Judy Garland

Judy Garland 1922-69, American singer and film actress, b. Grand Rapids, Minn., originally named Frances Gumm. She sang in her father's theater from the age of four as one of The Gumm Sisters; she later toured in vaudeville. Beginning her film career in 1935, she endeared herself to the public in the Andy Hardy film series and in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Her later films include Meet Me in St. Louis (1944), Easter Parade (1948), A Star is Born (1954), and Judgment at Nuremburg (1960). Her first husband was the director Vincente Minnelli. Their daughter Liza Minnelli, 1946-, b. Hollywood, Calif., is also a singer, dancer, and actress. She made her Broadway debut in Flora, the Red Menace (1965; Tony Award). Minelli has appeared in a number of films, including The Sterile Cuckoo (1969), Cabaret (1972; Academy Award), New York, New York (1977), and two Arthur films (1981 and 1988). She has performed in solo nightclub appearances and has also been seen frequently on television, most notably in a televised concert with her mother at the London Palladium (1964) and in Liza with a Z (1978; Golden Globe). Garland's second daughter, Lorna Luft, 1953-, is also an actress and singer who has appeared in films, on stage, and in various performance venues. In addition, she wrote Me and My Shadows, a Family Memoir (1998).

Bibliography: See biographies of Garland by M. Tormé (1970), her husband M. Deans (1972), and G. Clarke (2000).

Garland, Judy (1922–69) US singer and film actress, b. Frances Gumm. Her performance as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (1939) made her a worldwide star. Her other films include Meet Me in St Louis (1944), Easter Parade (1948), and A Star is Born (1954). Her daughter is actress Liza Minnelli (1946– ).