ABSTRACT
Properties of a fan base are chosen because they have already generated interest. Fans can be very supportive but can also be anally critical of every little casting, production, or scheduling decision. In 1956 the original story of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz entered the public domain and has seen a series of reinventions and translations to all forms of media. Fred is a recent example of how to leverage a fan base into property expansion, in this case from new media into motion pictures, television and music. The challenge going forward for the property is to look beyond the existing universe as now defined by the movies for the mass audience. C. S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia has been adapted for a wide assortment of media including radio, television, the stage, film and video games. J. K. Rowling had overall approval on the film scripts as well as maintaining creative control by serving as a producer on the final installment. Her position as keeper of the flame allowed her to influence a wide variety of the scattered pieces of the intellectual property. An unusual convergence of circumstances that will be challenging to repeat given the industry's newfound awareness of what transmedia can mean to the bottom line and life of a property.
