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[music playing] joey luft: my nameis joseph wiley luft. most people call mejoseph, joe, or joey. i had a wonderful life growingup as judy garland's son and witnessing some ofthe greatest moments in showbusiness history. my life was differentfrom most kids. to the outside world, i'veled a fascinating life. i grew up with thekennedys, the [inaudible],
the bogarts, and thesinatras, just to name a few. i had a mom, but i also hadlike a mom to the world. [laughing] (singing) everythingi had is gone. even though i grewup in a society where it was okto be homosexual, you know, it was stillnice to have a hero. her resilience saved my life. (singing) all gone i feel.
the thing abouttransfixed me the most was how young she died. (singing) after-- what happened to her? (singing) has gone away. i can look backmost of the time and admire who she wasinstead of thinking about who she became. (singing) somewhereover the rainbow--
she was very beautiful atcertain points in her career. it's this magnetism. and her eyes have thisstrange kind of, you know, hypnotic power. (singing) [inaudible]. and also a kind ofrock-and-roll quality, you know, where you knewthat it wasn't fake. judy garland (singing):somewhere over the rainbow, way up high--
narrator: judy garland wasborn frances gumm in 1922. her life was marked bytriumphs and tragedies. she was a hollywoodstar, a goddess on stage, and the most famousdrug addict of her day. her autobiography remaineduncompleted at her death. just a few taperecordings remain. judy garland: andi'm sitting in a room all by myself, ho, ho, boy. and i'm just astoundedat this machine.
this is the silliestway i've ever known of spending the nightsalone, talking to yourself into an obvious nazi machine. that's the story of my life. you go with it, even if youdon't know what's going on. i was trying to be a singer. i don't know how to read notes. i can't read music. my wounds i'd like to tape.
i just am trying to geta few thoughts down. and i'm all by myself, becausei, judy garland, am gonna talk. and everybody justbetter sit on the bench and watch the ballgame. (singing) you're offto see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of oz. you'll find he is a whiz of awiz if ever a wiz there was. if ever, oh ever, a wizthere was, the wizard of oz is one because,because, because,
because, because, because,because of the wonderful things he does. you're off to see the wizard,the wonderful wizard of oz! "the wizard of oz" has beenseen by more people than any other movie in history. won't you take me with you? why, of course i will. hooray! we're off to see a wizard!
oh, well, you're notstarting off very well. oh, i'll try. really, i will. to oz? to oz. (signing) we're offto see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of oz. we hear he is a whiz of awiz if ever a wiz there was. she was dorothy to everychild in america who
was a part of, oh, well,let's just go to the barn and put on a show. and it will all bebeautiful and wonderful. and life is wonderful. oh, what's happening? what is it? i can't run anymore. i'm so sleepy. here, give us your hands,and we'll pull you along.
oh, no, please. i have to restfor just a minute. the idea of traveling to some,you know, glorious, you know, magical emeraldcity was very potent as a young canadian,freezing child. dorothy, let's hurry! yes, let's run! jason wise: i envieddorothy for that reason. she was, you know, transportedout of this mundane town
into this wonderful place. and that was something that ihad dreamt could happen to me. she was born in grandrapids, minnesota, which is at the verytop of minnesota, very, very cold very,very cold, very cold winters, lots of snow, ice. and she loved it there. and her father rana movie theater. and she had two older sisters.
they were both singers. the mother tookthem out, and they performed at allthe local shows, at all the clubs around there. they were forced to move. the father had run into someproblems with approaching boys. then they left, and they wentto the exact opposite place, lancaster, california, whichis in the mojave desert, east of los angeles.
