Judy Garland’s Life and Career in Photos

Born Frances Ethel Gumm on June 10, 1922, Judy Garland was the daughter of Ethel and Frank Gumm, both vaudeville performers who got together and settled in Grand Rapids, Michigan, to manage a movie theater. At just 2 years old, Garland began her career on the stage after appearing with her family to sing the chorus of “Jingle Bells” during a Christmas show at the family’s movie theater.

When she was 4, the family moved to Los Angeles County after rumors of Frank partaking in a gay extramarital affair came to light. Shortly after relocating, the family opened another movie theater, and Ethel got to work helping her precocious daughters—Mary Jane, Dorothy Virginia, and Frances Ethel—break into show business as musical trio The Gumm Sisters.

Following a handful of film roles and a slew of tour performances as The Gumm Sisters, the group officially changed their name to The Garland Sisters after singer George Jessel suggested the trio take on a “more appealing” name. Although the exact origins of the Garland last name remain unclear, by the end of 1934, the three siblings were performing as The Garland Sisters. Soon after, Frances decided to change her first name to “Judy” after a Hoagy Carmichael song. The group disbanded in August 1935 after Mary Jane eloped to Reno, Nevada, with musician Lee Kahn.

Arguably the most ubiquitous piece of media produced in the past century, Garland was cast as Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz when she was 16 years old after actors Shirley Temple and Deanna Durbin passed on the part. Despite the film’s cheery tone, production on Oz was rife with issues including the alleged abuse of Garland through deprivation of sleep and food, as well as reports she was slapped in the face by director Viktor Fleming when she couldn’t suppress her laughter during a take.

Despite the movie’s instantaneous popularity, production costs ballooned so exorbitantly that The Wizard of Oz didn’t turn a profit until its subsequent rereleases years later. A marvel in every sense of the word, Garland’s unforgettable performance ingrained itself almost immediately into the public’s consciousness, solidifying her as a Hollywood icon and earning the young actor her first and only Oscar. The Academy Juvenile Award recognized her performances in both The Wizard of Oz and Babes in Arms.

Eager to capitalize on Garland’s nascent megastardom and feeling that she had outgrown her girl-next-door image, MGM almost immediately began casting Garland in more adult roles like in 1942’s For Me and My Gal with Gene Kelly and 1943’s Presenting Lily Mars. Throughout Garland’s time at MGM, her personal and professional lives were meticulously controlled by the studio, which went so far as to reportedly strong-arm the star to terminate two pregnancies executives felt would interfere with her career and ability to turn a profit for the studio.

While working on the 1944 musical comedy Meet Me In St Louis, Garland began a relationship with the film’s director, Vincente Minelli, after separating from her first husband, musician David Rose. Minelli and Garland wed in June 1945 and welcomed their daughter, Liza Minelli, on March 12, 1946.

Garland’s mental health deteriorated during the production of the MGM movie musical The Pirate. A marked departure from her previous work, Garland was initially excited by her role, though this enthusiasm dissipated very quickly once shooting commenced. During production, Garland suffered a nervous breakdown due to years of substance abuse, exhaustion from studio work schedules, and depression, and attempted suicide in 1947. Featuring former co-star Gene Kelly as the swashbuckling male lead and under the direction of then-husband Vincente Minelli, The Pirate was primed to be a box office smash, but delays relating to Garland’s stint in a private sanatorium and creative differences amongst production made the movie incredibly costly.

Despite just coming off the hugely emotionally taxing production of The Pirate, Garland was right back to work and starred alongside Fred Astaire in the 1948 movie musical Easter Parade. A critical and commercial hit, Easter Parade reinvigorated both stars’ careers, returning them to the good graces of MGM. Anxious to pair Garland and Astaire back together for another box-office hit, MGM immediately cast both actors in the lead roles in the musical comedy The Barkleys of Broadway.

Almost immediately after production on The Barkleys of Broadway commenced, Garland again began abusing drugs and alcohol, eventually leading to her suspension and replacement with actor Ginger Rogers. Following a series of increasingly disastrous productions, Garland’s contract with MGM was officially terminated in September 1950, ending her 15-year stint at the studio. Shortly after being let go by MGM, Garland and Vincente Minelli separated, finalizing their divorce in early 1951.

