Judy Garland

The voice that defined an era.

Frances Ethel Gumm, who later became known as Judy Garland, entered the world on June 10, 1922, in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, as the daughter of vaudeville performers Ethel Marion Milne and Francis Avent Gumm.^[1] For her work in 1939, which included both The Wizard of Oz and Babes in Arms, Garland was presented with an Academy Juvenile Award at the 1939 Academy Awards ceremony.^[2]

Quick Facts

Birth name

Frances Ethel Gumm

Born

10 June 1922

Birthplace

Grand Rapids, Minnesota, U.S.

Died

22 June 1969

Place of death

London, England

Occupation

Actress
singer
vaudevillian

Years active

1924–1969

Height

4 ft 11.5 in / 1.51 m

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Garland first appeared on stage at age two, singing "Jingle Bells" with her elder sisters at her father's movie theater.^[3] The family relocated to Lancaster, California in June 1926 after rumors about Francis Gumm.^[3] In September 1935, Louis B. Mayer asked songwriter Burton Lane to watch the Garland Sisters' act.^[4] She was cast as Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz in 1938.^[5]

Garland suffered a nervous breakdown during filming of The Pirate in early 1947.^[6]

What the cited sources add

Garland's mother, in cahoots with the studio, arranged for Garland to have an abortion when she became pregnant by Rose.^[7] In 1943, Garland became pregnant from her affair with Tyrone Power, according to Petersen.^[7] These incidents affected Garland psychologically, and she became the first public victim of stardom.^[7] According to Woman's World, Rose acted with hostility toward Garland and collaborated with her mother to pressure her into obtaining an illegal abortion.^[8]

References

Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Judy's Life – ~1920S~", judygarlandmuseum.com; "Minnesota Birth Records, Minnesota Historical Society People Search", June 2025; "Ethel Marion Milne death pt 1 of 2", Los Angeles Times, January 6, 1953, p. 1; Schechter, "Judy Garland: The Day-by-Day Chronicle of a Legend", Taylor Trade Publishing, 2006, p. 3 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Clarke 2001, p. 23 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Shipman 1992, p. 12; Fricke, "Judy Garland – A Brief Biography", Judygarland.com; Clarke 2001, p. 23; "Judy Garland's Historic Childhood Home Is on the Market", January 18, 2017 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Neibaur, "The Films of Judy Garland", McFarland, 2022, p. 4 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Trussell, "Judy Garland: Frozen in time, looking over the rainbow", The Kansas City Star, August 16, 2014 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Judy Garland" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Edwards 1975, p. 27; Frank 1975, p. 73 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
"Classic Hollywood's Secret: Studio executives Wanted Their Stars to Have Abortions", July 15, 2016. facts only, no text reused. vanityfair.com
Mosness, "A Look at Judy Garland's 5 Marriages—From Romance to Heartbreak", Woman's World, October 19, 2024. facts only, no text reused. womansworld.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Judy Garland (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.