[train whistling] and judy began singing. and she was called miss leatherlungs, which means that she had a powerful, powerful voice. judy garland: i was too littlewhen i went into vaudeville. i was two years old, and ijust knew "jingle bells." and my grandmother threwme on my father's stage. he owned a theater ingrand rapids minnesota. and i just sang "jingle bells,"and nobody told me to stop,
so nobody ever asked me. now you will see adancing and singing number by the young sisters,not the wrigly sisters. (singing) when blueskies [inaudible] sun is shining bright, [inaudible]. michael siewert: sheloved to perform. she loved to be on the stage. and out of her andher two sisters, she was the one that perseveredand continued to perform
and got into big showbiz. i've been veryfortunate in that i'm known around theworld collecting judy garland memorabilia. so some people will offer mesomething at a very good price because they knowit's in good hands and i will preserveit and care for it and i'll share itwith the public. [music - judy garland, "a castle for sale"]
this was judy garland'sfather's scrapbook. there's pictures of him infront of movie marquees, and he's laughing and smiling,and he's with friends. he's with friends ona beach having fun. people say that she ranfrom this idea of her father being homosexual. but there seems to be a lot offacts that prove that he was. these did belongedto her, so i can only imagine after her fatherpassed that she held
this scrapbook dear to herheart and maybe under her pillow at bed at night. judy loved her father. and when he died, hedied when she was, oh, just 12 or 13 years old. he died very quicklyof meningitis. it just happened like that. and judy said at thattime, now i'm alone. there's no one at my back.
[music - judy garland, "a cottage for sale"] very soon, the mother discoveredthat judy was a standout star. and then they started goingto the theaters in los angeles, the big theaters. and so every fridayafternoon after school, judy's mother wouldpack judy in a car, and they would gooff to los angeles. and judy got tired. and to keep her going,her mother started giving
her pep pills, amphetamines. and then judy got toorevved up, and she couldn't go to sleep, so her motherwould then put her to sleep, would give her sleeping pills. so that's how judygot started on pills. judy garland: my motherwas truly a stage mother, a mean one, wasn't she? well, you didn't know her,thank goodness/ but she used to-- she was veryjealous, because she
had absolutely no talent. now she's gonnaknock my earring off. [both laughing] my mother was--you know, my mother died, and she-- wheneveri talk about her-- and i should becauseshe was so wicked. but whenever i startto talk about her, she inevitably knocksone earring off. so she's still around, so,mother, you behave yourself.
she would sort of stand in thewings when i was a little girl, and if i didn't feel good,if i was sick to my tummy, she'd say, you getout and sing, or i'll wrap you around the bedpostand break you off short. she started off at mgm, andshe was given very small parts. they were looking-- they hadtwo singers in those days. one was at mgm the sameage, deanna durbin, who sang classical songs. and judy would sing pop.
and they did one short movie. (singing) they say, haveyou danced with the rhythm of americana, from tinpan alley to mexi-cali, this is the ballyhoo. do dat, do dat, wa! do dat, do dat, do dat, wa! there was a question whichsinger they should keep. because they were onlygoing to keep one of them. and finally theydecided to keep judy.
then deanna durbin wenton to another studio, rko, and she became a hugehit, one after another. and the studio bosses said,well, we picked the wrong one. but, um, judy quickly cameup, and several movies, she made her mark. the studio waslike a mini city. they had their ownschool, where the younger actors would go to school. at first, theyweren't too thrilled
with how judy garland looked. i think they thought she was,uh-- louis b. mayer called her his little hunchback. so supposedly, she hada little deformity, and her teethweren't quite right, and her eyes were toofar apart, and she was prone to gain weight. and she was 4 foot 11,so just a few pounds on that tiny frame wouldmake her look heavy.
she needed to take off weight,and they did that with pills. it was some kindof speed that she took in order to speed up hersystem and get the weight down. and i remember judy telling methat when she played dorothy, they taped her bosom andtried to make her look not as womanly as she was. so there were uppers,and there were downers. narrator: in 1939 playingdorothy in "the wizard of oz," judy garland becamea world star.
