Ariana Grande Tears Up Holding Original Glinda Wand from 1939’s Wizard of Oz, on Loan from a Private Collector
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Ariana Grande recently received the surprise of a lifetime.
During her appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show set to air Thursday, Dec. 5, the Wicked actress was presented with her character Glinda’s wand from the 1939 classic The Wizard of Oz.
“I have something that’s extremely exciting and special,” announced Barrymore, 49, in a preview of her interview with Grande, 31. “It was owned by the Smithsonian and now it’s owned in private hands. But for the purposes of our sit down, they loaned it to us. Bring out the original Glinda wand, please!”
Seeing the star-topped wand, used by Billie Burke as Glinda the Good Witch in The Wizard of Oz, brought Grande immediately to tears. “Thank you so much,” she said. “Are you serious right now?” She then jokingly walked off with the prop, quipping, “Thank you, guys, it’s been fun. Bye!”
“You look so perfect with it,” said Barrymore.
Grande plays Galinda Upland, the future Glinda the Good Witch, in the Jon M. Chu-directed Wicked, the two-part, stage-to-screen adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. Burke, who died in 1970 at age 85, brought the bubbly witch to life in the Judy Garland-starring film originally based on L. Frank Baum’s Oz books.
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“How did you pull this off?” a tearful Grande asked the talk show host. “Oh, my God, did you break in?”
“I have to give credit to everyone on the show because literally we were so excited about you coming here,” responded Barrymore. “That is the original wand from The Wizard of Oz. So there you go.”
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Glinda’s magic wand isn’t the only prop of value from the classic film. Garland’s iconic ruby slippers were put up for auction last month nearly two decades after they were stolen from Minnesota’s Judy Garland Museum in 2005. Also up for auction is the pointy hat worn by Margaret Hamilton as the Wicked Witch of the West.
Wicked: Part One stars Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Oz’s future wicked witch and enemy-turned-friend of Glinda. It costars Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard and more. Part Two will arrive in theaters on Nov. 26, 2025. Go behind the scenes of Wicked with PEOPLE’s new special issue available here.
The full Drew Barrymore Show segment with Grande will air on Thursday, Dec. 5. The show airs weekdays on CBS.
