Kabumpo, the Elegant Elephant of Pumperdink, is a fictional character in the ''Oz'' books of

Ruth Plumly Thompson Ruth Plumly Thompson (27 July 1891 – 6 April 1976) was an American writer of children's stories, best known for writing many novels placed in Oz, the fictional land of L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' ...

. Jack Snow, ''Who's Who in Oz'', Chicago, Reilly & Lee, 1954; New York, Peter Bedrick Books, 1988; p. 115.

History

Kabumpo first appears in '' Kabumpo in Oz'', Thompson's second ''Oz'' book. He was originally a christening gift to the king of Pumperdink, Pompus. He reappears to play major roles in ''

The Lost King of Oz ''The Lost King of Oz'' (1925) is the nineteenth in the series of Oz books created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the fifth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was Illustrated by John R. Neill. The book went into the public domain on ...

, The Purple Prince of Oz'', and '' The Silver Princess in Oz''. He had a less consequential role in ''

The Wishing Horse of Oz ''The Wishing Horse of Oz'' (1935) is the twenty-ninth in the series of Oz books created by L. Frank Baum and his successors, and the fifteenth written by Ruth Plumly Thompson. It was Illustrated by John R. Neill. This book marked the point at ...

''. Thompson's illustrator John R. Neill made Kabumpo a denizen of the

Emerald City The Emerald City (sometimes called the City of Emeralds) is the capital city of the fictional Land of Oz in L. Frank Baum's Oz books, first described in ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900). Fictional description Located in the center of the L ...

, attended by Ojo, in his contributions to the series. In 1980 Eloise Jarvis McGraw and Lauren Lynn McGraw borrowed the character for '' The Forbidden Fountain of Oz'', published by th
International Wizard of Oz Club.
Kabumpo is known for his wisdom in Pumperdink, but that might be because he shines in comparison with other members of the court. He is overbearing, sarcastic, and extremely vain, but good-hearted. Since the expiration of his first novel's copyright on 1 January 1998 (the last Thompson book to enter the public domain before the Copyright Extension Act took hold), Kabumpo may be used freely by any author. Of his Thompsonian appearances, only ''Purple Prince'' remains under copyright, with the expiration date being 1 January 2028.

References

Literary characters introduced in 1922 Elephants in literature Kabumpo Animals of Oz Fictional elephants Male characters in literature {{fantasy-char-stub