Items related to Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland

Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland - Softcover

 
9780385335157: Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland
View all copies of this ISBN edition:
 
 
She lived at full throttle on stage, screen, and in real life, with highs that made history and lows that finally brought down the curtain at age forty-seven. Judy Garland died over thirty years ago, but no biography has so completely captured her spirit -- and demons -- until now.

From her tumultuous early years as a child performer to her tragic last days, Gerald Clarke reveals the authentic Judy in a biography rich in new detail and unprecedented revelations. Based on hundreds of interviews and drawing on her own unfinished -- and unpublished -- autobiography, Get Happy presents the real Judy Garland in all her flawed glory.

With the same skill, style, and storytelling flair that made his bestselling Capote a landmark literary biography, Gerald Clarke sorts through the secrets and the scandals, the legends and the lies, to create a portrait of Judy Garland as candid as it is compassionate.

Here are her early years, during which her parents sowed the seeds of heartbreak and self-destruction that would plague her for decades ... the golden age of Hollywood, brought into sharp focus with cinematic urgency, from the hidden private lives of the movie world's biggest stars to the cold-eyed businessmen who controlled the machine ... and a parade of brilliant and gifted men -- lovers and artists, impresarios and crooks -- who helped her reach so many creative pinnacles yet left her hopeless and alone after each seemingly inevitable fall.

Here, then, is Judy Garland in all her magic and despair: the woman, the star, the legend, in a riveting saga of tragedy, resurrection, and genius.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

Review:
Like his renowned Capote, Clarke's Get Happy is an addictively readable bio of an addict genius. We learn that it wasn't just the Hollywood moguls who mangled Judy Garland's soul. Yes, MGM's Louis B. Mayer did paw her teenage breasts, exacerbate her insecurity by calling her "my little hunchback," feed her uppers and downers ("bolts and jolts"), and repel the U.S. drug czar's personal attempt to get her into rehab. But the true villain was Judy's diabolical stage mom, Ethel Gumm, who fed her pills at age 9. Judy's heart belonged to her daddy, a kindly theater owner cursed with pederastic yearnings that evidently got the family run out of various towns, once by a man named Doc Savage. Daddy died young, and Judy kept hooking up with older men, including two probably gay husbands, one of whom cheated on her with her daughter Liza's husband. Her first best girlfriend in Hollywood (and probable lover) turned out to be a studio spy. She knew at least one of her agents, nicknamed Loeb and Leopold, robbed her blind, but since betrayal was everybody's way of life, she just laughed it off--and died dead broke. Judy cheated on Liza's dad (and her own great director) Vincente Minnelli, with still-handsome Orson Welles, who was cheating on Rita Hayworth. "People like me don't grow up easily," Judy once said. Most people in this book deserved to go up in flames, but only nice Margaret Hamilton, playing the Wicked Witch of the West, actually did so in a filming accident. She recovered; Judy didn't. It's fascinating to read about Judy's self-immolating life. But for a jolt of joy afterward, I prescribe the CD Judy at Carnegie Hall. Clarke lets you know what the songs cost, and what they mean. --Tim Appelo
From the Back Cover:
"One of the most comprehensive biographies of entertainment icon Judy garland to date...Clarke's skills as a storyteller make Garland'stale read like a heartbreaking novel."
-- US Weekly

"A compelling read...in a big, gutsy biography,Gerald Clarke brings insight and fresh detail to Judy Garland's story."
-- Entertainment Weekly

"The last, best, and only essential account."
-- The Philadelphia Inquirer

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

  • PublisherDelta
  • Publication date2001
  • ISBN 10 0385335156
  • ISBN 13 9780385335157
  • BindingPaperback
  • Number of pages528
  • Rating

Other Popular Editions of the Same Title

9780751531602: Get Happy : The Life of Judy Garland

Featured Edition

ISBN 10:  ISBN 13:  9780751531602
Publisher: Little Brown P/B, 2001
Softcover

  • 9780375503788: Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland

    Random..., 2000
    Hardcover

  • 9780316855952: get happy: the life of judy garland

    Random..., 2000
    Hardcover

  • 9780786227211: Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland

    Thornd..., 2000
    Hardcover

  • 9780756761318: Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland

    Diane ..., 2000
    Hardcover

Top Search Results from the AbeBooks Marketplace

Stock Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
Your Online Bookstore
(Houston, TX, U.S.A.)

