Judy Garland: Beyond the Rainbow [Hardcover]

Sheridan Morley (Author), Ruth Leon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 22, 1999

Judy Garland lived, loved and died entirely in the pubic eye. The authors describe the star, who, despite her troubled personal life, captivated audiences the world over. The volume focuses on images chronicling her extensive movie career.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Morley and Leon's profusely illustrated overview of the singer-actress beloved as much for her pathetic life as for her performances has the signal virtue of acknowledging her core fandom--gay men. Garland's appeal to gay men quite possibly arose out of her love, however misplaced, for her improvident and alcoholic as well as homosexual father. One very close friend was a gay man, two of her five husbands were homosexual, and she urged her daughter Liza to marry the homosexual Peter Allen. Complementing Garland's affinity for gay men was her image as a psychologically needy prodigy callously exploited by managers, including her own mother and infamous movie mogul Louis B. Mayer. This aspect of Garland, gay men fancied, mirrored their own plight vis-a-vis mainstream society: prized for their talents, despised for their essence. Actually much more concerned with Garland's career history than with her gay-icon status, this profile is an ideal "first book" on the arguably greatest cult superstar. Ray Olson

Product Details

• Hardcover: 172 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing; 1St Edition edition (June 22, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559704918
• ISBN-13: 978-1559704915
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 9.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 1.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,784,623 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #58 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( G ) > Garland, Judy

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Beyond the Rainbow Should Stay There, April 8, 2000

By 

Robert E. Gold (Whitestone, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Judy Garland: Beyond the Rainbow (Hardcover)

I am certainly glad I took this poorly written and terribly edited book out of the public library, instead of spending good money on it. I read this work on Judy since I have been a fan for 25 years. I have read every book that has been printed on her, and I find this to be one of the worst. It is, as many previous reviewers have said, filled with inaccuracies. For example, on page 38, it says Buddy Ebsen left The Wizard of Oz due to an eye infection, which is incorrect since we all know it was due to his lungs breathing in the aluminum dust. On page 38, Glinda is listed as played by Binnie Barnes, not Billie Burke, who did play the role. On page 44, it states that the film didn't get a tv deal until 1976. Try 1956. On page 50, it says that the parody of the Roosevelts from Babes in Arms was cut since it was too good a mimicry. Wrong again, as it was only cut after Roosevelt's death. On page 72, it says Mickey Rooney appeared in three more musicals with Judy after Girl Crazy. I only know of two: Thousands Cheer and Words and Music. On page 148, the photo of Judy and Liza was taken from her tv series, not from the Palladium concert. I am only listing a few of the errors I found, which were not already mentioned. The point is if an author can't get simple factual errors correct, how much can we believe what he or she writes about everything else?

I too find it hard to believe that the author loves Judy as much as he claims. If he loved and admired Judy as much as he said, how could he have allowed so many mistakes in his work?

The only good thing I can say about this book is that it has some nice pictures, some which I had never seen before.

For readers who want to read better biographies on Judy, stick to Gerold Frank's Judy, Christopher Finch's Rainbow, and any book by John Fricke. Stay away from Anne Edwards Judy Garland since I found many similar errors, which could have been easily checked. Also stay away from Al DiOrio's Little Girl Lost and Brad Steiger's Judy Garland. Both are horrible and trashy.

I did like Lorna's book on her mother. It was interesting and told with honesty and love. She didn't sugarcoat her mother's life. We saw an honest portrayal of Garland, the talented but troubled star, who gave so much to this world, and who is still inspiring and giving pleasure through her recordings, films, tv appearances, and radio appearances. The world we live in is a better place for the gifts Judy Garland bestowed upon us. She deserves to be remembered in a book better than this.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars This Book is Appalling!, November 19, 1999

By 

Donna Stewart-Hardway (Elkview, WV United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Judy Garland: Beyond the Rainbow (Hardcover)

How dare you say that you loved Judy? If this is love, I would not want to be the recipient of your hate. This book is appalling. Your facts are often wrong and your maleficent depiction of Judy is inexcusable. There were times when I felt that you were describing the life of a monster.

Judy Garland was one of the most talented women that ever graced the entertainment field. When considering her background, and the people that abused and used her, it is nothing short of a miracle that she survived long enough to leave the legacy that she did. The very people that should have been protecting her and loving her were the ones that used and abused her the most.

When does a dysfunctional, abused child turn into a dysfunctional adult? Between what breaths does this happen? Everyone feels sorry for the abused child and hates the adult they become. Judy had gaping holes in her personality development. Into that she plugged drugs, booze, and men. Ladies, (authors?) why would you want to memorialize her pain?

Judy's worst day as a theatrical talent is better than your best day as author's. You are insulting to your public, you are bone mean to Judy, and my last words on this awful book is shame. Shame on everyone that let this trash out of the box of lies that I thought had finally been buried when Judy died.

To Judy: I am sorry that people can't get "it" right. I am sorry that you had to feel alone desperate and unloved. For tens of thousands of those who did love you, and still do, we love you and miss you.

Donna Stewart-Hardway Child Munchkin Oz, 1939

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Hack Biography At Its Quick-Buck Worst, April 2, 2002

By 

Gary F. Taylor "GFT" (Biloxi, MS USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Judy Garland: Beyond the Rainbow (Hardcover)

Garland was a tempestuous talent with serious emotional problems who began to use drugs at an early age. Her drug use served to intensify her emotional problems, distorted her personality, ruined her career, and ultimately took her life. These are facts, and any Garland biography that attempts to gloss over them does a disservice to its subject, who deserves the dignity of truth. But Sheridan Morley and Ruth Leon's JUDY GARLAND: BEYOND THE RAINBOW does not simply meet these facts, it turns them into superficial tabloid trash complete with pat explantions and superficial interpretations; worse still, the text is riddled with factual inaccuracy, relies upon rumor and mean-spirited speculation, and makes no attempt to place Garland's difficulties in perspective with the other aspects of her life.

I can think of no other Garland text, including the absolutely abominable biography by Anne Edwards, that so ill-serves its own subject. It is filled with unverified and self-serving gossip delivered in such a nasty tone that one wonders how Morley and Leon manage to sleep at night. If you wish to read a legitimate portrait of Garland, I recommend you seek out Christopher Finch's meticulously researched and elegantly written RAINBOW: THE STORMY LIFE OF JUDY GARLAND (sadly, now out of print) or Gerald Frank's exhaustive JUDY instead--and avoid this piece of coffee table trash as you would the plague.