Toto (Oz) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Toto |
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| Oz character | |
Illustration by W. W. Denslow
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| First appearance | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) |
| Created by | L. Frank Baum and W. W. Denslow |
| Portrayed by | Terry |
| Voiced by | Chris Cox |
| Information | |
| Species | Dog |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Dog |
Toto is a famous dog character from L. Frank Baum's Oz book series. He also appears in many movies and shows based on these books. His name sounds like "toe toe." Toto was first drawn as a small terrier by W. W. Denslow for the first The Wonderful Wizard of Oz book in 1900. You can see him in popular movies like The Wizard of Oz (1939), The Wiz (1978), and Return to Oz (1985).
Contents
Toto in the Books
Classic Oz Stories
Toto is the loyal pet of Dorothy Gale, the main hero of the first Oz book and many others. In the very first book, Toto didn't talk, even though other animals in Oz could. Later, in books like Tik-Tok of Oz, it's explained that Toto actually can talk, just like other animals in the Land of Oz, but he usually chooses to stay quiet! However, in The Lost Princess of Oz, he talks a lot more. He also shows up in The Road to Oz, The Emerald City of Oz, Grampa in Oz, and The Magical Mimics in Oz. In that last book, he's the first to realize who the tricky Mimics really are.
In The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Baum didn't say exactly what kind of dog Toto was. He just wrote that Toto was "a little black dog with long silky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of his funny, wee nose." Because of the pictures in the first book, many people think he might be a Cairn Terrier or a Yorkshire Terrier. Later, in some books, he looks like a Boston Terrier, but then goes back to his original look in even later books.
Other Stories
In Gregory Maguire's book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, Toto is a small character who is described as being a bit annoying. In the Wicked musical, he's only mentioned quickly when Glinda accidentally calls him "Dodo."
Toto in Movies
Terry, the Famous Movie Dog
In the classic 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz, Toto was played by a female Cairn Terrier named Terry. She earned $125 each week, which was more money than some of the human actors in the film!
During the movie's filming, Terry broke her foot when a guard accidentally stepped on it. Another dog had to fill in for her while she healed. Because the movie was so popular, Terry's owner and trainer officially changed her name to Toto. Terry appeared in 13 movies in total. She passed away at 11 years old.
Terry was buried on her trainer's ranch in California. However, her grave was destroyed when a freeway was built in 1958. On June 18, 2011, a special memorial for Terry was placed at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Other Film Appearances
- In Disney's 1985 movie Return to Oz, Toto was played by a female Border Terrier named Tansy.
- The 1978 movie The Wiz showed a dark gray Schnauzer as Toto.
- Toto appears in The Wizard of Oz cartoon, with his barks and sounds made by Frank Welker.
- In ABC's TV movie The Muppets' Wizard of Oz, Toto is played by Pepe the King Prawn.
- In the 1996 animated series The Oz Kids, a puppy named Toto 2 is named after him.
- In the VeggieTales episode "The Wonderful Wizard of Has," Toto is replaced by a pig named "Tutu."
- In the Sci-Fi Channel show Tin Man, Toto is a human who can change his shape. He was originally a teacher for DG, and his name "Toto" came from DG not being able to say "Tutor" when she was little.
- Toto also appears in the movie Inkheart. In this film, people called Silvertongues can bring book characters to life by reading aloud. The main character, Meggy, accidentally brings Toto out of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz book. He becomes her friend and helps defeat a shadow monster.
- In the Disney Channel movie The Cheetah Girls, one of the main characters has a dog named Toto. This dog is a Bichon Frise.
- Toto appeared in Dorothy and the Witches of Oz, staying with Dorothy even when she went to New York City.
- Toto also appeared in Legends of Oz: Dorothy's Return.
- In NBC's TV series Emerald City, Toto is a German Shepherd police dog. Dorothy adopts him after he is with her during the tornado that takes her to Oz. She names him Toto because it means "dog" in the Munja'kin language.
- Toto appears in the TV series Lost in Oz, voiced by Chris Cox.
- Toto appears in the TV series Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz.
- Toto appears in The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part. He and Dorothy's friends are transported from Oz to Harmony Town.
- In 2018, it was announced that Warner Animation Group would make an animated movie about Toto, based on the children's book Toto: The Dog-Gone Amazing Story of The Wizard of Oz.
Toto in Video Games
Wizard101
In the game Wizard101, Toto is a dog-like character named Mr. Toto. In a side quest called "Not in Kansas Anymore," players meet Dorothy Gale. She asks them to check on Mr. Toto and the Tin Man, who were supposed to come over for dinner. Mr. Toto tells the players that they are running "late as usual" because the Tin Man can't find his oil can and is worried about getting stuck on the way to Dorothy's house.
Toto's Influence
The famous American rock band Toto has said they were named after the dog. While the dog's name might have been the first idea, they also liked that the Latin word toto means "all-encompassing."
TOTO is also a special name for a weather instrument called a 'TOtable Tornado Observatory'. It was named after Dorothy's dog from The Wizard of Oz. This instrument is used to record data from inside tornadoes.