it was the role ofa lifetime for her, unforgotten andunforgettable for all time. judy had a greatsense of humor. she would laughabout everything. she would make jokesabout everything. she had a wonderful wit. the one thing she never madefun of was the one song, "over the rainbow." that was like areligious anthem for her.
judy garland: (singing)somewhere over the rainbow, way up high, there's a land thati head of once in a lullaby. somewhere over therainbow, skies are blue. then the dreams that you dareto dream really do come true. you know, "over the rainbow"from the "wizard of oz" was voted by the membersof the recording academy and the film academyas the number one song of the 20th century. [reporters yelling]
the incredible judy garland,one of my personal heroes, received an honoraryjuvenile oscar after following the yellow brickroad right into our hearts. and tonight, here tocommemorate the legacy of "the wizard of oz" andof judy are judy's kids. [applause] to celebrate the75th anniversary of this magicalfilm, please welcome the gorgeous and talentedalecia moore, pink.
(singing) somewhereover the rainbow, somewhere over the rainbow-- jason wise: "overthe rainbow" to me is a song that neverloses its meaning. it's a song thatdoesn't have an end. it doesn't have a resolution. it's open-ended, which iswhy i think it's so fitting that that was her theme. you know, over the rainbowis just this constant,
you know, i don't care ifthis has happened to me, i gotta keep going. and not only do ihave to keep going, but i have to-- ihave to be strong, and i have to makeother people happy. (singing) we dancedthe whole night through. good morning, goodmorning to you. how do you do? narrator: within 15 years, judygarland made over 30 films.
she was the mostcommercially successful female star of her time. (singing) waiting on the levy,waiting for the robert e. lee! rufus wainwright: it'shard to really conceive today of how famous she is. i mean, at that time,she was the most famous woman in the world. (singing) all theworld loves a clown. show 'em tricks!
tell 'em jokes! narrator: judy was anactress and a musical star. but a classic beautyshe wasn't, something she suffered from all her life. i'll put your order baker,ladies, never embrace. a barber for a ball wouldbe a social disgrace! she want a man whothought she was beautiful, who thought she was funny,who thought that she was deeply intelligent.
she fell in love very easily. she would always be falling inlove with one star or another or one man or another. and she married david rose,who was a well-known composer. then she became pregnant, andher mother and david rose got together in thestudio, and they said, no, you cannot have a baby. and so the mother and davidrose took her to an abortionist in los angeles, andshe describes it
as really a very sad scene,because she wanted the baby. she loved children. they certainly didn'twant her to have a baby. and so she lost her firstchild to an abortion. but they were divorced finally. she had other affairs. joe mankiewicz told meshe was like a little fawn in the woods, sovulnerable, but really not somebody he wanted to marry.
she-- artie shaw, she wasin love with artie shaw. she was in lovewith tyrone power. he was handsome beyond anybody. he was one of thehandsomest men in hollywood. this is from "meetme in st. louis," when judy garlandsang "have yourself a merry little christmas." this is from the mgm wardrobe. some of her moviespeople still adore today.
"meet me in st. louis,"you'll see that pop up in "sex and the city." there was a diane keaton moviecalled "the family stone," and "meet me in st.louis" popped up in there. (singing) have yourselfa merry little christmas. let your heart be light. next year all our troubleswill be miles away. my god, she's neverlooked more beautiful. that's one of the reasonsshe married vince minnelli,
because vince minnelliwas the director of "meet me in st. louis," andhe made her look beautiful. stevie phillips: she gravitatedtoward a lot of gay men, and vincent minnelliwasn't the first. it must have been easyto appreciate vincent and to love vincent forwhat he did for her. i don't know that sheknew anything about it. she came home one afternoonearly from the studio and found him in bedwith a black chauffeur.
and that pretty muchended the relationship. by this time, they hadhad a daughter, liza. narrator: judy and vincentminnelli separated. in 1950, after 15 yearsof towering success, judy garland was firedby her studio mgm. her addiction to tablets madeworking with her impossible, or so it was saidbehind the scenes. judy garland: i'moutraged about many things that i've read about myself,what people have said.
