Dorothy, fictional character, the youthful heroine of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900; film 1939), a book-length tale for children by L. Frank Baum, and most of its sequels. Dorothy’s down-to-earth Kansas upbringing serves her well in the fantastic Land of Oz, where she travels in the company of the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, the Cowardly Lion, and her little dog Toto.