MY FIVE FAVORITE JUDY GARLAND MOVIES

My mother is a much bigger Judy Garland movie fan than I am, but being a lover of classical movies I have definitely seen almost every film Judy has made. She was a good actress, much better than she was given credit for, and I came up with my list of my five favorite Judy Garland films. Again, this is only my opinion and personal preference, and it is not based on anything else…

5. A STAR IS BORN (1954)

After Judy was fired from MGM in 1950, she never really was a movie star again. After 1950, Garland did continue to make movies, but she made quality and not quantity. One of her best acting of her career was done in 1954’s A Star Is Born. Co-starring with James Mason, Judy played a rising star who gets involved with a fading star (Mason). Garland was nominated for an Oscar, but she unfortunately lost. The famous song from the film was “The Man That Got Away”, but my personal favorite number was “Lose That Long Face”. When the movie came out Warner Brothers edited the film to death, and key scenes were lost, but I believe it has recently been completely restored.

4. EASTER PARADE (1948)

By the time Judy made Easter Parade in 1948, her drug problems were really beginning to come to a head. Her weight went up and down during the filming, and it showed in many of her scenes. However, Judy pulled it together to make this musical classic. with Fred Astaire as her leading man and a boatload of Irving Berlin songs. Even though the age difference between Astaire and Garland was 23 years, they make a great song and dance team. Evergreen Irving Berlin songs included the title song, “I Love A Piano”, and “Shakin The Blues Away”, but Berlin also wrote some new songs like: “A Fella With An Umbrella” and “Better Luck Next Time” – the latter of the songs Garland sang brilliantly.

3. THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939)

No list of Garland films would be complete without “The Wizard Of Oz”. Judy was the second choice to play Dorothy, after MGM could not get Shirley Temple. The film was not a success when it came out in 1939 – and it would not be until it was shown on television in the 1950s that it would become the classic it is viewed as today. It is hard to add more about this classic, but it was the role that made Judy a star. Sadly, it was reported that Garland began her drug usage while this movie was being made. I am a grown man with children now, but when I watch the scene of Judy singing “Over The Rainbow” on her Kansas farm…I cry like a baby every time.

2. SUMMER STOCK (1950)

MGM ended their relationship with Garland after 1950’s Summer Stock, and it was a big mistake. Again, Garland’s weight fluctuated greatly throughout the movie, but Garland sounded great. She was teamed with Gene Kelly for the third and last time in this film, and like Astaire did in Easter Parade, Kelly helped Garland get through her scenes. Supporting the dynamic duo of musicals were great character stars like: Phil Silvers, Eddie Bracken, and Marjorie Main. The plot of putting on a show at a farm was corny, but the musical numbers made the film great. This movie is one of the first Garland musicals I ever watched on video, so I have a soft spot for the film. Seeing Judy perform “Get Happy” makes the movie worth it alone.

1. FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942)

Judy was going on 20 when she made For Me And My Gal, and it was billed as her first adult role. She was done playing Dorothy and hanging out with Andy Hardy now. Garland played a rising vaudeville star who meets up with a vaudeville ham (played by Gene Kelly in his first movie role). The story takes place during the first World War, so all of the songs are from that era. You would think it would make the movie corny hearing those songs, even in 1942 when the film was made, but it adds some great realism to the movie. For a 1942 musical, there is some real drama in the movie showing some of the horrors of war. The main attraction is Garland who looks and sounds great singing standards like “After You’ve Gone”, “Ballin The Jack”, and “Oh You Beautiful Doll”. Again, the film has a special place in my heart, because I remember my Grandfather telling me it was the first movie he saw in the movie theater was a 13 year old boy. The ending of the movie, is a tearjerker as well, at least to me. For me not being a huge Garland movie fan, a lot of her movies make me cry!

MY FIVE FAVORITE GENE KELLY MUSICALS

The month of August marks the 100 anniversary of Gene Kelly's birth. It seems like only yesterday he was dancing with Judy Garland or performing an intricate number on roller skates or a cartoon mouse. Luckily Gene Kelly left his mark in countless great musicals that we can watch over and over again. Here are my five personal favorite Gene Kelly musicals...

5. SUMMER STOCK (1950)
This is often an overlooked Gene Kelly musical. The movie is best remembered as the last movie that Judy Garland did at MGM. Her weight throughout the movie radically changed, but Kelly has some appealing dance numbers. I think one of his most energetic dances of all time was the dance to "Dig Brother Dig". This movie also marked the third and final time Kelly and Judy would appear together on film. It is an amazing example of his talent.

4. SINGIN IN THE RAIN (1952)
At first I wasn't even going to put Singin In The Rain on my list. Sure, I love the movie, but is it my favorite musical - no. I think the number that puts this beloved Kelly musical over the top for me was the "Broadway Dance Ballet" Kelly did with Cyd Charisse. I like the title number Kelly did in the rain, but I have seen it so much. I think the "Moses" number with his co star Donald O' Connor is truly great. Still though, the image of Kelly dancing in the rain with his umbrella is one of the most memorable cinema moments.

