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Forever remembered as Dorothy in 1939’s The Wizard of Oz, vaudevillian child star Judy Garland (1922–1969) was a singing sensation and one of MGM’s big stars on the back of several 'backyard musicals' with Mickey Rooney (Babes in Arms) and other movies like Meet Me in St. Louis (1944).
In the 1950s, as Garland’s film career slowed, her Grammy-winning recording and concert career took off, followed by a screen comeback in the Golden Globe-winning A Star is Born (1954), and TV specials and an Emmy-nominated TV series in the early 1960s.
Whilst celebrating the brilliance of her talent, Wootton explores the rollercoaster career and complex life of this five-times married gay icon and Hollywood legend who mothered a musical dynasty (Liza Minnelli and Lorna Luft) – and was mother-in-law to Australian showman Peter Allen – but famously battled addictions, financial stress, body image issues and deep emotional insecurity.
