''The Yellow Knight of Oz'' (

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will b ...

) is the twenty-fourth in the series of

Oz books The Oz books form a book series that begins with ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900) and relates the fictional history of the Land of Oz. Oz was created by author L. Frank Baum, who went on to write fourteen full-length Oz books. All of Baum's b ...

created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the tenth written by

Ruth Plumly Thompson Ruth Plumly Thompson (27 July 1891 – 6 April 1976) was an American writer of children's stories, best known for writing many novels placed in Oz, the fictional land of L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' ...

. It was illustrated by John R. Neill.

Plot

Sir Hokus of Pokes grows tired of the Emerald City, and he and the Comfortable Camel set out for some adventure. Sir Hokes wants to rescue a

damsel in distress The damsel in distress is a recurring narrative device in which one or more men must rescue a woman who has either been kidnapped or placed in general peril. Kinship, love, or lust (or a combination of those) gives the male protagonist the motiv ...

, or at least find a

monster A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

to fight. Sir Hokus visits Marshland and befriends Ploppa, a giant mud turtle. Ploppa would like to accompany Sir Hokus on his adventures, but cannot leave the swamp. Sir Hokus is joined by the Comfortable Camel. Meanwhile, a boy named Speedy blasts his way to Oz in a homemade rocket ship, where he finds himself in the underground kingdom of Subterranea. At his touch, a golden statue of a beautiful girl comes to life. She is called Marygolden, and she accompanies Speedy on his further adventures. Sir Hokes and Speedy join forces and, using the power of a bag of magic dates, they counter the magic of the evil

Sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it c ...

of Samandra and restore the Corumbian Kingdom, which the Sultan had conquered and enchanted. Sir Hokus learns his true identity: he is actually the young and handsome Yellow Knight of Corumbia, transformed into old, absent-minded Sir Hokus by the Sultan's magic. Using the power of the magic dates, Sir Hokus regains his youthful form and vacates the Emerald City to rule as Prince of Corumbia.

Adaptation

L. Frank Baum adapted many of his ''Oz'' stories for stage and film versions, but ''The Yellow Knight of Oz'' is the only one of Thompson's Oz books that was adapted for the stage.Andrea Kelman Yussman, "The Yellow Knight Goes to the Theater", ''

The Baum Bugle ''The Baum Bugle: A Journal of Oz'' is the official journal of The International Wizard of Oz Club. The journal was founded in 1957, with its first issue released in June of that year (to a subscribers' list of sixteen). It publishes three times pe ...

'', Vol. 39 No. 1 (Spring 1995), p. 20. In 1962,

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

theater manager Richard Fullmer obtained permission from Thompson, publisher Reilly & Lee, and the Baum estate to adapt the book. (Fullmer had previously produced his own adaptation of Baum's original ''Wizard of Oz''.) Fullmer's version was premiered at the Sacramento Civic Theater in February 1963; it blended live actors with puppets for non-human characters like the Comfortable Camel. Fullmer's adaptation was later revised by Christopher Sterling. This version was regularly acted at the annual conventions of the

International Wizard of Oz Club The International Wizard of Oz Club, Inc., was founded during 1957 by Justin G. Schiller, a then thirteen-year-old boy. The sixteen charter members, some of whom continue to make valuable contributions to the club, were garnered from the mailing ...

References

External links

*
On ''The Yellow Knight of Oz''
Oz (franchise) books 1930 American novels 1930 children's books 1930 fantasy novels Fictional knights {{1930s-child-novel-stub