Book Description paperback. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 0385335156-11-31332740

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 16.23
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Softcover Quantity: 9
Seller:
Lakeside Books
(Benton Harbor, MI, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Brand New! Not Overstocks or Low Quality Book Club Editions! Direct From the Publisher! We're not a giant, faceless warehouse organization! We're a small town bookstore that loves books and loves it's customers! Buy from Lakeside Books!. Seller Inventory # OTF-9780385335157

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 12.25
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.99
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
GF Books, Inc.
(Hawthorne, CA, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Book is in NEW condition. Seller Inventory # 0385335156-2-1

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 16.81
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Softcover Quantity: 1
Seller:
Book Deals
(Tucson, AZ, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. New! This book is in the same immaculate condition as when it was published. Seller Inventory # 353-0385335156-new

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 16.82
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Seller Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Soft Cover Quantity: 1
Seller:
booksXpress
(Bayonne, NJ, U.S.A.)

Book Description Soft Cover. Condition: new. Seller Inventory # 9780385335157

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 16.83
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Seller Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta 3/6/2001 (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Paperback or Softback Quantity: 5
Seller:
BargainBookStores
(Grand Rapids, MI, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback or Softback. Condition: New. Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland 1.58. Book. Seller Inventory # BBS-9780385335157

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 17.14
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Seller Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Softcover Quantity: 5
Seller:
GreatBookPrices
(Columbia, MD, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 463131-n

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 14.60
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 2.64
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

CLARKE, GERALD
Published by Penguin Random House (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Softcover Quantity: > 20
Seller:
INDOO
(Avenel, NJ, U.S.A.)

Book Description Condition: New. Brand New. Seller Inventory # 0385335156

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 14.00
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: US$ 3.99
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Stock Image

Clarke, Gerald
Published by Delta (2001)
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Paperback Quantity: 18
Seller:
Save With Sam
(North Miami, FL, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: New. Brand New!. Seller Inventory # 0385335156

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 20.07
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds
Seller Image

Gerald Clarke
ISBN 10: 0385335156 ISBN 13: 9780385335157
New Paperback Quantity: 1
Seller:
Grand Eagle Retail
(Wilmington, DE, U.S.A.)

Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. She lived at full throttle on stage, screen, and in real life, with highs that made history and lows that finally brought down the curtain at age forty-seven. Judy Garland died over thirty years ago, but no biography has so completely captured her spirit -- and demons -- until now. From her tumultuous early years as a child performer to her tragic last days, Gerald Clarke reveals the authentic Judy in a biography rich in new detail and unprecedented revelations. Based on hundreds of interviews and drawing on her own unfinished -- and unpublished -- autobiography, Get Happy presents the real Judy Garland in all her flawed glory.With the same skill, style, and storytelling flair that made his bestselling Capote a landmark literary biography, Gerald Clarke sorts through the secrets and the scandals, the legends and the lies, to create a portrait of Judy Garland as candid as it is compassionate. Here are her early years, during which her parents sowed the seeds of heartbreak and self-destruction that would plague her for decades . the golden age of Hollywood, brought into sharp focus with cinematic urgency, from the hidden private lives of the movie world's biggest stars to the cold-eyed businessmen who controlled the machine . and a parade of brilliant and gifted men -- lovers and artists, impresarios and crooks -- who helped her reach so many creative pinnacles yet left her hopeless and alone after each seemingly inevitable fall. Here, then, is Judy Garland in all her magic and despair: the woman, the star, the legend, in a riveting saga of tragedy, resurrection, and genius. An entertainer of magical power, Judy Garland was also the woman of a hundred heartbreaks. Clarke recreates Garland's Hollywood, bringing to life the leading roles in her story: Louis B. Mayer, Lana Turner, Orson Welles, and Vincente Minnelli. With access to taped recordings--and her unfinished manuscript--Clarke is able to tell Garland's story as no one else has. Photos. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780385335157

More information about this seller | Contact seller

Buy New
US$ 21.99
Convert currency

Add to Basket

Shipping: FREE
Within U.S.A.
Destination, rates & speeds

There are more copies of this book

View all search results for this book