutal. I got caught on 1-91 and watched it cross the river into downtown. Very sorry about your house but happy you are alive to tell about it.

[@CairnTerrier69]

@@j.fhernandez3457 Rear downward flank. Column of warm air wrapping around the back of a tornado producing supercell.

[@gameexplorerofficial2453]

I like the video without sound. It makes the video look more scary. A silent tornado coming at you is way more scary than hearing it. That reminds me, when i was 6, i watched the wizard of oz for the 1st time. a few days after watching it, I had a nightmare where I'm outside my house that's in a cul-de-sac. My vision is black & white, and I hear nothing, and then i see a tornado coming right at me. It scared me to death. LOL! I live in Oregon, so i don't worry about tornadoes coming at me. LOL!!

[@geraldthebusdriver3491]

The Wizard of Oz Tornado 1939: holy shit that's fuckin' scary Modern day twister movies 2021: nah not scary

[@MaskedMan66]

Movies were movies in them days.

[@jdollinter]

Recently saw footage of a violent rope tornado in Texas and I couldn't believe how closely it resembled this twister, the way it moved except this real one was throwing cows and pieces of barns and houses hundreds of feet in the air. Maybe it was a fluke but they really captured the energy of that violent rope twister.

[@WorldPilot]

That last deleted scene was included on a VHS video of "Wizard of Oz", in a retrospective section following the feature, narrated by Angela Lansbury. It's probably a good thing they didn't use it after all, because if the tornado had actually gotten that close to the house, the house would go and the ending, with Dorothy in her bed and the farmhands and her aunt and uncle in the room, would have made no sense. As it was, the tornado was close enough to blow out a flimsy window, but not take the house.

[@sunburstpixel822]

The funnel itself was filmed with a giant muslin sock filled with dust and dirt, in the backseat of a car that was driven way back on the sound stage. Giant fans blew this dirt and dust up. It was very convincing, even in 1939! It used to scare the crap out of me as a little kid.

[@jacquiepeel3436]

Facts

[@jamesholton2630]

The tornado is fake

[@acrylicsuperstar]

Better tornado than 21st century tornadoes

[@waynebrasler]

Arnold Gillespie was a genius. No film of a tornado existed and only a few still photos. Yet the tornado MGM came up with is accurate in every way. A muslim sock laced with piano wire was suspended from a metal gantry. At the top a small car moved back and forth to put the funnel in motion; at the bottom the funnel disappeared in a metal slot. Fuller's earth was pumped into the sock and other stuff too as the gantry moved down the set. Yes, 1939 and better than "Twister."

[@Takaichi666-]

The amount of effort and work that went into this tornado is amazing and the scene was so well done that I still get instead chills

[@tonybihn132]

When they zoom in on this “tornado” it’s quite frightening

[@MARK23048]

Was my favorite movie as a kid, and still watch it. I really think storms are amazing, and always look for tornados. The footage is even better than the creations in the movie “Twister” Wizard of Oz” A classic forever.

[@lelandframe6927]

I live in Kansas! I am VERY familiar with tornadoes! They can either stay in one spot or move all over the freakin' place or outpace a car! It depends on the individual storm!

[@simonbelmont65]

Hard to believe this was 80 years ago & it's very interesting to see what life was like back then. Wow. I love the wizard of oz.

[@OPTIONALWATCH]

I'm rewatching this movie again after 20 years without watching and I'm still at awe at the realistic way this tornado was made. This tornado effect is better than all the tornado scenes Hollywood has made up until 2012 or so.

[@GamerBoyo]

I love it how the tornado up close looks like a bunch of plastic cups.

[@jamesholton2630]

It almost does look like plastic cups stacked on top of each other

[@unionrdr]

I saw how they did the tornado with cloth of the right colors to simulate the color of a funnel sucking up dirt,rock,vegitation,etc. It was motor driven & moved around a set & filmed. Very convincing even now. & that was back in '39. Beatifull in it's simpliscity.

[@PHOTOGRAPHYBYDEREK1]

Pretty cool, especially for 1939.

[@TH3C001]

Funny how it looks more believable than the movie "Twister". Copied from IMDB, this is how they did it, "The "tornado" was a 35-foot-long muslin stocking, spun around among miniatures of a Kansas farm and fields in a dusty atmosphere."

[@WieldingEminator]

What makes this effect even more...effective, was having one of the most iconic villains in movie history riding through the tornado like a bird flying in the wind.

[@roquefortfiles]

For 1939 this is absolutely amazing. It is still amazing today. Very hypnotic. I know how they did the funnel but I want to know how the did the clouds above it. They're equally as well done.

[@ariochiv]

The twister was even scarier than the Wicked Witch.

[@nuclearnugget2294]

5:37 "I gotta go, Julia, We got cows!"

