Born June 10, 1922 in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, Judy Garland, née Frances Ethel Gumm, was the youngest of three sisters known professionally as The Gumm Sisters.  The sisters appeared in three short films between 1929 and 1930.

Signed by MGM in 1935 when she was just 13 years old, Garland had a rapid climb to success beginning with her first film, 1936’s Pigskin Parade, quickly followed by six more films including Everybody Sing, Love Finds Andy Hardy and Listen Darling before 1939’s The Wizard of Oz made her a major star at just 16, earning her an honorary Oscar.  1939’s Babes in Arms and 1940’s Strike Up the Band, both opposite Mickey Rooney, solidified her star status, and 1940’s Little Nellie Kelly proved that she could be effective in highly dramatic scenes as well as romantic and comedic ones.

In 1941, Garland married composer Davis Rose while the hits kept coming with such films as 1941’s Ziegfeld Girl co-starring Lana Turner, Hedy Lamarr, and James Stewart; 1942’s For Me and My Gal co-starring Gene Kelly and George Murphy; 1943’s Presenting Lily Mars co-starring Van Heflin; and 1943’s Girl Crazy co-starring Mickey Rooney.

In 1944, Garland divorced Rose and met Vincente Minnelli who directed her in that year’s Meet Me in St. Louis co-starring Margaret O’Brien, Lucille Bremer, Mary Astor and Tom Drake; and 1945’s The Clock, her first non-musical, opposite Robert Walker.  Their daughter, Liza Minnelli, was born the following year.

Garland’s workload slowed considerably in the late 1940s but her films were still top box-office gems such as The Harvey Girls co-starring John Hodiak, Ray Bolder, and Angela Lansbury; Till the Clouds Roll By, the all-star Jerome Kern biopic in which she played Marilyn Miller; The Pirate opposite Gene Kelly; Easter Parade opposite Fred Astaire; Words and Music, the Richard Hart-Richard Rogers musical in which she played herself; and In the Good Old Summertime, the musical version of The Shop Around the Corner opposite Van Johnson.

Garland’s last film for MGM was 1950’s Summer Stock opposite Gene Kelly.  She recorded the songs for the film version of Irving Berlin’s Annie Get Your Gun but was fired for health reasons and replaced by Betty Hutton.  In 1951, she and Minnelli were divorced.  She married producer Sid Luft in 1952 who produced her stage concerts.  They had two children, Lorna and Joey Luft.

The singer-actress made a triumphant return to the screen in George Cukor’s 1954 musical remake of William Wellman’s 1937 film, A Star Is Born opposite James Mason.  Both Garland and Mason were nominated for Oscars.  Garland did not attend the Oscars as she was in the hospital recovering from giving birth to Joey.  She lost to Grace Kelly in The Country Girl.  Mason lost to Marlon Brando in On the Waterfront.

Garland did not make another film until 1961’s Judgment at Nuremberg for which she received a second Oscar nomination for her supporting performance, losing to Rita Moreno in West Side Story.

Garland would appear on screen in just two more films, both in 1963, first as a sympathetic teacher in an institute for mentally impaired children in A Child Is Waiting opposite Burt Lancaster and then as a world-famous singer in I Could Go on Singing opposite Dirk Bogarde.

Divorced for Luft in 1965, she was married to fouth husband Mark Herron from 1965-1969 and fifth husband Mickey Deans for three month in 1969 when she died less than two weeks after her 47^th birthday just as daughter Liza’s career was taking off.

ESSENTIAL FILMS

THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939), directed by Victor Fleming

Garland was Dorothy, the girl who dreamed of going “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and got her wish only to end up clicking her heels and saying three times. “there’s no place like home” in one of the most endearing and enduring films of all time.  Along the way, she met Ray Bolger as the scarecrow who only wanted a brain, Bert Lahr as the lion who lacked courage, and Jack Haley as the tin man who only wanted a heart, as well as Frank Morgan as the wonderful Wizard of Oz, who may or may not grant her wish, Billie Burke as Glinda the good witch, and most impressive of all, Margaret Hamilton as the wicked witch of the West.

LITTLE NELLIE KELLY (1940), directed by Norman Taurog

A St. Patrick’s Day perennial, this was the best of the many fine films Garland made between The Wizard of Oz and Meet Me in St. Louis.  She starts out as an Irish lass whose father (Charles Winninger) objects to her marrying hardworking George Murphy who intends to make his mark in America but ends up following them to New York where Murphy becomes a cop and Garland dies in childbirth.  It was the only film in which Garland ever died on screen.  Not to worry, though, because her daughter grows up to be Judy Garland as well where she belts the hell out of “It’s a Great Day for the Irish” with beau Douglas McPhail.

MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS  (1944), directed by Vincente Minnelli

Glorious from start to finish, it’s the turn of the twentieth century  and Garland and her four siblings (Margaret O’Brien, Lucille Bremer, Henry H. Daniels, Jr., Joan Carroll), their parents (Mary Astor, Leon Ames), grandfather (Harry Davenport), and cook (Marjorie Main) look forward to the world’s fair coming to their hometown.  Enter Tom Drake as “The Boy Next Door” that she becomes enthralled with as clang, clang, clang goes the trolley in “The Trolley Song” before she has to cheer up her despondent little sister by telling her to “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and they all sing the title song once again as do in the film’s opening.

EASTER PARADE (1948), directed by Charles Walters

 The biggest box-office of its year and easily the best of the numerous films made around the Irving Berlin songbook, this happy pairing of Garland with Fred Astaire only came about because of an injury Gene Kelly sustained while making The Pirate opposite Garland earlier in the year.  She and Astaire are pure magic together, especially dressed as bums while convincing themselves and us that they are a “A Couple of Swells”, and of course as they close out the film singing the title song as it has never been sung before or after.  Adding to the film’s merriment are Peter Lawford as “A Fella with an Umbrella” and Ann Miller who is constantly “Shakin’ the Blues Away”.

 A STAR IS BORN (1954), directed by George Cukor

 This was the second and best of the four films about the rise of a female star while her once more famous husband fades into obscurity.  Janet Gaynor and Fredric March were brilliant in the 1937 version for which they were both nominated for Oscars, having already previously won for other films.  For the equally brilliant Garland and James Mason, it would be the first time either had been nominated although Garland had, of course, already been given an honorary award from the Academy for The Wizard of Oz.  The film’s musical highlight is Garland singing “The Man Who Got Away”, topping and all musical moments from the film’s subsequent remakes.

JUDY GARLAND AND OSCAR

The Wizard of Oz (1939) – Honorary Award – Juvenile Performance

A Star Is Born (1954) – Nominated – Best Actress

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) – Nominated – Best Supporting Actress