Judy Garland, was born Frances Ethel Gumm on June 10, 1922 and died on June 22nd, 1969. Her career lasted approximately 45 years and included numerous awards such as the Juvenile Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Grammy Awards, and a Special Tony Award. She was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress and for Best Supporting Actress.
Judy Garland (1922 - 1969)
Grand Rapids, Minnesota, United States
London, United Kingdom
Judy Garland's Biography
Introduction
Born June 10, 1922 in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, USA
Died June 22, 1969 in Belgravia, London, England, UK (barbiturate overdose)
Birth Name Frances Ethel Gumm
Nicknames Baby Gumm
Miss Show Business
Joots
Height 4' 11½" (1.51 m)
One of the brightest, most tragic movie stars of Hollywood's Golden Era, Judy Garland was a much-loved character whose warmth and spirit, along with her rich and exuberant voice, kept theatre-goers entertained with an array of delightful musicals.
She was born Frances Ethel Gumm on 10 June 1922 in Minnesota, the youngest daughter of vaudevillians Ethel Marion (Milne) and Francis Avent Gumm. She was of English, along with some Scottish and Irish, descent. Her mother, an ambitious woman gifted in playing various musical instruments, saw the potential in her daughter at the tender age of just 2 years old when Baby Frances repeatedly sang "Jingle Bells" until she was dragged from the stage kicking and screaming during one of their Christmas shows and immediately drafted her into a dance act, entitled "The Gumm Sisters", along with her older sisters Mary Jane Gumm and Virginia Gumm. However, knowing that her youngest daughter would eventually become the biggest star, Ethel soon took Frances out of the act and together they traveled across America where she would perform in nightclubs, cabarets, hotels and theaters solo.
Her family life was not a happy one, largely because of her mother's drive for her to succeed as a performer and also her father's closeted homosexuality. The Gumm family would regularly be forced to leave town owing to her father's illicit affairs with other men, and from time to time they would be reduced to living out of their automobile. However, in September 1935 the Gumms', in particular Ethel's, prayers were answered when Frances was signed by Louis B. Mayer, mogul of leading film studio MGM, after hearing her sing. It was then that her name was changed from Frances Gumm to Judy Garland, after a popular '30s song "Judy" and film critic Robert Garland.
Tragedy soon followed, however, in the form of her father's death of meningitis in November 1935. Having been given no assignments with the exception of singing on radio, Judy faced the threat of losing her job following the arrival of Deanna Durbin.
Knowing that they couldn't keep both of the teenage singers, MGM devised a short entitled Every Sunday (1936) which would be the girls' screen test. However, despite being the outright winner and being kept on by MGM, Judy's career did not officially kick off until she sang one of her most famous songs, "You Made Me Love You", at Clark Gable's birthday party in February 1937, during which Louis B. Mayer finally paid attention to the talented songstress.
Prior to this her film debut in Pigskin Parade (1936), in which she played a teenage hillbilly, had left her career hanging in the balance. However, following her rendition of "You Made Me Love You", MGM set to work preparing various musicals with which to keep Judy busy. All this had its toll on the young teenager, and she was given numerous pills by the studio doctors in order to combat her tiredness on set. Another problem was her weight fluctuation, but she was soon given amphetamines in order to give her the desired streamlined figure. This soon produced the downward spiral that resulted in her lifelong drug addiction.
In 1939, Judy shot immediately to stardom with The Wizard of Oz (1939), in which she portrayed Dorothy, an orphaned girl living on a farm in the dry plains of Kansas who gets whisked off into the magical world of Oz on the other end of the rainbow. Her poignant performance and sweet delivery of her signature song, 'Over The Rainbow', earned Judy a special juvenile Oscar statuette on 29 February 1940 for Best Performance by a Juvenile Actor. Now growing up, Judy began to yearn for meatier adult roles instead of the virginal characters she had been playing since she was 14. She was now taking an interest in men, and after starring in her final juvenile performance in Ziegfeld Girl (1941) alongside glamorous beauties Lana Turner and Hedy Lamarr, Judy got engaged to bandleader David Rose in May 1941, just two months after his divorce from Martha Raye. Despite planning a big wedding, the couple eloped to Las Vegas and married during the early hours of the morning on 28 July 1941 with just her mother Ethel and her stepfather Will Gilmore present. However, their marriage went downhill as, after discovering that she was pregnant in November 1942, David and MGM persuaded her to abort the baby in order to keep her good-girl image up. She did so and, as a result, was haunted for the rest of her life by her 'inhumane actions'. The couple separated in January 1943.
Vincente began to mold Judy and her career, making her more beautiful and more popular with audiences worldwide. He directed her in The Clock (1945), and it was during the filming of this movie that the couple announced their engagement on set on 9 January 1945. Judy's divorce from David Rose had been finalized on 8 June 1944 after almost three years of marriage, and despite her brief fling with Orson Welles, who at the time was married to screen sex goddess Rita Hayworth, on 15 June 1945 Judy made Vincente her second husband, tying the knot with him that afternoon at her mother's home with her boss Louis B. Mayer giving her away and her best friend Betty Asher serving as bridesmaid. They spent three months on honeymoon in New York and afterwards Judy discovered that she was pregnant.
On 12 March 1946 in Los Angeles, California, Judy gave birth to their daughter, Liza Minnelli, via caesarean section. It was a joyous time for the couple, but Judy was out of commission for weeks due to the caesarean and her postnatal depression, so she spent much of her time recuperating in bed. She soon returned to work, but married life was never the same for Vincente and Judy after they filmed The Pirate (1948) together in 1947. Judy's mental health was fast deteriorating and she began hallucinating things and making false accusations toward people, especially her husband, making the filming a nightmare. She also began an affair with aspiring Russian actor Yul Brynner, but after the affair ended, Judy soon regained health and tried to salvage her failing marriage. She then teamed up with dancing legend Fred Astaire for the delightful musical Easter Parade (1948), which resulted in a successful comeback despite having Vincente fired from directing the musical. Afterwards, Judy's health deteriorated and she began the first of several suicide attempts. In May 1949, she was checked into a rehabilitation center, which caused her much distress.
She soon regained strength and was visited frequently by her lover Frank Sinatra, but never saw much of Vincente or Liza. On returning, Judy made In the Good Old Summertime (1949), which was also Liza's film debut, albeit via an uncredited cameo. She had already been suspended by MGM for her lack of cooperation on the set of The Barkleys of Broadway (1949), which also resulted in her getting replaced by Ginger Rogers. After being replaced by Betty Hutton on Annie Get Your Gun (1950), Judy was suspended yet again before making her final film for MGM, entitled Summer Stock (1950). At 28, Judy received her third suspension and was fired by MGM, and her second marriage was soon dissolved.
Spouse (5)
Mickey Deans (15 March 1969 - 22 June 1969) ( her death)
Mark Herron (14 November 1965 - 9 January 1969) ( divorced)
Sidney Luft (8 June 1952 - 19 May 1965) ( divorced) ( 2 children)
Vincente Minnelli (15 June 1945 - 29 March 1951) ( divorced) ( 1 child)
David Rose (28 July 1941 - 8 June 1944) ( divorced)
Name & aliases
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Birth details
Ethnicity & Family History
Nationality & Locations
Education
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Obituary
Average Age & Life Expectancy
Memories: Stories & Photos
Through sharing we discover more together.