3. ON THE TOWN (1949)
This was one of the first Gene Kelly movies I saw back when I was starting to watch classic movies when VHS or even Beta first came out. Gene was of course great in the movie, but On The Town's appeal to me is the cast as a whole - Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Jules Munshin, Ann Miller, Vera-Ellen, and Betty Garrett was like a dream team of musical greats. My favorite number is Ann Miller's "Prehistoric Man", but Kelly took his talents to new heights in this movie with some pretty tricky choreography.

2. FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942)
Watching Gene Kelly in this movie, it is amazing it is his first film. He really had a commanding presence on the screen. This was the first movie he was paired with Judy Garland in, and they made a great team. From the title number to their terrific performance of "Ballin The Jack" they really looked like they were having fun together. For Kelly's first movie he did not really play a nice guy but in the end his character grew. It really was an amazing performance for Kelly just starting out. All of the songs were old even by 1942's standards, but Kelly and Judy brought new life to all of them.

1. BRIGADOON (1954)
My stepfather, who is a 6ft 4in hunter, introduced me to Brigadoon when I was younger. The movie did not do well when it first came out, but I think since then the film has gotten more recognition. Kelly himself was disappointed with the movie because he wanted to film the musical on location in Scotland. MGM refused and shot the entire film on the backlot. One of my favorite numbers was "Almost Like Being In Love", and Kelly's version of the song is another memorable musical moment. Cyd Charisse and Van Johnson also are perfect in their roles as his love interest and his best friend respectively. The movie was one of the last of the great MGM musicals made, but Brigadoon is another example of why 100 years after his birth, Gene Kelly is still remembered...

RECENTLY VIEWED: FOR ME AND MY GAL

Last month was the 90th birthday of Judy Garland. I must admit though she is not one of my favorite actresses. I do enjoy her movies, but I like the fresh faced kid of The Wizard of Oz and Andy Hardy movies. I would say anything before she was kicked out of MGM in 1950 was more to my liking than the worn out and strung out Garland of the late 1950s and 1960s. One of my all-time favorite musicals, and one of the first movies I saw Garland in was "For Me And My Gal".

"For Me and My Gal" is a 1942 American musical film directed by Busby Berkeley and starring Judy Garland, Gene Kelly – in his screen debut – and George Murphy, and featuring Martha Eggerth and Ben Blue. The film was written by Richard Sherman, Fred F. Finklehoffe and Sid Silvers, based on a story by Howard Emmett Rogers inspired by a true story about vaudeville actors Harry Palmer and Jo Hayden, when Palmer was drafted into World War I. It was a production of the Arthur Freed unit at MGM.

For Me and My Gal marked the first real "adult" role for the nineteen-year-old Judy Garland, who had played juvenile parts until then, many of them opposite Mickey Rooney. The original script had called for Harry Palmer to be involved with two women, a singer, which was to be Garland's role, and a dancer, who would have most of the dramatic scenes, but acting coach Stella Adler, who was an advisor to MGM at the time, suggested to producer Arthur Freed that the two roles be combined, and that Garland be given the part. Adler also suggested Gene Kelly for the lead.



Kelly was 29 years old at the time, and had made a mark on Broadway as the star of Pal Joey and the choreographer of Best Foot Forward. When David O. Selznick signed him to a film contract, Kelly's intention was to return to Broadway after fulfilling his contractual obligation, but he ended up staying in Hollywood for a year because Selznick didn't have a role for him. When Arthur Freed inquired about getting Kelly for For Me and My Gal, Selznick handed over the contract, and Kelly got the part, over the objections of Freed's bosses at MGM. The casting of Kelly meant that George Murphy, who was originally going to play "Harry Palmer", was switched to playing "Jimmy Metcalf".

Gene Kelly and Judy Garland got along well – she had been in favor of his getting the part, and during shooting she helped Kelly adjust his stage acting for films, and backed him in disagreements with director Busby Berkeley, whom she did not like. Kelly and Garland went on to star together in two other films, The Pirate (1948) and Summer Stock (1950).

The film was also the American motion picture debut of Hungarian singer Martha Eggerth, who had appeared in over thirty films in Germany. Her career in Hollywood did not last long: she appeared in only two other American films.

For Me and My Gal had an estimated budget of $803,000, and was in production at MGM's Culver City studios from 3 April until 23 May 1942, with additional scenes shot in June. Working titles for the film while it was in production were "My and My Gal" and "The Big Time".



When the film was initially previewed, the audience was dissatisfied with the ending: they thought that Jo (Garland) should end up with Jimmy (Murphy) rather than Harry (Kelly). This prompted Louis B. Mayer to order three weeks of additional shooting to give Kelly's character more of a conscience and to reduce Murphy's presence in the film. It was also interesting to note that all of the stars were ten years apart in ages: George Murphy was born in 1902, Gene Kelly in 1912, and Garland in 1922. Murphy had appeared with Judy as her father in "Little Nellie Kelly"(1940).

I remember my grandfather telling me that the first movie he ever saw in theaters was "For Me And My Gal" when he was 14. In turn my grandfather had fun introducing the movie to me when I was younger. I did not care that all of the songs sung in the film were even old by 1942 standards. Now when I watched this movie last month, my two year old son was "Ballin The Jack" right with Judy Garland and Gene Kelly. That alone warrants giving a movie 10 out 10, but add the tear jerking moments of the film, and it is a true classic musical that I can not miss when it is on...

MY RATING: 10 OUT OF 10