Raking in the big big bucks is a musical that made me do something weird when I went to see it.

Many years ago, two great friends of mine sent me a book by Gregory Maguire titled Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. It was a birthday gift, along with an amazing surprise. They were flying me out to Chicago - where they lived and we were going to see the show based on the book!

To be honest, the book is not an easy read. We grew up with the story of Dorothy and the land of OZ. Maquire's book digs deeper and at times it is tedious. So I skimmed through much of it hoping I'd have at least some background for seeing the musical.

"Wicked" blew me away. I also found myself sobbing uncontrollably while my friends and the people around us shushed me! Confession: I'm adopted, and the true struggles of Elphaba ( the Wicked Witch ) her loss and loneliness evidently hit me some place deep. Apparently, shushing aside, I'm not the only one touched by this story.

According to Variety.com, "Wicked" has hit the one-billion-dollar mark in ticket sales faster than any other show on Broadway. It's taken "Wicked" just 12-and-a-half years to reach that rare milestone, after opening in 2003. "The Lion King," crossed the billion-dollar mark in 2013, the first Broadway show to do so, but it took 16 years. "The Phantom of the Opera" followed in 2015, 27 years after its 1988 debut.

Further great news for fans of "Wicked," moviepilot.com, says it should hit the big screen this year. I promise to sit in the back of the theater by myself sobbing quietly!

Listen to Pam Brooks weekdays from 10-3PM on 95.1 FM, online ati95rock.com/listen-live/ or by downloading the radioPup app for your mobile device.

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