[@jameycollins725]

CGI tornadoes of today do not even compare to the special effects used to create this masterpiece!

[@CosplayDreams16]

Shit these tests are good! I was terrified of Tornadoes because of the Wizard of Oz. Even to this day the tornado scene scares me!

[@nibora4895]

I don't know what it is about this movie, but even to this day as a 47 year old woman it gives me an eerie feeling. I'm not saying that I don't love it because I do, but there's just something about it that makes me feel weird.

[@jonathankennedy]

This tornado was used in a lot of other films

[@hunterolaughlin]

Cabin in the Sky (1943) and High Barbaree (1947)

[@kennedyemanuel-z3p]

reused tornado in movie 1939-1947

[@DarthDimadome]

Anyone else remember having the VHS of the movie and waiting until after the credits to watch the behind the scenes stuff? Some of these shots are in those parts.

[@milesmouse72]

thats amazing! It was a rotating flexible tube with dust filled air blasted around it with wind machines blowing, I always wondered how this was done. I was a vfx particles artist for a few years making clouds, fire and water. Scared the crap out of me when I was young. This is still the scariest tornado scene for me.

[@LElayneSousa]

Wow!! It is amazing how they did all of those effects. The last clip on here is especially eerie!

[@waynebrasler]

Regarding the funnel, it was muslim and then piano wire was sewed into it to give it shape but still flexibility. The bottom part of the funnel went into a slot on the soundstage floor and then smoke was fed in with fans blowing. That smoke led to health problems for many people who worked on the set, unfortunately.

[@WondrousEarth]

I was always mesmerized as a boy when The Wizard of Oz played each year, this was in the late 50s and 60s, and this scene of a tornado so realistic. I looked forward each year with anticipation to once again watch this great film.

[@newlam7958]

I think hads "hands on" special effects are so much better and creative than the CGI garbage that is produced today.

[@AStarryKnight]

Wicked Awesome...but the audio is what makes it even more SCARYer!! Thanks for posting it thou as I did/do enjoy watching it and may favorite. XO : )

[@Jaymindrew1990]

This was history’s first movie tornado, and even CGI can’t touch how menacing this twister was. There are very few meteorologists and storm chasers out there who weren’t inspired by this scene. I watched the movie each year just for this scene alone! 🌪️🎥

[@weegeplayz5855]

0:37 This must have been the background of the original footage in the scene

[@publicitypunk]

GREG MAY of Orlando, FL says: "When the movie, 'Twister' came out there was a lot of publicity about how they used the latest computerized graphics to make the tornados. Well, they looked fakey and were a disappointment. You wanna see a tornado? Then watch the footage from 'The WIzard of Oz'. Now that's a twister!"

[@APoetsCorner]

Stunning visual special effects for 1938.

[@hamilton59840]

It's amazing on how the special effects department created this incredible sidewinder tornado back in those days. Based on the high speeds from the wind machines, I'd estimate it would be an F-2 at best (possibly an F-3).

[@cory3171]

The tornado lifted Dorothy's house and carried it to Oz, because of that this tornado is more like an F-4 or F-5.

[@stevejarrettnc]

Arnold Gillespie made another twister, using the same effects that was used on a western TV show in the early to mid 70s. I can’t remember the show, but I’m DYING TO SEE THAT FOOTAGE. I remember reading about him doing it in a magazine, maybe TV Guide. Anyone remember? It was in COLOR too. I saw it once and never again.

[@weegeplayz5855]

Btw I like how smoothly the tornado moves

[@IToldHimNotToDoIt]

I looked up the machines that put out smoke, they had to build their own devices which may have put out small water droplets carrying bacteria.

[@barneylover2011ful]

These Five Steps It Makes Me Feel Scared 1. Burglars Trying To Break At Front Door 2. Hide Under The Couch 3. Crying A Lot 4. Go To Hospital 5. Trust A Teacher

[@diegodiaz6876]

The way it would sway in the background freaked me out as a kid

[@jeansandjacketrequir]

Studio tests at that time often did not use sound because the designers and directors wanted to gauge the visuals only. Same with costume tests.

[@71crm]

Who ever saved these tests, I salute you!

[@cory3171]

Probably the best tornado effect because this is convincing, and this was done without CGI. Nowadays you can make a tornado with CGI animation.

[@JAGUART]

If you get a chance, see Wizard of Oz on the big screen. You'll know why it's still loved 75 years later.

[@nescafe4311]

Yea back in 2013 i missed out on seeing the movie on imax which would of been anazing

[@PaulMcElveen]

This is classic movie magic! It is the best cyclone/tornado/twister ever put on film!

