Hollywood icon Judy Garland was born 101 years ago today (June 10, 1922).
The beloved film star appeared in some of the world’s most famous motion pictures, including her defining role as Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz.
Generations of fans grew up watching the film, with many performers taking to the stage to pay tribute to its cast and its memorable songs including Somewhere Over The Rainbow.
READ MORE: Hollywood icon Paul Newman’s ‘second career’ away from the big screen uncovered
Here, Daily Star takes a look back on the lives of The Wizard of Oz cast – and what happened to them after the release of the iconic cinema classic.
Judy Garland (Dorothy Gale)
Judy Garland is beloved throughout the world for her film roles, most notably Dorothy Gale in The Wizard of Oz.
She starred in some of the biggest films of all time, including Meet Me In St.Louis and A Star Is Born, for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Her last films included A Child Is Waiting and I Could Go On Singing, along with TV series such as Judy and Liza at the Palladium and Sunday Night at The London Palladium.
Judy continued to perform for the rest of her career, with her last performance taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark in March 1969.
In her personal life, the actress had three children including Joey and Lorna Luft, as well as Liza Minnelli who went on to become a Hollywood icon in her own right.
She was also married five times – first to David Rose from 1941 to 1944 and then to Vincent Minnelli from 1945 to 1951.
In 1952 she married Sidney Luft but the couple divorced in 1962. Judy then wed Mark Herron in 1965 before their divorce in 1969.
She then married Mickey Deans in the same year.
However away from the limelight, Judy was reported to have had an addiction to prescription drugs that she had battled throughout her life.
Speaking on This Morning, her daughter Lorna Luft said she believes that her mother would not have died so early if there had not been a stigma around addiction in the sixties.
She said: “We have so much education about the world of addiction and it’s so prevalent in everybody’s life right now – and the stigma has been taken off.
“It’s okay to say ‘I have a problem’ and back then it wasn’t.”
Judy died at the age of 47 years old on June 22, 1969 – with her death leaving fans and stars from the world of entertainment in shock at the passing of the beloved icon.
Speaking at an inquest into Judy’s death, her husband Mickey Dean described the final hours of the star’s life.
He told the coroner’s court that the couple had watched a film together before going to bed, saying: “Judy curled her feet up to me to keep warm as she always did.”
However, he said that the next morning he found Judy slumped on the bathroom floor and that the door had been bolted.
Judy was later pronounced dead, just two weeks after her 47th birthday.
An inquest into Judy Garland’s death was held in 1969, with the findings reported at Westminster Court, London on June 22 of that year.
The coroner concluded that Judy died from an accidental overdose, and that there was no evidence to suggest that it was a deliberate action by the actress.
Coroner Gavin Thurston told press at the time: “This is quite clearly an accidental circumstance to a person who was accustomed to taking barbiturates over a very long time.
“She took more barbiturates than she could tolerate.”
Judy’s funeral took place on June 27, 1969 in New York – with more than 20,000 people lining the streets to pay their respects to the star.
Jack Haley (Tin Man)
Jack Haley played the Tin Man and farm worker Hickory in The Wizard of Oz, where he delighted viewers with his song If I Only Had A Heart.
However, he was not the first star to play the Tin Man.
Buddy Ebsen was the original Tin Man star, but was hospitalised by the silver makeup after just nine days of filming – with Jack Haley subsequently taking over the role.
Jack was already a huge star before appearing in the film, having risen to fame as a vaudeville performer before starring alongside child icon Shirley Temple in films such as Poor Little Rich Girl and Higher and Higher with Frank Sinatra.
From there he appeared in films such as Take It Big and Sing Your Way Home, as well as treading the boards on Broadway in Higher and Higher and Inside U.S.A.
However he retired from acting in the late forties and entered real-estate, which made him a millionaire in the process, according to The New York Times.
He did appear in occasional acting parts though, with his final film role listed as a Master of Ceremonies in 1977’s New York, New York.
However two years later in 1979, Jack suffered a sudden heart attack and died on June 6 at UCLA Medical Centre in Los Angeles, California at the age of 81 years old.
His Wizard of Oz co-star Ray Bolger, who played Scarecrow in the film, gave the eulogy at his funeral and is reported as saying: “It’s going to awfully lonely on that Yellow Brick Road now, Jack.”
Away from the limelight, Jack was married to a dancer called Florence for more than 52 years and together they had two children – with one even following in his dad’s famous footsteps.
Jack Haley Jnr became a director, producer and writer for shows including That’s Entertainment! as well as a president of 20th Century Fox Studios.
Jack Haley Jnr had his own The Wizard of Oz link, as he was married to Judy Garland’s daughter Liza Minelli between 1974 to 1979.
Bert Lahr (Cowardly Lion)
Bert Lahr was the lovable Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, as well as playing farm worker Zeke.
After serving in the US Navy, Bert began his career on the stage in musicals such as Flying High, along with making his feature film debut in the 1931 big screen version of the production.
Following The Wizard of Oz, Bert continued to appear in films such as Sing Your Worries Away, Always Leave Them Laughing and The Night They Raided Minskys, which was his final role.