they've affected me deeply. liza came homefrom school one day and said, what isthis nonsense that i always hear at schoolthat everybody knows you, judy garland? everybody knows judy. yeah, but they really know her. they had a housenext door, and they heard all the insanity of mama.
and liza looked at me and simplysaid, look, i don't know you, mama. and nobody ever will. i never will. (singing) don't know whythere's no sun up in the sky. stormy weather. judy was an insomniac. she always complainedthat she couldn't sleep. we would sit and play cardswhile she took a fruit cocktail
of pills, reds, yellows, greens,purples, whites, pinks, grays. (singing) life is bare,gloom and misery everywhere. the drug problem becamemore and more serious. she, judy, was very oftenlate for-- on the set. the last movie, "summer stock,"she was late all the time. and the directorwas then later asked to do another movie withjudy, and he said, no, she put me on-- she gave me ulcers. i'm sick.
i can't do anothermovie with judy garland. (singing) --outside. when he went away-- gerald clarke: judy was atthe end of her career, really, it seemed. the newspapers in losangeles, one of the newspapers ran an article about famous filmstars who had just disappeared or died or drugoverdose or alcoholism or one thing or another.
and judy was-- they thoughtthat would happen to judy, too. and it was a desperate time. (singing) stormy weather. since my man andi ain't together keeps raining all the time. keeps rainin' all the time. narrator: judy garland'ssalvation was the stage. concert halls inthe us and europe were eager to bookthe fallen film star,
and her concertswere a sensation. rufus wainwright: i'mconstantly reminded that i don't have the voice that judy had. i mean, there's just thiskind of other department that she-- this secretdepartment that she could just push a button and this kindof, you know, train of sound would just come out at certainclimaxes and stuff, which is just-- it was like super-human. when you inhabit her persona--not so much her persona,
but her spirit, asi did, you know, used her arrangements andsome of those athletic tricks that she would pull,it is a workout. and it is dauntingand frightening. in fact, i mean, i'ma huge opera fan. that's sort of my main love. i love opera the most. but i figured when i did thejudy garland concert, that would be the closest icould get as a pop singer
to interpreting an opera. (singing) somewhere overthe rainbow, way up high, there's a land that iheard of once in a lullaby. my father, actually,grew up in beverly hills, and he was-- they wereneighbors with judy garland. and actually, my fatherspent a lot of time at judy garland's house. she used to babysitmy dad. [laughing] narrator: joey luftspoke publicly in los
angeles about his mother, judy. there's a segment of itthat has a lot of photographs of myself growing up with her. and in the background,"happiness is just a thing called joe" is playing. it's kind of a giftto her from myself. judy garland: (singing)seems like happiness is just a thing called joe. joey luft: in 1950,my mom and my dad
were having dinner with afriend of hers, freddy finkhoff. my dad walks past the table,and my mom says, sit down, sid. they actually had beenintroduced earlier on at the mgm lot, but it was thatnight that their romance began. they hit it off immediately. my mom loved how tough my dadwas, and they started dating. sid luft was thekind of man she had wanted all along, becausesid was very hyper-masculine. so that's what she wanted.
she wanted-- shesaid, now i've got somebody who will fight for me. so he helped torevive judy's career. he gave her confidence. she got the backing foranother movie, this time at warner brothers, a differentstudio, which was "a star is born." [cheering and chatter] judy garland aspired tohave an academy award.
