However, unlike Dorothy Gale, whose “troubles melt like lemon drops,” Garland’s troubles snowballed into larger affairs that would plague her for the rest of her life.
Beginning with her childhood, Garland would continue to run into obstacles, when all she wanted was to go home.
Judy Garland wasn’t her original name
Although we know this famous starlet as Judy Garland, she was born with the nameFrances Ethel Gumm. Born toEthel MarionandFrancis “Frank” Avent Gumm, Frances was the child of two vaudevillians who owned a vaudeville theater.
It wasn’t long until the life of show business began reeling in the young Frances Gumm. Her first brush with theatrical work occurred at the age of 2 when Frances and her three older sisters sang “Jingle Bells” during a Christmas show.
The girls continued to perform on that stage for the next few years, while their mother accompanied them on piano.
Tensions were high in her parents' marriage, and Garland would reflect on this throughout her career. According to The New York Times,Ethel Gummand her daughters would spend a lot of time away from their father,Frank Gumm, to attend auditions.
Garland would say, “As I recall, my parents were separating and getting back together all the time. It was very hard for me to understand those things and, of course, I remember clearly the fear I had of those separations.” While the girls were away on auditions, Gumm would allegedly make moves on the young boys who worked in his theater.
They moved to Lancaster, California, following rumors
Although the family lived a content life in their corner of the world, they relocated to Lancaster, California, in 1926. The move occurred after rumors claimed that Garland’s father made advances toward the male ushers at their theater.
Yet, they could not avoid the theater bug, and it wasn’t long before they opened another theater in their new home. It was in California whereEthel Gummbegan encouraging her daughters to get into motion pictures.
Gumm soon became her daughters' “momager,” and enrolled them in dance school to help extend their talents in the entertainment world. Eventually, the trio gained some popularity and began to tour as “The Gumm Sisters.”
There are multiple stories about where “Garland” derived from
One telling states that the name “Garland” originated fromCarole Lombard’s character, Lily Garland, in the filmTwentieth Century.
Another story claims that the sisters chose the name because of famed drama critic,Robert Garland.
However, Garland’s daughter,Lorna Luft, is confident that her mother chose the name when actorGeorge Jesselexclaimed that the sisters “looked prettier than a garland of flowers.” Although this has never been confirmed, the Gumm Sisters soon became the Garland Sisters in 1934.
The young Frances then changed her name to Judy after being inspired by a popularHoagy Carmichaelsong at the time.
Ethel Gumm pushed her daughters to their limits
Ethel Gummwould stop at nothing to achieve fame for her daughters. Many of the locations the girls performed at were extremely inappropriate for young children. Ethel Gumm would often push her children to their limits, and the performances seemed never-ending.
Garland recalled during a 1967 interview withBarbara Walters, “She would sort of stand in the wings when I was a little girl and if I didn’t feel good, if I was sick to my tummy, she’d say, ‘You get out and sing or I’ll wrap you around the bedpost and break you off short!’ So, I’d go out and sing.”
Judy Garland was guaranteed fame when she was signed to MGM
Judy Garlandwas groomed to live the glamorous life as a Hollywood starlet from a young age. She was signed to MGM Studios, where she met a youngMickey Rooney, and other young starlets such asAva GardnerandElizabeth Taylor.
In 1937, Garland made her first film, calledEvery Sunday, which was a musical short.Charles Walters, who directed a young Garland in a handful of films, admitted, “Judy was the big money-maker at the time, a big success, but she was the ugly duckling. … I think it had a very damaging effect on her emotionally for a long time. I think it lasted forever, really.”
She was constantly harassed about her looks by executives
Garland was hassled about her looks for the majority of her career. MGM Studios head,Louis Mayer, would often refer to Garland as “My Little Hunchback,” which many say was because of her height and the curvature of her spine.
It seems that once Garland signed to MGM, she also signed on to have her looks permanently on view for all to criticize. She would later admit, “From the time I was 13, there was a constant struggle between MGM and me — whether or not to eat, how much to eat, what to eat. I remember this more vividly than anything else about my childhood.”
Her father’s death affected her greatly
The death ofFrank Gummtook a heavy toll on the youngJudy Garland’s heart, as the pair had a strong relationship. Garland was 12 years old when her father died.
Garland worked through her anguish, and she continued on the track to stardom.The New York Timesclaims that she wrote, “The terrible thing about it was that I couldn’t cry at my father’s funeral. I’d never been to a funeral. I was ashamed because I couldn’t cry, so I feigned it. But I just couldn’t cry for eight days, and then I locked myself in a bathroom and cried for 14 hours.”
Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney remained friends
She went on to have her first feature film roles inPigskin ParadeandLove Finds Andy Hardy, with fellow MGM student,Mickey Rooney. The pair became a famous duo, and they went on to co-star in multiple Andy Hardy films.
Like Garland, Rooney also had a vaudeville background, and both came from troubled families. Garland was a busy girl, as she would attend school in the morning, vocal coaching and dance lessons at night, and she was often asked to sing at studio parties.
Her hard work paid off, because in 1939, Garland scored one of her greatest successes as Dorothy inThe Wizard of Oz.
Once she was on Clark Gable’s map, she shot to superstardom
One of Garland’s most famous house-call performances was at a surprise party for Hollywood Golden Age iconClark Gable. Judy sang “(Dear Mr. Gable) You Made Me Love You” from her filmBroadway Melody of 1938. At the end of the performance, Clark Gable walked right up to the 14-year-old and kissed her.
After that night, Garland’s schedule filled up quickly, and her days became packed with filming rehearsals alongsideMickey Rooney. Although Garland and Rooney were cast in many films together, Garland never played the love interest. InLove Finds Andy Hardy, she plays a young girl named Betsy who is in love with Rooney’s character. The love interest in the film was played by famous starlet,Lana Turner.
