From Publishers Weekly
It's hard to imagine that there could ever be a more obsessive detailing of Garland's life than this day-by-day listing that brings new meaning to the word minutiae. There seems to be no detail too small or insignificant to escape Schechter's forensic-like attention to all things Judy (1922 1969). A $15.97 receipt from Lord & Taylor for a new hat (December 12, 1968) merits the same amount of space as the night (March 30, 1955) a camera crew was set up in her hospital room (the day after giving birth to her son) to record her Best Actress Oscar acceptance speech for A Star Is Born (she wound up losing to Grace Kelly). Given that this is a quotidian chronology, some entries are banal (numerous dates just note checks Garland wrote that day), but as anyone who has ever read a Garland bio knows, she didn't lead a dull life. There is a strange fascination to being able to chart the progress of the shooting of The Wizard of Oz, Meet Me in St. Louis and other MGM musicals (and hour-by-hour notations for Annie Get Your Gun before she was fired). Schechter (publisher and editor of the fanzine Garlands for Judy The Legend's Legacy) includes a generous sampling of reviews for films, albums and live appearances and dutifully notes current availability for fans. Although few enthusiasts will read this cover-to-cover, it is sure to have enormous appeal as a reference tome and have multiple uses for trivia buffs. 80 b&w photos.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
Actress Janet Leigh is quoted as saying, "There can never be enough written about Judy Garland." However, the line must be drawn with this daily chronology of Garland's life. Do even the most rabid Garland fans really want to read that on April 7, 1944, Garland was called to the Meet Me in St. Louis set, was ready at 10:30, and dismissed at 4 p.m.? Entry after entry reads like this. It's true that Garland's will (included in the appendix) might be of interest to some, but also included are the names that appeared in her address book just names, no addresses. Schechter's publishers tout him as "the world's premier Garland authority," and this book is being published to coincide with what would have been Garland's 80th birthday. But it is mind-numbingly boring and does not do her justice. Try Gerald Clarke's Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland or Morley Sheridan's Judy Garland: Beyond the Rainbow instead. Not recommended. Rosellen Brewer, Monterey Cty. Free Libs., Salinas,CA
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
