Posted by “It’s true that I have had the darndest career. Either I’m way up here or way down there. But it’s getting a little ridiculous at this point the way people are always picturing me as crawling up out of the gutter. To me that word tragic is getting to be a pain in the neck.” – Judy Garland, 1955
February 25, 1934: “The Gumm Sisters” (Judy and her sisters) performed at either the Empire or the Mercy’s Capitol Theater (just which is unclear) in Yakima, Washington. They were billed as “A Great Trio.”
February 25, 1938: Judy’s Everybody Sing tour, her first big tour for MGM, took her from New York City to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she was, naturally, a big hit. Meanwhile, Thoroughbreds Don’t Cry (released in 1937) was also still in theaters.
February 25, 1938: A few more newspaper items. This time, Louella Parsons reports the news that Judy had been cast as “Dorothy” in The Wizard of Oz. The second item is a report out of New York and how Judy wore herself out during her recent engagement. The third is a fun tie-in ad using Judy’s image to sell sausages!
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on The Wizard of Oz here.
February 25, 1939: With principal filming completed on The Wizard of Oz the day before, Judy and her co-stars had an extensive day at MGM’s portrait studios, posing for publicity photos for the film.
Judy’s close-up portraits were taken by MGM Photo Gallery chief Clarence Sinclair. Bert Lahr’s Cowardly Lion portraits were all taken on January 25, 1939, however, he was on hand on this day to be a part of the group photos. Little did they know how enduring these photos would become!
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on The Wizard of Oz here.
February 25, 1941: Judy sang “Over The Rainbow” with composer Harold Arlen at the piano at the Greek Resistance Benefit, Los Angeles, California. Judy also sang “It’s A Great Day For The Irish.” David Rose conducted the orchestra.
Listen to “Over The Rainbow” here (John H. Haley restoration!):
Listen to “It’s A Great Day For The Irish” here:
Listen to Judy’s segment here:
Check out the fabulous CD set “Judy Garland Sings Harold Arlen” here.
February 25, 1952: Judy’s recent closing night at The Palace the night before made the papers. Note that the headline for the Jack Gaver article was meant to read “Judy Garland Completes” not “competes”!
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
February 25, 1954: Filming on A Star Is Born continued with retakes shot on the “Exterior Oleander Arms” and “Interior Esther’s Room” sets. Time started: 10 a.m.; finished: 6:15 p.m.
Photos provided by Kim Lundgreen. Thanks, Kim!
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
February 25, 1955: Here’s a great newsprint magazine cover out of Melbourne, Australia promoting A Star Is Born.
Image from the Rick Smith Collection. Thanks, Rick!
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
February 25, 1955: Here’s another article in which Judy talks about her Oscar chances, her recent successes on the stage, and her life and career in general.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
February 25, 1962: Taped on January 5, 1962, January 8, 1962, and January 9, 1962, “The Judy Garland Show” (originally titled “Miss Show Business”) aired on CBS-TV. The special featured Judy with guests Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and was taped the previous January.
The show was the highest-rated special in CBS history at that date and was nominated for four Emmy Awards: Best Program of the Year; Outstanding Variety or Music Program; Outstanding Performance in a Variety or Music Program; and Best Art Direction. It did not win any. 
The show was poorly colorized in the 1980s and released on VHS and then DVD, which has been the only “official” home media release. Below is the B&W version of Judy’s medley: “You Made Me Love You”; “The Trolley Song”; “Rock-A-Bye Your Baby”; “Swanee” and “San Francisco.”
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
February 25, 1968: Judy was in concert at the Lincoln Center’s Philharmonic Hall in New York City. Judy was in good form only a week after her disastrous engagement in Baltimore.
Here is a zip file of this Lincoln Center performance.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.