Liza Minnelli - 75: An agonizing rivalry with her mother and living like a big cabaret

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

March 12 marks the 75th anniversary of the world famous American singer and actress, winner of the Oscar film Lisa Minnelli. All her life she tried to get out of the shadow of her famous mother - actress Judy Garland, but in many ways she repeated her difficult fate. Their rivalry began immediately after Lisa was born and did not end even after Judy passed away …

Theater of the absurd in the Judy Garland family

Lisa's path was predetermined from birth - her parents were Oscar-winning director Vincent Minnelli and actress Judy Garland, and her ancestors were engaged in acting as early as the 18th century. Later Lisa said: "". At the age of 3, she first appeared on the set with her mother, and since then she could not imagine another life for herself.

She was very similar to her mother, they adored each other, but at the same time their relationship was strange and painful. With the birth of her daughter, the world ceased to revolve around the Hollywood star, she no longer felt the universal adoration to which she was accustomed from the age of 13, since she starred in the film "The Wizard of Oz". Failures began to haunt her, directors no longer saw Judy in the images of romantic heroines. Postpartum depression turned into a mental disorder, any little thing could infuriate her, she smashed furniture and dishes and even tried twice to set fire to her house.

Later, Lisa said about her mother: "". Judy's morning began with amphetamines, and the evening ended with barbiturates. When Lisa was 4 years old, her parents divorced, soon her mother remarried and gave birth to two children. Taking care of them fell on the shoulders of Lisa.

By the age of 12, she had learned not only to handle babies, but also to hide pills from her mother and call an ambulance when she once again tried to commit suicide. There were 23 such attempts. Lisa's most powerful childhood experience was her panic fear of losing her mother and being abandoned.

Rivals on stage and behind the scenes

The girl saw that her mother looked healthy and happy only when she sang on stage or acted in films. At the age of 16, Lisa decided to move from Los Angeles to New York - both in order to finally get rid of the family theater of the absurd, and in order to feel the same feeling of flight and happiness that her mother's love gave her. She entered the school of theatrical art and began performing on stage, which also became the main way for her to forget about all the troubles. Since then, she and her mother have become rivals in the profession.

After the premiere of her first musical, critics called Lisa an exact copy of Judy Garland. Perhaps any other aspiring actress would find such a comparison flattering, but for Lisa it sounded like a sentence. She didn't want to be just a shadow of her mother, only the "daughter of the gorgeous Judy Garland." However, she soon managed to prove that she was in no way inferior to her. In 1964, the Hollywood star performed with her daughter on the stage of the London Palladium. Most of the viewers came there for the sake of Judy Garland. However, her 18-year-old daughter unexpectedly overshadowed her on stage and became the heroine of the evening, the audience rewarded her with a flurry of applause. Since then, the young star began to gradually push her mother into the background, which made her even more depressed - now she had to worry about comparisons with a young and talented daughter.

They were not only rivals on stage. Judy Garland was married 5 times, her daughter - 4. At the same time, her first marriage with musician Peter Allen broke up because of his betrayal … with her mother! Judy herself introduced them, she herself pushed her daughter to marriage, and then began an affair with her husband. Upon learning of this, Liza Minnelli announced that she no longer had a mother, and stopped communicating with her. And soon she was informed that 47-year-old Judy Garland had died of an overdose of barbiturates. Since then, Lisa has not left a feeling of guilt, a materialized fear of being abandoned and a premonition that she will end her life in the same way, at the same age.

Breaking Bad

Judy Garland did not see her daughter's triumph, although she would hardly have been sincerely happy about him. After 2, 5 years after her departure, the musical film "Cabaret" with Liza Minnelli in the title role was released. This work brought the actress worldwide popularity and several prestigious film awards, including the Golden Globe and Oscar. And the main reward was that they finally stopped calling her the daughter of Judy Garland: "".

Cabaret has become a metaphor for her entire life. She surrounded herself with a huge number of people so that this noise drowned out her thoughts of loneliness. In the 1970s. legends circulated about her countless novels, in the newspapers she was dubbed "the machine of love" and "the devourer of someone else's happiness." Martin Scorsese's pregnant wife filed for divorce, accusing him of treason with Liza Minnelli. And the artist Andy Warhol recalled this scene: "".

She repeated all the mistakes of her mother, carried away by alcohol and illegal drugs, and also unsuccessfully underwent several rehabilitation courses. Back in the early 1980s. addictions began to affect her health - she looked bad, forgot the words of songs and whole monologues in performances. When one day she dialed the number of anonymous psychological help, she was asked about her occupation, and in response Lisa sang: "".

Reconciliation with the past

Only in adulthood did she manage to understand that she had driven herself into a corner, that all her life she remained a rebellious girl trying to prove something to her mother. One day the doctor recommended that she pour out all unspoken grievances and fears in a letter to her mother. She sobbed over this letter for three days. Only after that she felt herself recovering: "".

In the 2000s. the artist herself has already helped others to get rid of addiction, donating large sums to rehabilitation centers. She has not acted in films for a long time, the last film with her participation was released in 2013. Despite numerous health problems, Liza Minnelli still appears in public and attends social events.

She finally made peace with her past and with her inner demons: "".

Feature films are being made about her mother's life today: The Unfabulous Life of Judy Garland.