It was difficult to see the true and authentic side of many actors in the days when the movie studios micromanaged a star’s career. It was easy to manipulate the media and thus the audiences into believing any type of star persona the studio was anxious to develop. Garland started her career with MGM and they were responsible for crafting the Judy that they wanted audiences to see. As Dyer states, the private life of a star is the most telling about the true nature of a star. This fact was so true for Garland. Hidden away from the public were her demons of personal appearance, public and personal relationships, and her addiction to drugs and alcohol.
Never was there a more accurate depiction of Judy Garland’s life than that portrayed in the movie A Star Is Born. Garland’s successful interpretation of the character was an extension of her own life. The authenticity she projected into playing Esther Blodgett/Vicki Lester was a direct extension of her own life from Frances Gumm to Judy Garland. The audience of A Star Is Born isn’t privy to Blodgett’s entertainment history prior to her becoming an aspiring singer/dancer for a small time orchestra. However, it is known that Garland began her career as a small child. Garland was forced into a life of scrutiny before she could develop as a person and gain confidence and build some self-esteem. Both Garland and Blodgett symbolize the insecurity that wanting to become a star and maintaining stardom often bring with it. Both women are approached by men who see their potential and love them for it. Garland marries five times and Blodgett marries once. Both women marry men that are involved in the entertainment industry.
Garland’s reign as an accomplished star is authenticated by the comparison to Blodgett and her ability to become a star. Similarities prevail between Blodgett’s husband, Norman Maine and Garland. Garland fell from grace because of a history of substance abuse. She had to be institutionalized and removed from several films. Maine’s character also falls from grace as an alcoholic film star. He is not able to hold down film opportunities. Eventually he commits suicide. Therefore, he frees his wife from his fate as an unemployable, drunken embarrassment. Although classified as an accidental overdose, Garland life ended abruptly as well. It is possible that she saw herself as having surpassed her ability to continue performing. In the case of Judy Garland, life definitely imitated art and the authenticity in which she did it can be measured in A Star is Born.
1. Do you see any similarities in star image between Judy Garland and Brittany Murphy?
2. With the quantity of media in today’s society, is it harder for stars to keep their true persona separate from their star image?
3. Does today’s entertainment industry cultivate a star culture where A-List talent essentially play themselves on screen? Is this how authenticity is seen on screen today?
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I think that the connection between Brittany Murphy and Judy Garland is very interesting and one that I had not thought about. There are many similarities between the two starlets—their involvement with the Hollywood system at a young age, their difficulties with personal relationship and substance abuse, and their untimely deaths.
Garland was molded early on by MGM, and she her persona as a celebrity became a construction of what MGM wanted for her. She had to live her life by the standards of MGM and had to loyally follow their direction, even it may not have been the best decisions for her own personal life. As the entertainment industry has changed since the era of the studio systems, Murphy had to deal with being in the public eye in a different way. Although her personal choices were not monitored by the studio, she was under the constant scrutiny of the media and her audiences. She still had to follow the orders of her publicist and was punished for any bad behavior by the press. While Garland had people from MGM telling her how to change her look and what to wear, Murphy received criticism from audiences. In 2009, before her death, there were numerous rumors that she was anorexic and that her low weight led to her death. One of her friends has told People Magazine that she had a lot of weight related issues throughout her life—she wore a lot of makeup, got her teeth capped, and died her hair blond. Amy Heckerling, the director of Clueless, believed that her body image issues may have originated on that set—she didn’t want to be the fat, loner that she portrayed in the movie. On the other hand, there is the constant pressure coming from studio executives, as well as criticizing fans, to remain thin and beautiful. As the two starlets continued through their careers, their actions on set became more and more strained; the affects of their own personal problems became more and more visible in both cases.
They both struggled with substance abuse problems and did not have stable relationships with the people close to them. Garland kept her substance abuse issues private for a long time, but it soon began to affect her work on the screen and everyone took notice of them. Murphy, too, had “inner demons” that she struggled with. In addition to struggles with maintaining a “perfect” self-image, she was rumored to have had major problems with cocaine. She said that these were untrue, but still tabloids continued to claim that cocaine was the reason for her weight loss. Both Garland and Murphy had close, yet strained, relationships with their mothers. Garland often said that she had the ultimate stage mother, who forcefully pushed her toward a career in show business. Although Murphy was very close with her mother—she often said they were best friends—friends have spoken in interviews saying that her mother was always concerned with her weight and making sure she was wearing flattering clothes.
It is also interesting that they both came to very untimely deaths. In both cases, it is unsure whether or not their deaths were accidental or intentional—but either way they came from histories of insecurity and inner turmoil. Regardless of whether their deaths were suicide or not, it can be said that both Garland and Murphy suffered from the studio systems’ scrutiny and their own issues.
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