“I couldn’t look that happy or that fat!” – Judy Garland commenting on a photo of her in the papers, 1952
April 5, 1936: Here is another publication of the recent photo taken of Judy Garland, the new MGM contract player, and Marlena Dietrich’s daughter.
April 5, 1938: Here are some pages from Noel Langley’s early draft of what would become the screenplay of The Wizard of Oz.
April 5, 1941: Judy is a Ziegfeld Girl
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Ziegfeld Girl here.
April 5, 1941: The studio placed this eight-page spread touting MGM’s latest releases in the trade magazine Motion Picture Herald.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Ziegfeld Girl here.
April 5, 1941: This single-page ad, also published in the same trade magazine (Motion Picture Herald), showed some ad ideas for theater managers to use in local papers.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Ziegfeld Girl here.
April 5, 1942: Here’s another photo of Judy at Don DeFore’s wedding, which took place on February 14th. Judy served as Matron of Honor. The wedding occurred at the Chapman Park Chapel in Los Angeles, followed by a breakfast at the Brown Derby.
April 5, 1943: Filming continued on Girl Crazy, specifically on the “Exterior Indian Rock” set. Time called: 10:20 a.m.; dismissed: 5:55 p.m.
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on Girl Crazy here.
April 5, 1944: Night shooting for Meet Me In St. Louis on the “Exterior Smith House and Street” on MGM’s Lot #3. Time called: 7 p.m.; ready at 7:35 p.m.; dismissed: midnight.
It’s interesting to note that a year later, on this date, Judy was back on MGM’s Lot #3 for another nighttime shoot, this time for The Harvey Girls (see below).
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland on the MGM Backlot” section for details about Judy’s films shot on the studio’s famous backlots.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on Meet Me In St. Louis here.
April 5, 1945: Judy twisted her ankle while filming a scene for The Harvey Girls in which she ran downhill. According to the studio records, this happened on the “Billy The Kid Street,” on MGM’s Lot #3, which was dressed up as the fictional town of “Sandrock.”
This was a nighttime shoot for the “March of the Doagies” sequence, which was cut from the film. Time called: 7:30 p.m.; arrived: 7:50 p.m.; dismissed: 2:30 a.m.
Some of the photos here were taken on an MGM soundstage in late April on the “Exterior Picnic Grounds” set and not on MGM’s “Billy The Kid Street” but are included here as they’re part of the extensive “March of the Doagies” number and reprise.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland on the MGM Backlot” section for details about Judy’s films shot on the studio’s famous backlots.
Playback disc images from the Rick Smith Collection. Thanks, Rick! Note that the disc’s date is the date it was made. The song was pre-recorded on February 17, 1945.
Check out The Judy Room’s Filmography Pages on The Harvey Girls here.
April 5, 1951: This photo of Judy on the Ile de France is dated on this date, the day that she arrived in London after sailing on the ship to England. That means the photo was taken before this date by at least a day or two.
Judy was embarking on a new phase in her life and career. She was set to open a new stage show at the London Palladium on April 9th. The show was a huge success and began her legendary Concert Years.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1952: Here’s an article recounting Judy’s reaction to seeing her photo in the papers.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1953: Judy’s upcoming appearance at the Bluegrass Festival in Lexington, Kentucky, was noted in this article. Judy gave her concert on April 29.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1955: This lovely A Star Is Born promotional photo was featured on the cover of Estúdio magazine.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
April 5, 1956: This article doesn’t have much to say about Judy aside from some gossip that she might go to Broadway to do a musical comedy, but the caricature is excellent!
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1959: The Baltimore Sun published this article and ad in anticipation of Judy’s show at the Stanley Theatre in Baltimore.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1963: A Star Is Born was shown on local TV in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Check out The Judy Room’s Spotlight on A Star Is Born here.
April 5, 1965: Judy appeared on the Academy Awards broadcast from Los Angeles, California, on ABC-TV. Gene Kelly introduced her and sang a medley of Cole Porter songs in tribute to the songwriter, arranged by Roger Edens.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.
April 5, 1968: Judy’s companion at the time, Tom Green, wrote a long, moving letter to Sid Luft, in which he explained about Judy calling the FBI. The letter touched on a multitude of topics. Tom mentioned recently completing the books for the period ending March 31 and found that he had spent $48,756.74 on Judy. He mentioned pawning $3,000 worth of his family’s jewelry to get a $350 loan for food for her and the kids that spring. Green concluded by stating: “I always only wanted to help her . . . because goddam it [sic], despite her whatever the hell nonsense it is, I do love her very much.”
Judy had called the police (the West 54th Street police station, near the St. Moritz where she was staying) on April 3, 1968, and reported that two rings had vanished on March 19. Judy had forgotten that Green pawned the rings to pay for her hospital and hotel bills.
In November 1968, Green reported his expenditures as $58,815.62, which was $10k more than this April 5 report. That report included a copy of a legal summons instituting a suit by Green against Judy for the monies owed him. The suit was never filed.
Photos: Newspaper clippings from April 4 & 5, 1968; Judy and Tom Green in 1967.
Check out The Judy Room’s “Judy Garland – The Concert Years” here.