Rainbow

A sensitive and insightful television biopic portraying the early life of singer/actress Judy Garland, directed by her close friend Jackie Cooper. The film begins with a vaudeville performance by a young toddler named Frances Gumm singing on stage, backed by her piano playing mother and two older sisters in the background. This is the start of a career which will bring stardom and heartache for Baby Frances. Pushed by an ambitious and driven mother, the three sisters, worked hard and travelled frequently performing on the vaudeville stage under the name of the “Gumm Sisters” (their name later changing to the “Garland Sisters”). But it was Baby Frances who always stole the show and her mother recognising this, began to focus all her energies into achieving success for Frances. We follow Frances’s journey from those early days through to 1934 when, at the age of 12, she faced her first major audition with Louis B. Mayer who immediately signed her on and changed her name to Judy Garland. Once signed on with MGM, Judy became the property of Louis B. Mayer, or “Uncle Louie”, and with her rapid rise to stardom, her young life would be changed forever. For all her success and acclaim in her role of Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz” (1939), Judy Garland would suffer identity crisis and body image issues, and ultimately depression, brought on by a very insensitive and unsympathetic male attitude in Mayer who insisted that she take weight-reducing drugs for the part of Dorothy. The impact of this would follow Judy for the rest of her life. Andrea McArdle gives a stunning performance in the role of Judy Garland, along with special mentions to Piper Laurie as Judy’s mother Ethel Gumm and Martin Balsam as Louis B. Mayer. Cast also includes Don Murray, Michael Parks, Rue McClanahan, Nicholas Pryor, Jack Carter and Donna Pescow.