Judy Garland, was born Frances Ethel Gumm on June 10, 1922 and died on June 22nd, 1969. Her career lasted approximately 45 years and included numerous awards such as the Juvenile Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Grammy Awards, and a Special Tony Award. She was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress and for Best Supporting Actress.
People in photo include: Bob Gumm, Ethel Gumm, Susie Gumm, Jimmie Gumm, Belle (Smith) Gumm, Lee Kahn, and Richard Gumm
We went to her opening night at the Palace and then she danced with Si at El Morocco afterwards.
Mickey Rooney, Jr (birth name Joe Yule, Jr) was born September 23, 1920 to Joe Yule (Ninnian Joseph Ewell) and Nellie W. (Carter) Yule in Brooklyn New York. His father was from Scotland and his mother was from Missouri.
His parents were in vaudeville and that's where he got his start - as a toddler!
Vaudeville led to films and he began as a child actor, transitioning to the teenage Andy Hardy, starring in many films with good friend Judy Garland as well as in the film National Velvet with Elizabeth Taylor.
One of his great performances during this time was in Boy's Town, with Spencer Tracy. He won a special Juvenile Academy Award following this film. During his long career, he also won an Emmy, two Golden Globes, and an Honorary Academy Award. He starred in films, radio, and television.
Only 5 feet two inches, he was a big presence on stage and screen - as well as life. Married 8 times and with 9 children, he died as a single man at the age of 93. He brought laughter to many generations and was loved by his audience.
Some of his films: The Andy Hardy series, Boy's Town, Little Lord Fauntleroy, Captains Courageous, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Babes in Arms, National Velvet, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Bridges at Toko-Ri, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, Pete's Dragon, and Night at the Museum.
Interesting fact, Leopold von Singer (born May 3rd, 1877 and died on March 5th, 1951) was the manager of the Singer Midgets; the group that comprised the majority of the Munchkins on the Wizard of Oz.
Judy Garland was born on June 10th, 1922 and died on June 22nd, 1969.
Family Tree & Friends
Judy's Family Tree
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Relationships
Sidney Luft
&Judy Garland

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Children:
mickey deans
&Judy Garland

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Spouse:
Children:
Vincente Minnelli
&Judy Garland

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Friends
Friends can be as close as family. Add Judy's family friends, and her friends from childhood through adulthood.
1922 - 1969 World Events
Refresh this page to see various historical events that occurred during Judy's lifetime.
In 1922, in the year that Judy Garland was born, on December 6th, the Irish Free State, a self-governing dominion of the British Empire, was officially proclaimed. While establishing some independence for the people of Ireland, it did not create a fully independent Ireland and the fighting continued.
In 1938, Judy was 16 years old when on October 30th, a Sunday, The Mercury Theatre on the Air broadcast Orson Welles' special Halloween show The War of the World's. A clever take on H.G. Wells' novel, the show began with simulated "breaking news" of an invasion by Martians. Because of the realistic nature of the "news," there was a public outcry the next day, calling for regulation by the FCC. Although the current story is that many were fooled and panicked, in reality very few people were fooled. But the show made Orson Welles' career.
In 1943, when she was 21 years old, on March 31st, the Broadway musical Oklahoma! opened. Written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II (the first of their string of successful collaborations), audiences loved it. The musical ran for 2,212 performances originally and was made into a movie in 1954.
In 1952, when she was 30 years old, on July 2, Dr. Jonas E. Salk tested the first dead-virus polio vaccine on 43 children. The worst epidemic of polio had broken out that year - in the U.S. there were 58,000 cases reported. Of these, 3,145 people had died and 21,269 were left with mild to disabling paralysis.
In 1969, in the year of Judy Garland's passing, one hundred countries, along with the United States and the Soviet Union signed the nuclear nonproliferation treaty (NPT). It called for stopping the spread of nuclear weapons, the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and the goal of nuclear disarmament.
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