She immediately attracted attention in such films as Pigskin Parade, Love Finds Andy Hardy and Broadway Melody of 1938, but Judy Garland didn't truly become a star until she was cast in The Wizard of Oz. Her performance as Dorothy won her a special Juvenile Oscar, and it was this role, of course, that gave her her most famous song, "Over the Rainbow." She then appeared in a long string of classic MGM musicals, including Meet Me in St. Louis, Easter Parade and several with her friend, Mickey Rooney. Unfortunately, the same studio that made her a star unwittingly made her a drug addict, providing her with amphetamines to keep her energy level high and her weight level down. This in turn kept her wide awake at night, unable to sleep, so she was given barbiturates to help her sleep. She soon couldn't live without these "wonder drugs." She also couldn't seem to live without a man, as she went through several affairs, often with older men, and by 1950 had been married twice, to bandleader David Rose and director Vincente Minnelli. She had a daughter, Liza Minnelli, with Vincente. All during this time her drug intake had increased dramatically, which led to increasingly erratic behavior and she often failed to show up on time at the studio. MGM eventually couldn't take it any more, and her contract was terminated in 1950. She divorced Minnelli the following year and married producer Sidney Luft. Luft, the father of her daughter Lorna Luft and son Joey Luft, took it upon himself to orchestrate her comeback with a series of very successful concert tours. He also produced the film A Star Is Born, in which many feel she gave her greatest performance. By now she was concentrating on her career as a singer, which was winning her more legions of fans. She continued touring throughout the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in three more films and starring in her own television variety show in 1963, which had to be canceled after one season because the competition, Bonanza, was too strong. She divorced Luft and married actor Mark Herron; she divorced him when she found out he was gay, and married disco manager Mickey Deans. Throughout this time, however, she still continued her dependency on prescription drugs, and finally the inevitable happened: on the night of June 22, 1969, she overdosed on barbiturates and died. Thousands mourned the world over. It was a sad way to end, but she has left a great legacy: her many films and recordings, as well as her children. Liza and Lorna are now singers as well, carrying on the family tradition.
Gay Purr-ee (1962): $50,000 + 10% gross
Judgment at Nuremberg (1961): $50,000
A Star Is Born (1954): $100,000 + 50% of profits
Summer Stock (1950): $150,000
Words and Music (1948): $100,000
Easter Parade (1948): $150,000
The Pirate (1948): $150,000
The Harvey Girls (1946): $3,000/week
When the Girls Meet the Boys (1943): $29,000
For Me and My Gal (1942): $2,000/week
Babes on Broadway (1941): $2,000/week
Strike Up the Band (1940): $500/week
Babes in Arms (1939): $8,900
The Wizard of Oz (1939): $500/week
Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938): $300/week
Thoroughbreds Don't Cry (1937): $300/week
Broadway Melody of 1938 (1937): $200/week
Every Sunday (1936): $100/week

She was considered an icon in the gay community in the 1950s and 1960s. Her death and the loss of that emotional icon in 1969 has been thought to be a contributing factor to the feeling of the passing of an era that helped spark the Stonewall Riots that began the militant gay rights movement. Sister of Mary Jane Gumm and Virginia Gumm. Mother of Liza Minnelli and Lorna Luft. She married Mark Herron on June 12th 1964, although her divorce from Sid Luft was not settled. They were married in the Mandarin by a Buddhist priest, and the validity of this marriage is not clear. Her record "Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall" from 1961 garnered 5 Grammy Awards and remained at the top of Billboards charts for two months. Footage exists of Garland performing the lead role in Annie Get Your Gun before she was fired, and this footage has been used in numerous documentaries. Originally screen-tested and signed to play in Valley of the Dolls; ultimately replaced by Susan Hayward. Her funeral was held 27 June 1969 in Manhattan at the Frank E. Campgell funeral home at Madison Avenue and Eighty-first Street. Twenty-two thousand people filed past Judy's open coffin over a twenty-four hour period. Judy's ex-husband, Vincente Minnelli did not attend the funeral. James Mason delivered the eulogy. Her body had been stored in a temporary crypt for over one year. The reason for this is that no one had come forward to pay the expense of moving her to a permanent resting spot at Ferncliff Cemetary in Ardsley, New York. Liza Minnelli has the impression that Judy's last husband, Mickey Deans has made the necessary arrangements but Deans claimed to have no money. Liza then took on the task of raising the funds to have her properly buried. Death was caused by an "incautious self-over-dosage of Seconal" which had raised the barbiturate level in her body beyond its tolerance. Interred at Ferncliff Cemetery, Hartsdale, New York, USA. Judy heard the same phrase in two movies: For Me and My Gal and Easter Parade. In both, her love interest (played by Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire, respectively) says this: "Why didn't you tell me I was in love with you?" The day she died, there was a tornado in Kansas. Liza Minnelli said that Judy planned on calling her autobiography "Ho-Hum". Her portrayal of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz was the inspiration for the character of Mary Ann on Gilligan's Island. (From Kansas, pigtails, lived on a farm with an aunt and uncle...) Mother of Joey Luft. Mother-in-law of Jack Haley Jr. Liza Minnelli originally wanted Mickey Rooney to deliver Garland's eulogy, but she was afraid that he wouldn't be able to get through it. So James Mason did it instead. According to singer Mel Tormé, she had a powerful gift of retention. She could view a piece of music once