Judy Garland Net Worth
Judy Garland was an American actress, singer, and vaudevillian who had a net worth of $40,000 at the time of her death. This figure is equivalent to $300,000 in today’s currency after correcting for the effects of inflation. Garland was born and raised in California. Before she turned 18, she had already made more than $400,000 in movie salaries, and she would go on to make about $10 million over the course of her career, which is equivalent to roughly $100 million when adjusted for inflation.
Judy Garland was not only an amazing vocalist but also one of the most successful actors in the world when she was at the height of her career. Garland was a product of a period in which actresses were expected to be able to sing and dance, and she was one of the few who could perform all of these activities with the same level of competence.
Judy was the recipient of a lot of accolades and prizes as a result of her accomplishments. Among these were an Academic Juvenile Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Special Tony Award, a Grammy Award, and a number of other prestigious honors.
She started her profession when she was a youngster, and getting her foot in the door of the entertainment industry was not without its drawbacks. Garland struggled with issues of poor self-worth during the course of her life, and she also struggled with substance usage beginning at a very young age. The great actress struggled with financial difficulties throughout her life, which contributed to the incredibly modest amount of money that she had in the bank when she passed away.
Judy Garland Early Life
The 10th of June, 1922 finds Frances Ethel Gumm making her debut into the world in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Frances was influenced to develop a love for singing and dancing at an early age by her parents, who both worked in the entertainment industry.
During this formative period, she and her siblings frequently appeared on stage together. After her father’s alleged gay leanings became public knowledge in their community, the Gumm family eventually uprooted their lives and moved to the city of Lancaster in the state of California. The young aspiring actress has access to a wealth of fresh chances thanks to Frances’ location in close proximity to Hollywood.
Judy Garland Career
The Gumm Sisters began appearing on television in 1928 in various segments as a group. There was never a definitive answer as to why they changed their name to the “Garland Sisters,” although several theories have surfaced over time. An audition for Judy Garland was planned by songwriter Burton Lane for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios. Garland was offered a deal after he sang a song at the audition.
They had no notion what to do with Garland, unfortunately. At the age of 13, she was in an uneasy transition period between the roles of a child and an adult. That she was a “ugly duckling” and didn’t have the same physical attractiveness as Ava Gardner and Elizabeth Taylor was also made clear to her.
Despite this, Garland was a gifted performer and actress who brought in a sizable sum of money for her studio, MGM. For the next few years, she had a busy filmography, acting in such films as “Life Begins for Andy Hardy,” “Babe In Arms,” “And Andy Hardy Meets Debutante,” and many more.
At this time, she was given amphetamines to help her stay awake during extended filming sessions. When it was time for her to sleep, barbiturates were administered. MGM, on the other hand, has vehemently refuted this.
The studio was never happy with Judy’s weight, and that is undeniable. She was subjected to a diet of mainly soup and lettuce, which she was forced to adhere to on a regular basis. All of this reinforced Judy’s self-doubt, which would only worsen and become more disastrous in the years to come for the young woman.
A major breakthrough came in 1939 when Judy Garland was cast in the lead role for “The Wizard of Oz.” This became one of her most defining roles, and she became famous for singing the iconic song “Over the Rainbow.” Before moving on to adult roles and beginning her first true romance with Artie Shaw, Garland had achieved this milestone.
After that, she married David Rose, with whom she had a tumultuous marriage until 1944. Garland had an abortion during their relationship. In 1943, there would be another abortion.
Her contract with MGM came to an end after she starred in more adult parts in several major films. In 1948, Garland suffered a nervous breakdown and attempted suicide for the first time in the film “The Pirate.” He began taking sleeping pills and morphine after the commercially successful picture “Easter Parade,” which was followed by a period of depression.
Garland’s acting skills began to deteriorate as a result of this downward spiral. She was frequently fired from films, and sometimes she simply stopped showing up to set. In 1950, MGM suspended her contract, seemingly prompting Garland to attempt suicide once again. By the end of the year, she was released from her contract.
