RANSON, W.Va. - Rob Payne, 53, and his wife, Debra, 52, have loved "The Wizard of Oz" for years.

Walk into their Ranson home and you're bound to see Oz memorabilia (along with collectibles from another 1939 film, "Gone with the Wind").

When L. Frank Baum's children's book "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" leapt from book to movie screen 70 years ago, "The Wizard of Oz" became an instant classic.

With its iconic images - ruby-red slippers, flying monkeys and the Lollipop Guild - and much- loved songs, "Over the Rainbow" and "If I Only Had A Brain," "The Wizard of Oz" continues to be a favorite film.

And for the Paynes, their love of the film is no exception.

Debra said she saw the film on TV as a child, but that was before TV sets caught up to the color of film.

"I was the first to see it in color," she said, referring to husband Rob and herself. She thinks she saw it about 1963. It debuted on TV in 1956.

"I think the first time I saw it was around Easter time," Rob said. He said he remembers being scared of it, "especially the witch and the flying monkeys."

For the interview, the Paynes pulled out some "Wizard of Oz" memorabilia.

"It's only one-tenth of what we have," Debra said.

One of her favorite pieces is an original 1939 advertising postcard for "El Mago De Oz" - Spanish for "The Wizard of Oz." They also have some earlier memorabilia, such as copies of Oz books that pre-date the movie, some dating as early as 1902.

Debra has been teaching for 32 years at Wright Denny Intermediate School in Charles Town, W.Va., as a special education teacher. She has made Oz a part of her classroom by reading the book to the class and watching the movie.

Tin Man needs a heart

A Halloween photo shows the entire family, which includes daughter Katlyn, 17, and son Logan, 14, dressed up for "The Wizard of Oz." Rob is dressed as the Tin Man.

"That's before he needed a heart," Debra said.

Rob Payne, after working for 23 years at Fort Detrick in Frederick, Md., became a teacher at Charles Town Middle School and Jefferson High School in Jefferson County, W.Va. But four years later, his health forced him to retire. Rob had his first heart attack after he turned 40 in 1996.

"I just thought it was the flu," he said.

At first, he was diagnosed with cold-air asthma, until doctors realized he actually had had a heart attack.

"I said, 'Really? That explains a lot,'" he said. Three years later, Rob was diagnosed with congestive heart failure. "My local doctor said I was the sickest youngest guy he ever had,'" he said.

Concerned, his doctor sent him to Johns Hopkins Medical Center. While Debra was waiting for her husband in the waiting room, the doctors told her to notify the next of kin. Then Rob walked into the room.

"They told me I wouldn't see the leaves change," he said.

"It was numbing," Debra said.

Mechanical assistance

Rob said he started to drop weight quickly - from 351 pounds to 230 pounds. But doctors said he was losing weight too fast. Rob received a pacemaker and defibrillator to help slow his heart rate and slow down his weight loss. Then he received a new medical device.

The first time the Paynes heard about the Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD) was in May 2007, just a month before Rob was fitted with one. Doctors told him his only hope was to have an LVAD.

Rob must wear the LVAD, which is a battery-operated, mechanical pump-type advice that is surgically implanted into Rob's chest.

According to the American Heart Association, a LVAD has a tube that pulls blood from the left ventricle into a pump. That pump then sends blood to the aorta and the rest of the body. This helps the weakened ventricle. The pump is surgically placed in the upper part of the abdomen. Another tube is then attached to the pump and brought through the abdomen wall to the outside of the body. There the tube is attached to the pump's battery and control system.

The LVAD is entirely portable, Rob wears a 12-pound vest that contains the battery. Though the LVAD helps with his quality of life, Rob knows it's not a permanent fix.

"My only hope is for a heart transplant," he said.

Home is where the heart is

Rob was hesitant even to be considered for a heart transplant.

"You would have to convince me that I wasn't taking from a 10-year-old girl," he said.

