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Any fans?
Only months before her death...
Only months before her death...
Judy Garland
- Thread starter Snarky Oracle!
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I’ve always been a big fan of hers. I think at first it was mainly because I was such a huge fan of The Wizard of Oz growing up but as the years went on I began appreciating her more for the other aspects of her career. Too short of a life and a very sad ending for such a great entertainer.
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I don't like musicals enough to classify myself as a fan of Judy Garland, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate her vast talent. She was one of the most dynamic performers to come out of the Studio System. Also one of the most tragic, even more so than Marilyn. The system didn't do Monroe any favors, but she wasn't destroyed by Hollywood; her demons were her own. But Judy was crushed by the system that exploited her: pumped full of drugs by MGM to keep her thin and busy, then blamed and discarded when her addictions made her unreliable. At what should have been her peak in the late 40s/early 50s, she was already crumbling.
All of which adds a sense of melancholy to even her early, joyous work. It's hard to watch even THE WIZARD OF OZ without a sense of the sadness ahead of young Dorothy.
My indifference to musicals aside, MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS is a late addition to my holiday roster of films and the only one I bothered to watch this year.
All of which adds a sense of melancholy to even her early, joyous work. It's hard to watch even THE WIZARD OF OZ without a sense of the sadness ahead of young Dorothy.
My indifference to musicals aside, MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS is a late addition to my holiday roster of films and the only one I bothered to watch this year.
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And it just looks so damned good!
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I thought she was great in Judgment At Nuremberg. They were all great in this so it doesn't actually stand out from the rest, but somehow it's become the most memorable part for me.
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I'm actually old enough to remember the news of her death; my older brother showed me the notice in the paper when we were in the den which had recently been my childhood bedroom and would eventually be my bedroom once again, before reverting to a den once I moved out of the house.
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Judy Garland was one of the first classic movie stars I was introduced to as a kid. I remember the lot of us watching THE WIZARD OF OZ at my Granny's when I was probably six or seven years old. My aunts, my cousins, and of course, my dad, threw out some trivia that new about the film -- like when it came out, how old Judy was when she played Dorothy, etc -- and they shared some urban legends, too, like the man hanging from a tree in the background of one of the reprisals of "We're Off to See the Wizard".
For a long time, that's where my admiration for Judy rested, but over the years, especially as my fondness for classic movie musicals has grown, my love for her has also grown. Judy Garland is easily one of the most talented performers from Hollywood's Golden Age, and she's also one of the most tragic. She was thrown for a tough regimen and diet from her earliest days at MGM, spent decades feeling ugly because the studio head-honchos told her so, and was addicted to uppers and downers because they were handed to her before she was old enough to drive. Still, she was the biggest moneymaker MGM had during the 1940s, making a string of hits, like MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, EASTER PARADE, and SUMMER STOCK. She gave some fine dramatic performances in A STAR IS BORN, JUDGMENT AT NUREMBURG, and I COULD GO ON SINGING. Her variety show might've lasted a single season in the early-60s, but provided us with many iconic moments.
I cannot put into words just how talented Judy was, and how much I appreciate her contributions to film, television, and song. She was a true performer, exploited and used up by the Dream Factory.
For a long time, that's where my admiration for Judy rested, but over the years, especially as my fondness for classic movie musicals has grown, my love for her has also grown. Judy Garland is easily one of the most talented performers from Hollywood's Golden Age, and she's also one of the most tragic. She was thrown for a tough regimen and diet from her earliest days at MGM, spent decades feeling ugly because the studio head-honchos told her so, and was addicted to uppers and downers because they were handed to her before she was old enough to drive. Still, she was the biggest moneymaker MGM had during the 1940s, making a string of hits, like MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, EASTER PARADE, and SUMMER STOCK. She gave some fine dramatic performances in A STAR IS BORN, JUDGMENT AT NUREMBURG, and I COULD GO ON SINGING. Her variety show might've lasted a single season in the early-60s, but provided us with many iconic moments.
I cannot put into words just how talented Judy was, and how much I appreciate her contributions to film, television, and song. She was a true performer, exploited and used up by the Dream Factory.
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THE WIZARD OF OZ used to air in the States every Thanksgiving for decades. It's where I was first introduced to her.
I mean, not personally introduced to her. She never came to my house or anything, and if she did I'd be very nice to her and probably take pictures, but I'd lock my medicine cabinet before she got there if I knew she was coming.
I mean, not personally introduced to her. She never came to my house or anything, and if she did I'd be very nice to her and probably take pictures, but I'd lock my medicine cabinet before she got there if I knew she was coming.
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JUDGMENT AT NUREMBURG, which I've yet to actually see, seems to have pulled out some good performances from, not only Judy Garland, but from practically everyone involved -- Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich, Montgomery Clift, Maximillian Schell, William Shatner, etc.