[@waynebrasler]

By the way, everyone involved in the tornado sequence said between the wind machines, dust, lights, rear projection they couldn't even see and everything else they really had no sense of what it all was looking like. What always amazed me is the funnel cloud looks like it is closing in on Dorothy when, of course, it isn't there at all physically but being projected, sometime on rear screen, sometimes on matte. If you look at contemporary video of tornadoes it is amazing how they right it is.

[@jonathanwallis3300]

@7:16, AUSTIN POWERS: Did you just soiled yourself?

[@gallucciart164]

scariest tornado ever - including today's special effects. nothing like a physical special effect. freaks the heck out of me every time!

[@agentfungus9742]

So well done! The scene was scary enough as it was; this extended footage is terrifying.

[@balsaboy55]

The best tornado special effects .....bad dreams as a kid

[@KC9KEP]

Witches within tornadoes .. The epitome of evil! True nightmare stuff!

[@brucecolles2245]

terrifying.

[@bradhedgehog12]

Whao. A test.

[@chrishall6617]

The house twist twist twist got me

[@residentevilumbrella2001]

Tornadoes always look scarier in black and white darkness than in color.

[@PhoenixPrime]

Not gonna lie; the tornado scared me more than the Wicked Witch did when I was little. xD

[@lostmic]

I love nature and it's tornadoes and how eery and scary they are and this still scares the crap out of me... I love it, why am I this way? Lol

[@Nothing_serious]

Practical Effects > CGI

[@ValoricStarlight]

+Paul Francis Goneda because practical effects are really tehre... CGI isnt.

[@jw870206]

+Paul Francis Goneda A good seamless combination of both is good. Practical effects have their limitations. Best example of practical and CG effects together: "Jurassic Park". For the close encounters with the dinosaurs, practical effects were needed to give a sense of physical interaction. For wider shots, CG was good for the sheer scale of visuals.

[@ValoricStarlight]

@Jaden Gamer there is no joke here. therefore there is no woosh. uwu

[@jdollinter]

It's funny how this old twister looks far more convincing than the computer generated ones they used in the movie Twister '96.

[@jw870206]

+Joe Dollinter Again where practical effects are better than CG effects.

[@garyhuffford6085]

Arnold Gillespie was a genius!! ..waaay better than "Twister"! Helen Hunt was so terrified -NOT!! ......"a..cow" ....."another cow "

[@congthanhvo4165]

Maybe because the black and white helped to hide the fake sides of the footage?

[@waynebrasler]

That Cuba footage actually was of a weak waterspout in the distancewhich had moved over land and only sporadically touched down. It wasn't of much use or the folks at M-G-M. They needed footage of a sizeable, developed funnel moving across farmland.

[@brianhartman2960]

7:00 2022... and that is still downright terrifying.

[@RojoFern]

1:25 1981 Cordell Ok tornado BEFORE the 1981 Cordell Ok tornado.

[@ApocalypsePlough]

Wow .... I didn't know that ... that's fascinating. Better than "Twister" indeed.

[@foulasign]

its so creepy

[@marvinthemaniac7698]

No sound?

[@danielslade9485]

6:23 We must be up inside the cyclone! 6:26 Oh! Miss Gulch!

[@workwithrickandanaBrown]

My wife and I are going to our local theater tonight to see The Wizard of Oz for the first time on the big screen. Looking forward to seeing my favorite twister in this format. This test footage is 78 years old! Think about that!

[@kakashi101able]

Was it fun?

[@eyecomeinpeace2707]

What is it about the tornado in general that scares the crap out of us? To me, it's seeing this huge and tall funnel composed of cloud material (moisture) dirt, dust and debris and destroying things in it's way by the powerful winds. That much is true in a scientific sense. But it also looks like a big, tall, dark and menacing demon or monster that makes a terrible loud and ear piercing jet/train sound and it's coming to eat you. So because of such a spectacle, it scares the heebie jeebies out of us.

[@amyath]

On the actual movie, a box office failure. $1,000,000 loss for MGM. As for the tornado footage, or animation, pure genius I say so myself for 1939.

[@lewisner]

Why on Earth did they delete the deleted scene ?

[@hak4890]

Beginning at 7:05, I start hyperventilating. I’m 62 years old and this film’s tornado still scares me to death.

[@mgrella63]

People laugh when I tell them the most scariest part of that movie for me was the tornado not the witch lol!! It was so well done for being 1939

[@carterbaxter739]

Wow I cant believe that this is a really good test also there some other 1930s movies that also has that tornado in some films

[@foxpup]

This would have been a great project for mythbusters to replicate. It would have made their top 10, maybe top 3 or better.

[@Dvailen]

To the people who think it's animated: IT'S 1939, THEY DIDN'T HAVE COMPUTERS TO ANIMATE YET

[@weegeplayz5855]

But how could they shape a stocking as a tornado?

[@kennedyemanuel-z3p]

my favorite childhood videos