This name was later established by Ruth Plumly Thompson , who took over as the "Royal Historian of Oz" after Baum's death. She introduced the name in her 1928 novel, The Giant Horse of Oz .
The Wicked Witch of the East ruled the Munchkins with terror. The Wicked Witch of the West ruled the Winkies with fire and wolves. Glinda, the Good Witch of the South, ruled the Quadlings but was largely isolationist. And Locasta? Locasta held the North—a buffer zone against the most dangerous threats from the western mountains. locasta tattypoo
The next time you watch the 1939 film, and Glinda floats down in her bubble to ask, “Are you a good witch or a bad witch?” remember: that was Locasta’s line. That was Locasta’s kiss. And somewhere in the Gillikin Country, an old woman in a ruby-tipped hat is smiling, knowing that the road she set Dorothy upon led not just to Oz, but to a home worth fighting for. This name was later established by Ruth Plumly
Locasta Tattypoo is the official name often used by Oz enthusiasts and historians for the character known as the . While she is a foundational figure in L. Frank Baum’s classic literature, her character is frequently misunderstood or entirely omitted in popular media adaptations, most notably the 1939 MGM film The Wizard of Oz . Origins and Naming History The Wicked Witch of the West ruled the
The name “Tattypoo” is one of Baum’s most delightful inventions—part nonsense, part implied history. In later Oz books (particularly Ruth Plumly Thompson’s and Baum’s own The Tin Woodman of Oz ), we learn that Locasta is not a sorceress by accident. The Tattypoo family has served the North for generations, often intermarrying with the ruling fairy dynasties of Oz.
Is Locasta Tattypoo a:
And that is precisely why later Oz authors marginalized her. The post-Baum Oz canon (especially the Thompson and Neill books) favored glamour and spectacle. A elderly, pragmatic sorceress who does paperwork? Give us Glinda, with her chariot of rubies and army of maidens. Locasta faded into footnotes, appearing only in adaptations that respect Baum’s original text, like the 1985 film Return to Oz (where she appears briefly in the background of Mombi’s hall) or the 2007 comic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young.