and unfortunately inthe '40s when she truly was on top of hergame, they didn't give oscars to musical actresses. the great talent of ourgeneration, miss judy garland. oh, my goodness. and her husband andproducer mr. sid luft. in a few moments, they're goingto see one of the greatest motion picturesever made, what i think one of the greatperformances of all time
given by yourself. george, we'vehave been together on many, manywonderful occasions, but i really think thatthis is the most wonderful. for me, it's most thrilling. i hope the picture is that good. well, it's a long jumpfrom little frances down at the orientaltheater to judy garland, the most beloved singerof songs and finest
young actress in america. my darling husband. i know your darling husband. he did the whole thing. and i envy yourdarling husband. by the time "astar is born" came, which was a verydramatic film, she was gonna be a shoo-infor the academy award. i lived with a veryconservative republican family,
and i was not. i was very differentfrom my family. i was transformed by thewoman that i saw in this film. she was someone whotouched me very deeply and who i feltlike i could touch. this is in 1954. and you'll hear what i'mtalking about of the overtones. (singing) the night is bitter. the stars havelost their glitter.
the winds grow colder,suddenly you're older. and all because ofthe man that got away. jason wise: "astar is born" to me is kind of the other greatjudy garland film, because it's a completely differentjudy garland than we met in "the wizard of oz." i do have to say that withouther, the torch song genre would not be what it is today. i think she was one of thefirst strong, powerful women,
and she's the original beyonce. she's the original adele. (singing) the man that wonyou had run off and undone you. they don't call it astandard for no reason. i mean, it's timeless, andit's, um, for old people. it's for young people. it's for black people. it's for white people. it's for people in 1940.
it's for people in 2015. (singing) no morethat old-time thrill-- narrator: in 1955, thisrole brought judy garland her first oscar nomination. judy was givingbirth to her son joe, so she was in the hospital. and they made a big production. everyone knew judygarland was going to win. and they broughtin a camera crew,
and the nurse was supposedto open the blind, and the camera camethrough the window and say, you know, greetings fromthe hospital, here's judy garland, the bestactress of the year. but unfortunately, theycalled grace kelly's name, and, um, theypulled the wires out from judy garland's nightgown,and the camera guys went out, and she thought theytreated her pretty shabbily. (singing) that great beginninghas seen a final inning.
it meant to her that hollywoodwas not behind her, that she didn't have thesupport of hollywood that she thought she deservedand of course she did deserve. grace kelly was good,but she wasn't great. and judy was greatin "a star is born." (singing) butfools will be fools. and where's he gone to? narrator: judygarland and sid luft were married for over 10 years.
they had a daughter,lorna, and a son, joey. things were up and down. judy still playeda few film roles, but by the end of the 1950s,the major successes had run out. and the marriageitself became a drama. judy garland: i'vespent years and years and years trying to pleasethrough singing or acting. lots of people gotrich off of me. my children didn't get rich.
sid luft is an animal. he's just some kind of breed. and i'll tell theworld whenever i can that he's a thief, a sadist,and a man who doesn't even care one bit oneway or the other about any other living soul. michael siewert: sid wasa guy who lived off women. and he went to theracetracks all the time. horse racing was very popularamong the studio people.
sid was always theregambling with somebody's money, somebody else's money. stevie phillips: it was a wholecenter in the middle of her that was missing. it was like 50% ofher was missing. and that 50% had to besupplied by the love of a man. when freddie found judyliving in a flat in london, she was perhaps trying toespouse a healthy lifestyle. she was cooking forherself, perhaps
not taking so many drugs. freddie described her asfat as a little buddha and unable to get so muchas $500 for a concert. i doubt it took him 10minutes, and she was on a plane and came that december,cold afternoon when she walked into freddyfields associates, freddie's first office. and i met her forthe first time, and i thought tomyself, oh, my god, this
is the woman that i'veadored all of my childhood. i was there forthe stage set-up. i did the sound check. i dealt with the press. i cleaned up the dressing roomand was her-- her right hand, her left hand, her shadow. i really don't know howto characterize myself. i was there 24/7. [cheering]
michael siewert: judy was aconsummate showbusiness person. she knew how toenthrall an audience. [music - judy garland, "as long as he needs me] she would not just sing a song. she would tell a story. i watched people stream downthe aisles in appreciation from maine to losangeles, from one side of the country to the other. audiences loved her.
