Posted by “Judy Garland gives what is just about the greatest one-woman show in modern movie history.” – Time Magazine, 1954
September 29, 1939: This two-page spread appeared in the Film Daily trade paper, promoting MGM’s latest, including Babes In Arms.
More details and images of all of Judy’s activities during that golden year of 1939 can be found on The Judy Room’s Garland Centennial 1939 Page.
September 29, 1941: This photo was taken of Judy on the set of Babes on Broadway. She had a call to be on the set at 9 a.m.; lunch was 12:30 – 1:30 p.m., she was dismissed at 7 p.m.
Photo provided by Kim Lundgreen. Thanks, Kim!
September 29, 1944: This lovely candid photo was taken of Judy on the set of The Clock. Filming on this day included scenes on the “Exterior Telephone Booth and Switchboard”, “Interior Astor revolving doors”, and “Interior small restaurant” sets. Time called: 1 p.m., Judy arrived on time, dismissed at 6:05 p.m.
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on “The Clock” here.
Photo provided by Kim Lundgreen. Thanks, Kim!
September 29, 1946: Judy appeared on the radio show “Command Performance” #241. She sang “I Got The Sun In The Morning” (from the recent Broadway hit “Annie Get Your Gun”) and did a “movie star” sketch with Frank Sinatra and Phil Silvers.
Listen to “I Got The Sun In The Morning” here:
Listen to the entire show here:
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Sings! On The Radio” pages for more radio performances.
September 29, 1949: Good news for record fans. MGM Records began pressing their discs in the new “nonbreakable” format, “Metrolite.” Shown here are two examples of the new labels, provided by Rick Smith. Thanks, Rick!
September 29, 1950: A momentous day in the history of Judy Garland’s life and career. She asked for and was given, a release from her MGM contract. The studio had been holding meetings since August 1st about keeping Judy at the studio in spite of her recent struggles. Her latest film, Summer Stock, was a hit and her fan mail had quadrupled with 90 percent of it supportive. This was probably in part due to the recent public revelation of her struggles and her well-publicized suicide attempt. These issues endeared her to the public more than before, and she was already well-loved!
Also on this day, Judy signed this standard boilerplate “Artist’s Manager Contract” with the William Morris Agency which outlined her agreement to have four different agents work on her behalf, including John Hyde who was known as “Johnny” and became famous for helping a struggling Marilyn Monroe become a star. The contract is signed by Judy and her primary agent, Abe Lastfogel.
Lastfogel signed Judy for over a dozen radio performances from November 1950 through March 1951 with a fee of $1,500 per appearance. These shows were instrumental in keeping Judy’s name (and voice) in the public eye while not putting her under the stress of having to stay “camera thin” for the movies.
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on Summer Stock here.
September 29, 1953: Judy made the Danish magazine “UgeRevyen.”
Scans provided by Kim Lundgreen. Thanks, Kim!
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
September 29, 1954: The world premiere of A Star Is Born was held at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood, California. This star-studded event was broadcast live on NBC-TV. Anyone who was anyone in Hollywood was on hand to be a part of this momentous occasion. It was the first time a TV network covered a film premiere in such detail and broadcast it from coast to coast.
Photos from the premiere:
Photos from the post-premiere party at The Cocoanut Grove:
September 29, 1954: Newspapers across the country made note of this night’s big premiere of A Star Is Born.
Check out The Judy Room’s Extensive Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
September 29, 1961: Judy was in concert at The Westchester Country Club in White Plains, New York.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
September 29, 1963: “The Judy Garland Show” premiered on CBS-TV from 9 – 10 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time.
The premiere was a huge hit, winning its time slot with a 35.9 Nielson rating and a 44.0 share. The show that CBS chose to air for the premiere was actually “Episode Seven,” and it wasn’t one of the strongest of the series. This resulted in a drop in viewers the following week.
Episode Seven:
Taped: 9/20/63
Aired: 9/29/63
Guests: Donald O’Connor & Jerry Van Dyke
Program:
Call Me Irresponsible (Judy & Chorus)
Keep Your Sunny Side Up (Judy, Donald & Jerry)
Sing, You Sinners (Intro) (Judy & Jerry)
Sing, You Sinners (Donald, Dancers & Chorus)
Be My Guest (Judy & Donald)
“Songs We’re Famous For” Medley (Judy & Donald)
Fly Me To The Moon (Judy)
Lone Ranger (Intro) (Judy & Jerry)
Lone Ranger Comedy Routine (Jerry)
The World Is Your Balloon (Judy, Donald, Jerry, Dancers & Chorus)
Tea For Two: Donald O’Connor
“Vaudeville” Medley (Judy & Donald)
Born In A Trunk:
Stagehand Caught In Curtain Story
Chicago (Judy)
Maybe I’ll Come Back (Judy)
Outtakes:
The World Is Your Balloon
Sing, You Sinners (Intro)
Sing, You Sinners
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
September 29, 1967: Judy took her show to the Cobo Arena in Detroit, Michigan. In a rare change in her set line-up, she added: “Meet Me In St. Louis.” She had originally planned to sing it at the Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis when she was there just a few days before (September 27th) but that didn’t go very well as Judy was not in good shape due to being “over-medicated.”
Download, the entire Cobo show here (zip file).
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
“September 29” was her “Lucky Day.” Signing her termination papers from MGM, The premiere in Hollywood of A Star is Born and the premiere of her television series. Never realized that before. Thanks Scott!