In Mid-June of 1939 it was played in theatres in southern California to gauge the reaction of the audience. It wasn't completely edited yet. The first publicized showing of the edited film was at the Strand theater in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin on August 12, 1939. The official premiere was at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on August 15. Most of the cast and crew along with a bunch of Hollywood celebrities attended. Judy Garland didn't attend, She was with Mickey Rooney on the East Coast rehearsing a vaudeville act.

The movie was first seen in Canada on September 14, 1939. Spanish and Portuguese language versions opened in Latin America on November 19. The first European release was in December of 1939 in Great Britain.