and have the entire thing memorized. In 1997, Judy Garland was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Garland's album, "Judy at Carnegie Hall" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998. First cousin three times removed of President 'Ulysses S. Grant' . A Los Angeles federal judge barred Sidney Luft from selling the replacement Juvenile Oscar she received for The Wizard of Oz. Luft was also ordered to pay nearly $60,000 to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to end their second lawsuit against him for repeatedly trying to sell the statuette. (September 2002) Favorite actor was Robert Donat (best known for his portrayal of the title character in the film Goodbye, Mr. Chips). Her soulful and iconic performance of "Over The Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz claimed the #1 spot on June 22, 2004 in The American Film Institute's list of "The 100 Years of The Greatest Songs". The AFI board said "Over The Rainbow" have captured the nation's heart, echoed beyond the walls of a movie theater, and ultimately stand in our collective memory of the film itself. It has resonated across the century, enriching America's film heritage and captivating artists and audiences today. She discouraged her children from entering show business pointing out her financial and health problems resulting from the nature of the entertainment business. Nevertheless, two of her children, Liza Minnelli and Lorna Luft both became entertainers. Her son, Joe lives in relative anonomity as a freelance photographer. She experienced financial difficulties in the 1960s due to her overspending, periods of unemployment, owing of back taxes and embezzlement of funds by her business manager. The IRS garnished most of her concert revenues in the late 1960s. Her financial difficulties combined with her erratic behavior due to her drug dependencies helped break up her marriages and estrange her children from her a year before her death. Was a member of The International Order of Job's Daughters. She was voted the 23rd Greatest Movie Star of all time by Entertainment Weekly. Groucho Marx called her not winning an Oscar for A Star Is Born, "the biggest robbery since Brink's." Hedda Hopper later reported that her loss to Grace Kelly for The Country Girl was the result of the closest Oscar vote up till that time that didn't end in a tie, with just six votes separating the two. In any event, it was a heartbreak from which she never really recovered and which has remained a matter of some controversy ever since. Wore fake teeth for The Wizard of Oz. Is the former mother-in-law of Jack Haley Jr., who is the son of The Wizard of Oz co-star Jack Haley. Has a special variety of rose named after her. The petals are yellow (Garland adored yellow roses) and the tips are bright red. It took devoted fans almost nine years after her death to find a rose company in Britain interested in naming a rose officially for her, and the Judy Garland rose didn't appear in the US until 1991. Several JG rose bushes are planted outside of her burial crypt, and at the Judy Garland museum in Grand Rapids. She was three-quarters Scottish and one-quarter Irish in ancestry. In 1952, received a Special Tony Award "for an important contribution to the revival of vaudeville through her recent stint at the Palace Theatre." When she married Vincente Minnelli, Louis B. Mayer gave her away. Her weight fluctuated much throughout her life. Sometimes she would be 80 pounds and then could gain 30 pounds in a a matter of days, only to lose it all again. An example of this weight fluctuation can be seen in Summer Stock. She was voted the 22nd Greatest Movie Star of all time by Premiere Magazine. Was named #8 Actress on The AFI 50 Greatest Screen Legends Pictured on one of four 25¢ USA commemorative postage stamps issued 23 March 1990 honoring classic films released in 1939. The stamp shows Judy Garland as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, along with Toto (portrayed by Terry). The other films honored were Beau Geste, Stagecoach, and Gone with the Wind. Is portrayed by Judy Davis and Tammy Blanchard in Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows, by Elizabeth Karsell in James Dean and by Andrea McArdle in Rainbow. "Quiet Please, There's A Lady On Stage" was written by Peter Allen as a tribute to Judy Garland. Was pregnant with her first child Liza Minnelli while filming her minor role in Till the Clouds Roll By. In order to hide her pregnant stomach she was hidden behind stacks of dishes while singing "Look For The Silver Lining". She had also recorded a song "Do You Love Me", which was cut before release. Her scenes were directed by her then husband 'Vincent Minnelli' . After serving as the music director on Garland's short-lived CBS, Mel Tormé wrote a vicious tell-all book about his talented but challenging former boss. So frustrated from the experience, his words in "The Other Side of The Rainbow: With Judy Garland on the Dawn Patrol" portrayed Garland as hopelessly drug-addicted, unprofessional and a horror to work with. Her performance as Vicki Lester in "A Star is Born" (1954) is ranked #72 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). Her performance as Dorothy Gale in "The Wizard of Oz" (1939) is ranked #17 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. During her first marriage to David Rose, Judy was forced to undergo an abortion at the insistence of MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer who feared that pregnancy would hurt her good-girl image. The event left her traumatized for the rest of her life. Pictured on a 39¢ USA commemorative postage stamp in the Legends of Hollywood series, issued 10 June 2006. The godparents of her daughter Liza Minnelli were Ira Gershwin and Kay Thompson Grandmother of Vanessa and Jesse Richards, children of singer Lorna Luft. Godfather of her daughter Lorna Luft was Frank Sinatra Father was movie theatre owner Francis 'Frank' Gumm (born March 20, 1886 - 17 November 1893). Mother was Ethel Milne. (Born 17 November 1893 - 5 January 1953) Grew up in California.