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The 1940s
- In February 1940, Judy won a special
Juvenile Oscar for her role as Dorothy Gale in THE WIZARD OF OZ.
She referred to the miniature statuette as her "Munchkin Award."
- Judy married composer and orchestra leader
David Rose on July 28, 1941; they would divorce four years later.
- In July 1943, Judy made her solo concert
debut in Philadelphia, breaking all attendance records at The
Robin Hood Dell: 15,000 patrons jammed into an amphitheatre designed
for 6,500; another 15,000 gathered on nearby hillsides to hear
the show, and thousands more were turned away.
- In 1944, one of her most successful films,
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, introduced three standards: "The Trolley
Song," "The Boy Next Door" and "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas."
- Other stellar Garland vehicles of the
1940s include: STRIKE UP THE BAND (1940), FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942;
Gene Kelly's film debut), GIRL CRAZY (1943), THE HARVEY GIRLS
(1946), THE PIRATE (1948), EASTER PARADE (1948; Fred Astaire came
out of retirement to dance with her in this picture), IN THE GOOD
OLD SUMMERTIME (1949), and SUMMER STOCK (1950). She actually appeared
in 20 feature films during the decade, as well as cutting scores
of sides for Decca, participating in well over one hundred radio
broadcasts, and performing in numerous benefits, and three separate
camp tours for U.S. servicemen and women.
- On June 15, 1945, she married legendary
director Vincente Minnelli (divorced 1951). They had one child,
Liza Minnelli.
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