Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland

ISBN: 0385335156

Author: Clarke, Gerald

Condition: New

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER [A] masterly biography (People) of Judy Garland that thoroughly captures her intrepid spirit-and her hidden demons-from the acclaimed author of CapoteA compelling read . . . In a big, gutsy biography, Gerald Clarke brings insight and fresh detail to Judy Garlands story.-Entertainment WeeklyShe 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.From her tumultuous early years as a child performer to her tragic last days, Gerald Clarke reveals the authentic Judy Garland 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 Based on hundreds of interviews and drawing on her own unfinished-and unpublished-autobiography, Get Happy presents the real Judy Garland in all her flawed glory and creates a portrait as candid as it is compassionate.Here are her early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 worlds 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.