and so did i. i thoughtthat what she did on stage was always remarkable. she never cheated. (singing) when someoneneeds you, you love him so. i won't betray his trust. i went to one of her concerts,and it was carnegie hall. and that's when i realizedpretty much how famous she was. (singing) oh, baby,think what you're doing. i'm gonna haunt you so.
i'm gonna taunt you so. it's gonna drive you to ruin. after you've gone,after you've gone away! joey luft: by theend of the show, the audience wasleaving their seats and crowding around thestage to be closer to her. they called herback for an encore after encore, even askingher to repeat certain songs. i'll never forget that night.
(singing) --away! yes, i was there. it was the greatest nighti've ever spent in a theater. nothing comes close. (singing) afteryou've gone, there's no denying you're gonna feel blue,and you're gonna feel sad. you're gonna feelbad, and you miss. on the carnegie hall cd,you can hear her running out of breath, and you can hearher gasping for the breath
to finish the song. it's almost like it waslife or death for her. even though she sounds likeshe's running out of breath, she-- you hear the gasp,and then you think, why is-- why is she doing that? and it was just to deliver theend of the song to an audience. [siren wailing] my name is jason wise. i'm a director-choreographerhere in new york.
"night of 1,000 judys" isa annual charity concert in new york, and it benefitsa charity that provides housing for homeless gay youth. who is a gay icon? there's plenty of them. but, you know, judy garlandhas this famous phrase, "there's no place like home." and that madeperfect sense to me, because that is whatthe charity does,
is it provides a homefor people who have lost theirs just for being gay. so aside from judy having thatperfect catchphrase attached to her, you know, ithink gay people also respect her resilienceand find a hero in her. and it just kind of seemedlike the perfect pairing for an evening of entertainment. she was extremely charmingand extremely funny and extremely engaging.
you know, what gay doesn'twant to be that? [laughing] hi, mama! oh, liza! i'm home! hi, liza! -how are you, dear?-i'm fine. oh, you look so pretty. thank you very much. joe.
uh, this is my daughter liza. what's happening? what? we're on television. oh! uh, hi, everybody. (singing) nobody triesto be la-dee-da or uppity. there's a cup of tea for all. (singing) only it's wise to behandy with the rolling pin when
the landlord comes to call! (singing) consideryourself our mate. (singing) we don'twanna have no fuss. (singing) for after someconsideration we can stay. (singing) consider yourself-- -(singing) consider yourself---(singing) consider yourself-- (singing) one, two,three-- one of us! joey luft: my motherwas in show business. i mean, she was oneof the best actresses
and one of the best singers. and liza is a singer, greatsinger, great actress. so it kinda runs in the family. my other sister laurenis a great singer. and, um. so i am kind of on theother side. [laughing] so i'm not a singer. [laughing] (singing) where is love? does it fall from skies above?
is it underneaththe willow tree? joey luft: sometimes she wouldget nervous before the show. and you'd just have tosit there and talk to her tell her that was all right. and i would just grab herhead and say, look, mom, everything's gonna be ok. you're gonna get through this. and just rememberi'm right backstage. stevie phillips: after afruit cocktail of many pills
one night when she wasappearing in las vegas, she got up and, as usual,said, i think i can sleep now, and dropped like a stone. she lay on the carpet,bleeding profusely. and i thought, it's over,you know, she's dead. i was scared to touch her. it was an incidentnot unlike many others that i faced that required thati take some action, calling somebody, taking her to thehospital to have her stomach
pumped. i'm in the bedroom ofjudy garland's suite at new york's plaza hotel. and judy is still in bed,late for the 4 o'clock meeting in my office with her businessmanager charlie renthal. what do you want to wear? i asked judy sweetly. she doesn't answer me. i stand there like the dummyi was at 25, staring at her.
