Judy Garland [1922-1969] is one of the most famous American entertainers of the 20th century and remains well known today. Her performance as Dorothy Gale in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz is alone enough to ensure her immortality in popular culture. Yet from her days as a child appearing with two older sisters in a vaudeville act until her death at 47 in 1969, her life was filled with many other achievements. She acted and sang in musical films and acted in dramatic ones; she was nominated for Academy Awards in each genre. She released both studio and live recording albums and was the first woman to win a Grammy for Album of the Year. Later in life she had a weekly television show and toured concert stages extensively. That brings us to the subject of this blog post.
From 1960 until 1965 Garland appeared in Europe, Canada and the United States in numerous concerts. These venues ranged from the Palladium in London to Carnegie Hall in New York. On April 11, 1961, she performed at Municipal Auditorium in Birmingham, Alabama.
The concert was sponsored by the Birmingham Music Club, which is "the oldest cultural arts group" in the city according to their web site. Founded in 1905, the group formed the Alabama Symphony Orchestra in 1933. On April 8 she had appeared in Washington, D.C., and then on April 13 in Atlanta.
The two photographs included here show Garland arriving in the city by train and getting into a waiting car. Both were taken by Anthony Falletta for the Birmingham News. I wonder if others exist. I imagine the concert was reviewed in the local newspapers; perhaps I'll research that one day.
Twelve days after the concert in Birmingham, Garland made her legendary Carnegie Hall performance, which has been called by some "the greatest night in show business history." A double album of the concert won five Grammy Awards, including the aforementioned Album of the Year as well as Female Vocal of the Year. Judy at Carnegie Hall spent 95 weeks on the Billboard chart, 13 at number one.
Unfortunately, Judy Garland's storied life came to a sad and early end. Plagued all her life with health, financial, substance and relationship problems, she died of a barbiturate overdose in London on June 22, 1969. I wonder if anyone who attended her Birmingham concert is still alive to remember it.
Garland has another connection to Birmingham. As the Wikipedia article about her notes:
On September 16, 1963, Garland – along with daughter Liza, Carolyn Jones, June Allyson, and Allyson's daughter Pam Powell – held a press conference to highlight and protest the recent bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, that resulted in the death of four young African American girls. They expressed their shock at the events and requested funds for the families of the victims. Pam Powell and Liza Minnelli both announced their intention to attend the funeral of the victims during the press conference.[130][131]
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