After recovering from a second suicide attempt, Garland was invited by her longtime friend Bing Crosby to make a series of appearances on various musical variety shows he was hosting at the time. Garland’s appearances on the show revived her floundering career and catalyzed her to undertake a hugely successful months-long concert tour of England, Scotland, and Ireland. A return to Garland’s vaudevillian roots, the tour culminated in a record-breaking appearance at Manhattan’s Palace Theatre, helping earn her a special Tony Award for her work reviving the vaudeville genre. Shortly after her divorce from Minelli was finalized, Garland married her tour manager Sidney Luft, later giving birth to a daughter, Lorna, in 1952 and a son, Joey, in 1955.

Emboldened by her successes, Garland made her long-awaited Hollywood comeback after assuming the lead role in the 1954 film A Star Is Born, a remake of the 1937 film of the same name (subsequent remakes starred Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson in 1976, and Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper in 2018). Produced by Garland and then-husband Sidney Luft’s production company, Transcona Enterprises, A Star Is Born quickly ran into issues with Garland’s attendance, leading to several delays in shooting and production going far over budget. Despite the film’s massive critical and commercial success, it failed to turn a profit, leaving Garland in a precarious financial position.

Garland received an Academy Award nomination for her performance and was presumed to be a shoo-in, but she lost the award to actor Grace Kelly for The Country Girl. Having just given birth to her son, Joey, Garland’s win was so widely assumed that a film crew was sent to the hospital room to broadcast her acceptance speech.

After garnering disappointing returns on A Star Is Born, Garland returned to television, making a series of lucrative appearances for CBS in the mid-1950s before negotiations between Luft and the network deteriorated. Following a slew of acclaimed performances, the star was admitted to the hospital, diagnosed with acute hepatitis, and told by doctors she most likely had less than five years to live remaining. Garland spent months recovering and didn’t return to the stage until August 1960, almost a year after her first hospital admission.

However, it was only after this bout of illness that Garland performed her greatest show to date at Carnegie Hall on April 23, 1961. Often described as one of the greatest performances in show business history, Garland’s corresponding two-record album, aptly titled Judy at Carnegie Hall, was certified gold and won four Grammy Awards.

With the help of her new agent Freddie Fields, Garland got back into the good graces of CBS and created a weekly musical variety show called The Judy Garland Show. Although the variety show was acclaimed and received four Emmy nominations, it was canceled after just one season in 1964. During the production of The Judy Garland Show, Judy engaged in an extramarital affair with actor Glenn Ford, a contributing factor to her eventual divorce from Sidney Luft in 1963.

Still in a dire financial situation following the show’s cancellation, Garland returned to the stage and held a series of successful shows alongside her teenage daughter, Liza. Except for a disastrous show at Sydney Stadium during the tour’s Australian leg, Garland’s performances were generally well-received. Garland later married her tour promoter, Mark Herron, but the couple separated after just five months of marriage in 1966.

After being fired from Valley of the Dolls, Garland returned to the stage with a series of concerts at New York’s Palace Theatre alongside two of her children, Lorna and Joey Luft. Despite her health having deteriorated significantly by this time, Garland continued to perform and did a five-week stint of performances at the London club Talk of the Town shortly before marrying her fifth and final husband, Mickey Deans, just 10 days before her final performance in Copenhagen.

On June 22, 1969, Garland was found dead in the bathroom of her rented London home by her husband Mickey Dean. A coroner’s inquest found Garland had died from an unintentional overdose of barbiturates she’d been prescribed. She was just 47 years old.

When her remains were returned to New York City, more than 20,000 fans came to show their respect. Originally laid to rest in Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York, Garland’s remains were disinterred and subsequently reburied at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles in early 2017.

A once-in-a-lifetime talent, Garland’s otherworldly gift was one she gave readily, freely, and with uncompromising warmth. Plagued by self-doubt throughout her entire career, Garland’s vulnerability became one of her defining features when connecting with audiences on screen and stage. Her tenacity and pugnacious determination endeared her to audiences as her refusal to be bested reflected a near-perfect projection of their own experiences and insecurities. Arguably the most singularly impactful entertainer of the 20^th century, Garland rejected the public’s perception of her as a tragic figure and instead basked in the propulsive effervescence of her raw, unadulterated talent.