Despite her personal struggles, Judy experienced success in the theatrical world towards the end of her career. Garland had a genuine comeback, and she reverted to her vaudeville roots in the early stages. During this period, she also started to perform alongside her daughter, Liza Minnelli. By the mid-1950s, Garland had returned to Hollywood with “A Star is Born.”
In what has been called the biggest robbery in the history of the film industry, Grace Kelly received the Academy Award instead of her, despite the fact that she was widely predicted to win for this performance.
Garland began appearing on television more frequently in the 1960s and beyond, and she eventually got her own show. The cancellation of this concert allowed her to appear alongside her daughter Liza, who was aged 18 at the time, once again. A number of unfavorable divorces during this period and mounting financial difficulties caused Garland to become increasingly desperate. By the end of the 1960s, it was obvious that she was headed in the wrong direction.
Judy Garland Salary History
In 1935, Judy’s first deal with MGM paid $100 a week. By the time she was picked to play Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz,” she was making $500 a week. Her main co-stars earned $3,000 a week. Judy made a total of $9,649 from Oz, which is about $190,000 in today’s money. During most of Judy’s early work life, her mother took a cut of these wages.
At the beginning of the 1950s, Judy could make between $15 and $20,000 a week by performing on Broadway. That’s the same as making $163,000 per week now. In 1955, when she was in “The Ford Star Jubilee,” she made $100,000.
Judy was paid $200,000 for her last movie, “I Could Go On Singing,” which came out in 1963. She was also promised 10% of the movie’s gross if it made more than $3 million.
Judy’s most reliable source of income for most of her life was music royalties, which brought in between $50,000 and $80,000 per year. Unfortunately, the IRS and the California Franchise Tax Board took a part of these royalties because the person had tax problems.
Judy Garland Death
Mickey Deans, who was Garland’s third and final husband, discovered her body on June 22, 1969, and pronounced her dead at the scene. She has reached the age of 47.
A barbiturate overdose was confirmed to be the cause of Judy’s death after it was discovered that her health had been quickly deteriorating while she was giving her final few concerts in London and Copenhagen. Garland had consumed an extremely high dose of the medication over a protracted period of time, but it was determined that suicide was not the cause of her death.
In addition, the autopsy concluded that Garland would have succumbed to cirrhosis, a condition characterised by a significant decline in liver function, within a short period of time anyway, even though subsequent tests disproved this assertion. Another physician hypothesised that Judy suffered from an eating issue, and that this condition, in addition to other factors, was ultimately responsible for her passing.
Judy Garland Financial Problems
In spite of the fact that she earned millions of dollars at the height of her career, Judy struggled mightily with her finances, which led to her being in a desperate situation by the time she reached the end of her life.
It took her decades of poor financial management combined with her generosity to friends and family to put her in such a mountain of debt that many of the bequests she made to charitable organisations in her will were unable to be carried out.
Judy found out she owed the Internal Revenue Service $500,000 just a few years before she passed away. That’s close to $4 million in terms of today’s currency. Her representatives, Freddie Fields and David Begelman, are responsible for this situation as a result of their theft and poor management of the business.
The Internal Revenue Service put a tax lien on her property in Brentwood, which is located in the Los Angeles area, and they started garnishing royalties from her recording contract with Capital Records as well as her other commercial endeavours. Judy was ultimately compelled to sell the home at a significant discount; as a consequence, she spent a period of time moving around from hotel to hotel, frequently leaving behind a significant unpaid debt.
In 1967, Judy made more than $200,000 while performing at the Palace Theater in New York for a run of 27 consecutive nights. She was responsible for bringing in 75% of the total proceeds from the programme. Sadly, the majority of these revenues were taken by the Internal Revenue Service.
Following Judy’s passing, her daughter Liza Minnelli was responsible for raising the necessary funds to settle the estate’s financial obligations. The sale of over 500 of her personal possessions brought in a total of $250,000 (which is equivalent to almost $1 million in today’s money). Additionally, Frank Sinatra made a personal contribution to the effort to pay off the loans.
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