Posted by “[The] hottest and most dramatic Oscar race in Academy Award history is simmering on Hollywood’s front burner … the girl born in a vaudeville trunk vs. the rich girl born in a Philadelphia mansion. The ‘old pro’ vs. the newcomer.” – Erskine Johnson, 1955
January 11, 1941: This news blurb notes Judy’s rise in popularity, but oddly states that her stardom came with Babes in Arms rather than The Wizard of Oz.
January 11, 1941: This photo was taken of MGM studio chief Louis B. Mayer chatting with Judy at a luncheon at MGM. She is seen sitting with her Ziegfeld Girl co-star, James Stewart, although in the film, she and Stewart did not appear in any scenes together.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Ziegfeld Girl here.
January 11, 1942: This review of For Me And My Gal notes that Judy had been out of films for a time and, “Judy Garland returns, after a long absence from the screen – a Judy who is thinner and a trifle older but no less appealing or any less a good showman. Hers is a more adult role than the ones to which she has been accustomed, and the log dresses worn during the time set by the play accentuate her slimness.”
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on For Me And My Gal here.
January 11, 1943: Filming continued on the “I Got Rhythm” number for Girl Crazy on the “Exterior Corral” set. Time called: 1:30 p.m.; Judy arrived at 3:10 p.m.; dismissed: 6 p.m.
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on Girl Crazy here.
January 11, 1944: For several days newspapers reported on the recent announcement that Judy would be divorcing her first husband, David Rose.
Exactly one year later the papers were filled with articles about the announcement that Judy would be marrying “Ben” Vincente Minnelli. The “Ben” name is interesting because Vincente’s full name was Lester Anthony Minnelli.
January 11, 1944: Meet Me In St. Louis filming consisted of scenes on the “Interior Hall and Stairs,” “Exterior Porch,” and “Interior Kitchen” sets.
The assistant director’s notes state:
Called: 10 a.m.; Wait for Miss Garland. Asst. Director phoned her home at 9:15. Said she had an earache and would be late. Arrived in studio 9:49. Came on stage at 10:30 made up and hair dressed only.” “1:50-2:25 – Ready to light JG in closeup thru screen door. Miss Garland removed wig, makeup and wardrobe and slept through lunch hour – Nurse called who put ice pack on head. Company waiting while Miss Garland getting ready.
Dismissed: 5:20 p.m.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Meet Me In St. Louis here.
January 11, 1945: Meet Me In St. Louis was in its seventh week at the Astor in New York City which was a clear indication that it was a blockbuster hit.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Meet Me In St. Louis here.
January 11, 1954: A Star Is Born filming continued with the scene of Judy’s “Vicki Lester” attending the preview of her film (“You’re starting lucky”). The scene was shot on the Warner Bros. backlot’s “New York Street” utilizing the standing “theater” set and street that was used in many other Warner Bros. films. Time started: 5:30 p.m.; finished: 12:35 a.m.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
Photos (except screenshots) provided by Kim Lundgreen, The Warner Bros. Backlot book (1970s backlot photo), and The Judy Room.
January 11, 1955: The Oscar race was heating up, with Judy and Grace Kelly the obvious front-runners.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
January 11, 1962: Judy was photographed out on the town with Frank Sinatra and the fabulous Juliet Prowse at a recent dinner that Sinatra hosted at Romanoff’s in Hollywood, California. Also at this time, Judy was allegedly set to play “Aunt Cissie” in a musical version of “A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.” The project never proceeded past the planning stage, which is a shame as it would have made a wonderful musical film.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
January 11, 1963: A Child Is Waiting was opening around the country and getting good reviews, especially for the sensitive portrayals and direction.
January 11, 1964: Hopefully, Judy saw this amusing comic because it most likely would have given her a good laugh.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
January 11, 1965: Judy arrived back in Los Angeles for the first time since May 2, 1964. An audio recording of the television report of Lorna and Joe meeting her at the plane exists; listen to it here:
At this time, it had been announced that Judy would do four concerts in South Africa in either the spring, June, or July, one each in Durban, Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Port Elizabeth. Morton Gould was Judy’s requested pianist, along with a twenty-seven-piece orchestra. Judy’s salary for the concerts was said to be “colossal … the highest price paid in South Africa,” and later revealed to be $110,000 for the four concerts, or $27,500 each. Tickets were to have a $20 top price, unheard of in 1965. Judy never performed in South Africa.
Around this time, Judy and Mark Herron were seen with Denise and Vincente Minnelli at the Daisy, a nightclub in Hollywood.
It’s also reported that on January 11, 1965, Judy borrowed $25,000 from the Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association in Hollywood, with the understanding that she would repay it by March 5. Judy borrowed the money because she was having financial difficulties. This might have happened a day or two after Judy arrived in LA, as she wouldn’t have had much time to accomplish this on the actual date of her arrival.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
January 11, 1967: Judy and Tom Green arrived in New York City, staying at the Waldorf-Astoria. Most of the time was reportedly taken up with “business meetings.”
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
Photo: Judy and Tom clowning around.
January 11, 2015: The Wizard of Oz returned to theaters for a special two-day engagement (the second day was January 14th), which was part of the 2014 75th anniversary celebration.
Details about the 75th Anniversary release are here.
Check out The Judy Room’s Extensive Spotlight on The Wizard of Oz here.
I wonder where the rumor that Garland was going to be in the proposed musical version of “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn” comes from. The New York Times had a story about the project on March 4, 1961 with Sinatra attached and possibly Tammy Grimes as the mother and Hayley Mills as Francie. In his autobiography Sammy Cahn writes that Marilyn Monroe was in talks to play Aunt Cissy during the summer of 1962, shortly before she died. I’ve never seen anything in a book or newspaper archive that indicates Judy as being involved with this project. According to Cahn both Sinatra and Monroe were very keen to do the picture. Monroe would have been excellent casting as Aunt Cissy-Garland not so much. The whole idea for the musical version, according to Cahn, was to use a score he had written for a movie (Pink Tights) that Monroe refused to do for Fox circa 1954.
That’s some great info, thanks for sharing. The mention of Judy for the role could have been a case of the project’s publicist using Judy’s name to get some press. That wasn’t uncommon then, or now. Monroe would have been great, too!