The Top 10 Wizards of All Time

Somehow, not too long ago, Wizards made a huge come back. For a good while they were delegated to history and myth and only really read about in Dungeons and Dragons novels. Now, however, you can't chuck a dead cat without plugging a wizard hanging about in some form of entertainment. And since that appears to be the case, here are the top 10 wizards of all time. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

10) 'The Wizard'

What's 'The Wizard' you ask? Well, I do believe this clip completely speaks for itself. Well, just saying 'Fred Savage' makes my heart ache.

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9) Don Herbert - 'Mr. Wizard'

If you didn't grow up watching Don Herbert as Mr. Wizard on Nickelodeon, I just feel sorry for you. This and shows like 'You Can't Do that on Television' and 'Double Dare' with the eponymous Mark Summers launched Nickelodeon into the stratosphere. I loved Mr. Wizard.

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8) Thomas Edison - 'The Wizard of Menlo Park'

Yay, Dearborn! I'm a little bias since I'm from Kalamazoo, not too far away, so his inclusion on this list was a no-brainer. Also I enjoy light bulbs.

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7) Harry Dresden

Based on the Jim Butcher novels, Paul Blackthorn took the reigns of the Harry Dresden character for Sci-Fi Chanel's, 'The Dresden Files'. Unfortunately for the fans -me being one of them- Sci-Fi has chosen to go with an all 'Original Movie Bullshit' format and ditch the Dresden Files. Fuck them. Anyway, he is a cool-ass wizard.

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6) Voldemort

Fuck you, Dumbledore! I, for one, am glad you get the shove off before the series even concludes! Voldy fucking rules and you know it! Yeah, I'm a bit bitter about the anti-climactic finale from The Deathly Hallows... screw you, Rowling!

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5) 'Pinball Wizard' - Tommy (The Who)

Supple wrists and all, it's really difficult to deny The Who's Tommy as one of the greatest wizards of all time, even if it was just for a pinball game. Or perhaps because of it.

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4) Merlin

One of my favorite Disney movies of all time and, of course, loosely based on the King Arthur mythology, The Sword in the Stone really gives the watcher a more light-hearted look into the life and times of Merlin. Also, find yourself a clip of Archimedes laughing his ass off, very funny.

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3) Gandalf

Easily one of history's greatest wizard characters, Tolkein's books brought Gandalf to mind's sight as Jackson's visuals brought him to a closer reality. This particular battle was one of the finest one-on-one battles in the entire movie series. Gandalf is what most people think of when wizards are mentioned. Well, except for Harry Potter, I guess. Oh well.

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2) Wizards of the Coast - Magic the Gathering & Dungeons and Dragons

I will freely admit that, for a time (back when it all began), Magic was a sickness. I bought so many damn packs of those cards that I felt like I was hooked on some kind of illicit drug. So, thanks to you guys there at Wizards of the Coast, I lost just a little bit of my life. Oh, and with D&D, owned by TSR when I rocked it, that was almost as big of a part of my teen-age years. All of you should be ashamed.

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1) The Wizard of Oz

L. Frank Baum and MGM literally teamed up in 1934 to bring the world one of the greatest movies ever made. The Wizard making himself known as just a meager, nearly-human, freely imperfect man at the end was perfect and made us all believe that magic can truly exist.