she takes the salemsoff the nightstand, removes a cigarette,puts it in her mouth. she takes a pack ofmatches, strikes one, and sets her nightgown on fire. an instantaneouschill overtakes me. what if she could die? narrator: judy wasliving in london again. she had two morehusbands, men who wanted to profit from her fame.
her daily routine was setby tablets and alcohol. judy garland: i'vejust about got it made. all i have to do is talk, andall you have to do is read or listen, and believeme the way you believe me when i sang all those songs. well, now i'm talking,and listen to me, for goodness sakes. don't make a joke of me anymore. people say andprint and believe,
the stupid onesand the minority, that i'm either adrunk, a drug addict. well, it's a goddamnwonder i'm not. but i'm not. for the very end of judy'slife, she was out of control. you know, there was alesson there, you know, that if you're gonna sacrificeeverything for your art and your performanceand use whatever means possible to do it, therewas a tremendous price to pay.
the bottom line is thatshe was incredibly talened, and she had a-- shehad a magnificent gift. i do also believe, though, thatif the drugs hadn't have been there, she would havebeen just as great, and it would havebeen a whole other-- but it would have beendifferent. [laughing] it would have been different. stevie phillips: sheended up with nothing. she was no differentthan the bag lady that
tears your heart out,sleeping on a park bench in the winter time. she had nothing-- a coupleof pictures of the children. where was the furniture? where were the mementos? where was the memorabilia? where were the beautiful houses? where were all the thingsthat her accomplishments had made possible for her?
they weren't there. they were gone. and paradoxicallyand sadly, they didn't mean anything to her. i took an optionon a musical, and i wanted to take it to judy. this was in 1967. and i met her for a drinkat jillie's on 52nd street. and she was soincoherent and out of it
and high that i just pretendedi wanted to say hello. judy garland: what's thename of this song again? [laughter] narrator: judy continuedgiving concerts and made television appearances. (singing) --there's a land thati heard of once in a lullaby. judy garland: sometimes herbrilliance shone through. but often, she justdidn't have the strength. (singing) --skies are blue.
judy garland: i've sung. i've entertained. i've pleased your children. i've pleased your wives. i've pleased you,you sons of bitches! and you can't deny that! i've maintained a way of lifeto not sink with the sludge! and you better write it! you better pay for it!
or don't listen, and getthe hell out of my life! (singing) somewhere overthe rainbow, bluebirds fly. we always had to likekeep a smile on our face or keep happy. because it was, you know--no matter how hard it got or what happened,you'd always have to like look at the brightside of it and, you know, try not to thinkabout the hard things. judy garland: we can alldo it, you know. (singing)
why, oh, why can't i? narrator: on the22nd of june 1969, judy garland died in londonof an overdose of tablets. she was 47 years old. man: judy garland! liza said that judygarland was a flower that just wilted and died. reporter: well, todaywas for judy's fans. narrator: her body was flownto new york for the funeral.
[chatter] the stonewall riotshappened the same weekend of judy garland's funeralservice in new york city. i think it was all coincidental. it wasn't a time,even in the '60s, to really talk about gays. and when she was asked abouthomosexuals, she would say, those are my audiencemembers, and i love them. that just freedus to fly with her.
if i would start gettinga little bit sad or down, i would think of hersongs, and they-- it would pull me back up.[laughing] so, i mean-- i mean, it's, uh-- i just rememberher always trying to be happy. (singing) old man river,that old man river, he must-- i had an hour and a halfof free time in london. it was the one thing thati wanted to do for myself. you know, i look on my map,and it says i'm approaching, and i'm looking at thisbuilding, and it's decrepit.
anyone who was walkingdown the street, if you were to stop them andsay, see that piece of shit? that's the housethat dorothy died in. i took a piece of notebookpaper out of my backpack, and i wrote, "thegreat judy garland lived and died in this house." i guess it was my wayof saying thank you. (singing) and old man river,he just keeps rolling along!