In May 2009, Rob suffered a stroke, which led to rehabilitation and physical therapy. Through it all, Rob has to have monthly visits with his transplant coordinator to make sure he's taking care of himself. And he's waiting to be put on the transplant list.

"I'll do whatever Johns Hopkins tells me to do," he said.

That includes limiting how far away he is from the hospital, just in case they get the call that a heart is available.

Because it's more than just blood type that goes into matching the right heart donor and recipient, Rob knows it might be a wait.

"I hope I'll have a heart," he said. "... you have to stay positive."

And, positive is what the family has been, especially as they talk about their beloved movie.

Debra said what she likes about "The Wizard of Oz" is the movie's message: Whatever's going on in your life, it might not be better elsewhere.

"The grass isn't always greener on the other side," she said.

As for Rob, there's another message.

"There's no place like home," Rob said. "I learned that a lot being in rehab with the stroke. There's truly no place like home."

'Wizard of Oz' facts

Dorothy was 11 in the books, but Judy Garland was 16.

To make the horses of a different color, the team used Jell-O that the horses wanted to lick off

Shirley Temple was first considered for the role of Dorothy

Director Victor Fleming was actually pulled off the last few weeks of "The Wizard of Oz" to direct "Gone with the Wind."

Dorothy's slippers were silver in the books, but was changed to red to take advantage of Technicolor.

Toto was actually a female Cairn Terrier named Terry. She appeared on several other movies including "The Buccaneer"

"The Jitterbug scene" was deleted from the movie.

Ray Bolger was originally cast as the Tin Man, but he wanted to play the Scarecrow because his childhood idol, Fred Stone, had created the role on Broadway.

Buddy Ebsen, later of "Beverly Hillbillies" fame, was cast as the Tin Man after Bolger switched characters, but had a severe reaction to the aluminum dust used in the make-up. He was replaced by Jack Haley, but Epsen's voice is still on "We're Off to See the Wizard."

Margaret Hamilton, who was the Wicked Witch of the West, actually was a kindergarten teacher before she started acting.

There were 124 Munchkins in "The Wizard of Oz," most of whom never received credit.

Toto was paid $125 per week, while the Munchkins received $50 each.

Dorothy's dress wasn't white, but actually a pale pink because true white didn't properly film well.

"Over the Rainbow" was nearly cut from the film because the movie was running long.

- International Movie Data Base

'Wizard of Oz' timeline

1900 - L. Frank Baum writes "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz"

1903 - "The Wizard of Oz" becomes a Broadway show and tours for seven years.

1904 - Baum writes the sequel, "The Marvelous Land of Oz." He writes a total of 14 Oz books.

1910 - "The Wizard of Oz" is first put to screen as a one-reel silent film, which was produced by Col. William Selig.

1919 - Baum dies in Hollywood, but six other authors between 1921 to 1963 continue to write his books. Officially there are 40 titles in the series.

1925 - Baum's oldest son helps Larry Semon in a full-length silent-screen production of "The Wizard of Oz."

1933 - Samuel Goldwyn wants to have a Technicolor film production of a musical "Wizard of Oz," with songs by Irving Berlin. It isn't realized.

1939 - "The Wizard of Oz" becomes a full-length Technicolor film.

1940 - The film is nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture; it receives two Oscars as well as a special award for Judy Garland.

1949 - "The Wizard of Oz" is reissued. It is reissued again in 1955.

1956 - "The Wizard of Oz" becomes the first major Hollywood movie to be shown on network television.

1959 - The film begins annual telecasts and is still shown today on TBS and TCM.

1975 - "The Wiz," an urbanized adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz," opens on Broadway. It runs for four years and wins seven Tony awards.

1978 - "The Wiz" is adapted for the big screen, starring Michael Jackson and Diana Ross.

1980 - "The Wizard of Oz" is released on home video.

1981 - Judy Garland's 1939 version of "Over the Rainbow" enters The Grammy Hall of Fame.