>>>>It also hits some of those deep childhood anxieties in a way that is unsettling even to adults. (Then again, so did "The Wizard of Oz").
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>>>Ah, "The Wizard of Oz" ... one of my all-time favorites when I was a kid. I don't remember what age I was when I first saw it, but I distinctly remember that the Wicked Witch was featured predominantly in the very first nightmare I ever remember having. <g>
>>>
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>>Yup. I thought the flying monkeys were creepy, too.
>
>Now you guys have caused me trauma as I flashback to my first childhood fear - the whale in Pinnochio. Still remember the picture book where are big scary whale was coming up out of the water and how I learned to skip that page on subsequent readings. ( actually flashed on it once when on a boat looking at the ocean and was embarrased to explain to my current wife why I had suddenly turned pale )
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>To this day I can't bring myself to give money to Greenpeace <s>

I think your nose is growing a tad here!