Became good friends with Doris Day on the Warner Bros. lots when she was filming A Star Is Born (1954) at the same time that Day was filming Young at Heart (1954).
Betty Asher, who worked on the MGM lots, served as her maid of honor during her wedding to Vincente Minnelli in 1945.
Born in Grand Rapids, Minnesota and later lived up in Lancaster, California. John Wayne, then attending college at USC, was a neighbor of Judy's.
Despite numerous concert and television appearances in the 1960s, Garland remained constantly in debt. This was due in part to then-manager David Begelman embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from his clients, with Garland chief among them. Begelman even went so far as to claim a Cadilac, presented to Garland for an appearance on "The Jack Paar Program" (1962) as his own.
Despite popular belief that Shirley Temple was the first choice for the role of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (1939), Garland was cast in the role even before pre-production had begun. As early as February 1938, both Variety and columnist Louella Parsons announced that she was cast in the role of Dorothy.
Did not attend the 1955 Academy Awards, where she was nominated as Best Actress for her portrayal of Vicki Lester in A Star Is Born (1954), because she was in hospital after giving birth to her third child and only son Joey Luft.
Did not get on with Lucille Bremer, who played her sister in Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). She thought that Bremer couldn't act and repeatedly tried to have her fired from the film, but to no avail.
During her first marriage to David Rose, Judy was forced to undergo an abortion at the insistence of MGM studio head Louis B. Mayer who feared that pregnancy would hurt her good-girl image. The event left her traumatized for the rest of her life.
Father was movie theater owner Francis 'Frank' Gumm (born 20 March, 1886 - died 17 November, 1935). Mother was Ethel Milne (born 17 November, 1893 - died 05 January, 1953).
Favorite actor was Robert Donat (best known for his portrayal of the title character in the film Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939)).
First cousin three times removed of US President Ulysses S. Grant.
Gave birth to all three of her children via Caesarean section. She also suffered from postpartum depression after the birth of her two daughters Liza Minnelli and Lorna Luft.
Godfather of her daughter Lorna Luft was Frank Sinatra
Grandmother of Vanessa and Jesse Richards, children of singer Lorna Luft.
Had intense fears of flying, horses, and guns.
Had weight problems most of her life. Drastic weight fluctuations often affected continuity in her films and can be seen in Words and Music (1948) and Summer Stock (1950).
Has a special variety of rose named after her. The petals are yellow (Garland adored yellow roses) and the tips are bright red. It took devoted fans almost nine years after her death to find a rose company in Britain interested in naming a rose officially for her, and the Judy Garland rose didn't appear in the US until 1991. Several JG rose bushes are planted outside of her burial crypt, and at the Judy Garland museum in Grand Rapids.
Her daughter Liza Minnelli was once married to Jack Haley Jr., the son of her The Wizard of Oz (1939) co-star Jack Haley, who played the Tin Man.
Her performance as Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz (1939) is ranked #17 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time.
Her portrayal of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz (1939) was the inspiration for the character of Mary Ann on "Gilligan's Island" (1964). (From Kansas, ponytails, lived on a farm with an aunt and uncle...).