He also appeared in stage productions such as The Birds, Never Too Late and The Beauty Part.
However, Bert was taken ill in 1967 while filming The Night They Raided Minskys and developed pneumonia, with the star dying on June 4.
Following his death, it was discovered that Bert had terminal cancer, but was unaware he had the disease, something that his son John Lahr discusses in his book Notes on a Cowardly Lion, according to IMDB.
John discusses Bert’s life and career in the autobiography, with his sister Jane telling Closer: “He brought so much to the audience, and John communicates that and the joyride of watching a great performer who was so in tune with the audience.”
In his personal life, Bert was married twice – first to dancer Mercedes Delpino from 1929 until their marriage was annulled in 1939 and then to Mildred Schroder from 1940.
Both of Bert’s children, John and Jane entered the entertainment industry too, with Jane working as a author, editor and literary agent.
John is an theatre critic and writer who has worked at publications including The New Yorker, Broadway World and The Telegraph.
In 2000, John married Fawlty Towers star Connie Booth, who was previously married to her co-star John Cleese and together the couple live in London.
Ray Bolger (Scarecrow)
Ray Bolger’s Scarecrow was the first character that Dorothy met on her adventures on the yellow brick road, with the actor playing farm hand Hunk too.
Like many of his co-stars, Ray began his career long before The Wizard Of Oz, appearing in vaudeville shows and silent films, before landing roles in The Great Ziegfield and Sweethearts.
From there he appeared on Broadway, along with landing his own TV programme The Ray Bolger Show from 1953 to 1955.
As well as playing villain Barnaby in Disney’s 1961 hit Babes In Toyland, he starred in The Partridge Family and That’s Dancing! opposite Judy Garland’s daughter Liza Minnelli.
Ray was married to his wife Gwendolyn Rickard from 1929 until his death from bladder cancer on January 15, 1987.
He had been the last surviving member of the main Wizard of Oz quartet, following the death of his co-stars including Bert Lahr in 1966, Judy Garland in 1969 and Jack Haley in 1979.
Reflecting on their part in The Wizard of Oz during an interview with The LA Times in 1971, Ray had said: “Little moppets come up to me and punch me to see if I’m made of straw.
“It’s a great American motion picture classic. . . . How many can say ‘I belong to a great American classic?’”
Margaret Hamilton (Wicked Witch)
Margaret Hamilton became world famous for her role as the villainous Almira Gulch and her Oz counterpart The Wicked Witch of the West.
After landing her film debut in 1933’s Another Language, she appeared in a huge number of Hollywood films including Babes In Arms , 13 Ghosts and The Daydreamer, in which she was reunited with The Wizard of Oz co-star and close friend Ray Bolger.
She also had a hugely successful TV, radio and stage career, appearing in The Addams Family, Ethel and Albert, Mister Rogers’ Neighbourhood, A Little Night Music and The Three Sisters – to name a few.
It is her role in The Wizard of Oz that is she is most famous for though – but sadly her stunt double encountered serious injuries on set.
Margaret’s stunt double Betty Danko suffered injuries to her left leg after the broomstick exploded on set – leaving the actress in hospital for two weeks and with scarring to her skin.
Speaking about the film’s production in The Making Of The Wizard Of Oz, Aljean Harmetz said: “Some of these special effects had never been done before,” adding: “There were no unions, at that time. Stars and lesser players were indentured servants [for] studios.”
In her personal life, Margaret was married to Paul Meserve between 1931 to 1938, with who she had one child.
She also founding a kindergarten in a Beverly Hills church and served as president of that community’s board of education.
However, Margaret sadly died of a heart attack in her sleep on May 16, 1985 at the age of 82 years old.
Billie Burke (Glinda)
Billie Burke played Glinda, The Good Witch of the North in The Wizard of Oz.
Her talent for performance ran in the family, as her father was a clown for Barnum and Bailey Circus, who Billie toured with as a young child.
From there her family lived in London and Billie made her stage debut in a production of The School Girl in 1903, before going on to land roles in The Land Of Promise and The Amazons on Broadway.
Her stage career brought not only fame, but romance, as she met producer Florenz Ziegfeld.
They welcomed a daughter, the late author Patricia Ziegfeld Stephenson, and were married from 1914 to Florenz’s death in 1932.
After appearing in The Wizard of Oz, Billie starred in The Billie Burke Show, Doc Corkle, Lights Out and Seargent Rutledge, which would be her last film appearance.
Billie later chose to retire from acting and died on May 14, 1970 from natural causes at the age of 84 years old.
Frank Morgan (The Wizard of Oz)
Frank Morgan was the famous magician in The Wizard of Oz – but was already a huge star before appearing in the Hollywood classic.
Like Ray Bolger, he appeared in lots of silent films and classics of the era including When Ladies Meet, Dimples, The Shop Around The Corner and The Great Morgan.
He was not the only famous star in his family though, as his niece Claudia Morgan was a successful actress who starred in theatre productions such as The Apple Cart.
Away from the big screen, Frank was married to Alma Muller with who he had a son called George.
However at the age of 59 years old, Frank died of a heart attack on September 18, 1949.
READ MORE:
For more of the latest showbiz news from Daily Star, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
