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Liza Minnelli jokingly describing himself as “The original baby neboWhile her parents are famous, her Old Hollywood roots don’t mean her life is always easy.
In her new memoir, Wait until you hear this, kids!The 79-year-old EGOT winner described a childhood that was sometimes magical but also fraught with difficulties. the only daughter of the iconic actress Judy Garland and director Vincent MinnelliLisa learned early on that her mother felt challenged by her daughter’s acting career.
“Dad always joked that I was destined for a career in show business. Mom was initially skeptical,” Lisa wrote. “Despite imagining my name on the marquee, she did try to keep me away from the bright lights at first. Then, reluctantly, she threw her hands up and put me on concert stages and on television at a very young age. I’ve felt this conflict in my mom my whole life.”
As Lisa grew older, she recalled that Garland made her “terribly aware” that she was “not doing a good job” at her job. “She could be loving at times, but also sharply critical that scared me,” she recalls. “A deep feeling of inadequacy. Years later, I wonder if I’ve ever completely grown out of it.”
Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli on the set of Words and Music, 1948.
Helton Archives/Getty ImagesWhile Lisa still loved her mother (who died in 1969 at the age of 47), she didn’t shy away from revealing the darker parts of their past in the book, which recounts her mother’s marriage, divorce, and struggles with drug and alcohol abuse.
“I wish I could hold my mom in my arms right now and tell her how much I love her and give her all the attention and help she deserves but never got,” Lisa wrote.
Wait until you hear this, kids! It’s out now. Keep scrolling for the biggest revelations about Garland in the book:
The moment that scarred Liza Minnelli for life
When Lisa was 5 years old, she accidentally kicked her mother in the head while playing at home with her parents, and she soon learned what it was like to be the child of an addict.
“Suddenly she screamed at me. She screamed and screamed for what seemed like hours,” she recalled. “From that moment on, my fear of her never went away. I hurt my dear mom. I will never get over it. I will never stop believing that I need to protect her.”
According to Lisa, the “horror of the screams” remains her only “trauma trigger” as an adult.
Liza Minnelli calls her mother, Judy Garland, the “most challenging” part of her childhood. “My mother was charming because she knew a lot of fascinating people who would come over,” Minnelli, 78, said in an Interview magazine profile published Wednesday, Oct. 16. She also spoke of her father, Vincente Minnelli, calling him “the most…”
How Judy Garland’s addiction battle affected Liza Minnelli’s childhood
Lisa realized early on that her mother was struggling with alcoholism and drug abuse. Sometimes adults would tell her not to enter Garland’s room, but other times Garland would pour out her “fear, resentment and anger” to her young daughter.
“I was a 5-year-old, and as weird as it sounds, it was therapeutic for her,” Lisa explains. “She would sit me down and vent. I would listen quietly and nod as she continued, even though I had trouble understanding what she was saying. She treated me like a psychoanalyst and made no apology for it.”
Shortly after welcoming her second child, a daughter. Lorna Rafterwith her second husband side airGarland attempted suicide. According to Lisa, “Mom had been struggling with postpartum depression, which was made worse by an overdose of barbiturates, amphetamines, and alcohol.”
Lisa later worked with the family’s maid to hide Garland’s medication to prevent her from overdose, substituting aspirin for the prescription medication.
“At 13, I became my mother’s caregiver, a nurse, a doctor, a pharmacologist and a psychiatrist all rolled into one. It was a crazy balancing act,” she recalled, describing it as a “nightmare.” “I can’t tell you how many times I called the doctor to say she had run out of pills. They often told me they couldn’t fill her prescription anymore. It was too early. I would say, ‘I’m a kid! Please take my mom’s prescription!'”
Showbiz legend! Liza Minnelli was born into a family of screen legends, so it’s no surprise that she’s also left an indelible mark on the entertainment industry. The Oscar winner was born in 1946 to Judy Garland and her second husband, film director Vincente Minnelli. Before her 10th birthday, Lisa joined her(…)
Judy Garland married Liza Minnelli to her third husband without telling her
In 1951, after divorcing her second husband (and Lisa’s father) Vincente Minnelli, Garland married her third husband, Sid Luft. At the time, Lisa was living with Vincent but didn’t know she was at her father’s house because her mother was busy remarrying.
“The evening news came on and a picture of Mom and Sid appeared on the screen. The announcer said they had secretly married three days earlier,” Lisa wrote. “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Mum got married. Didn’t tell me. To make matters worse, I missed the wedding party! I’m sure the wedding was at some fancy hotel and it felt terrible.”
However, Vincent told his daughter years later that she “quickly recovered” by eating ice cream.
Judy Garland’s reaction to and interference with Liza Minnelli’s career
Liza Minnelli and mother Judy Garland, circa 1960.
Helton Archives/Getty ImagesWhen Lisa made her professional stage debut in an Off-Broadway musical best striker In 1963, she was “deeply” hurt when her mother didn’t attend the opening night, claiming she “got the date wrong.” However, Lisa tries to make the best of it, learning to “never bring anything negative to the stage” during performances.
“After the show, I started to wonder if my mom hadn’t done me a favor,” she added. “Maybe she knew her presence would suck all the oxygen out of me and our opening night show and chose to leave. Maybe. Who knows?”
Garland later convinced her to leave the show early so she could tape her TV variety show with her on the West Coast – after convincing Lisa’s boyfriend to move to Los Angeles as well.
“What can I do? I’m 17. I’m in love!” Lisa recalled. “I loved my mother. I still do. … Still, I can never forget the hurt, even the feeling of abandonment when my mother made it clear that her needs were more important than my feelings.”
Lisa later had a role in the revival carnivalThe play was originally scheduled to be released in early 1964. However, ten days before opening night, Garland released a statement saying Lisa would not be performing because she was a minor and did not have her parents’ permission. After Lisa made her own contradictory statement, Garland threatened to sue the producers and send Lisa to boarding school.
Eventually, however, Garland “gave in” and Lisa ran the show. Her mother later told her that she was impressed because carnival The defeat marked the first time she “absolutely defied” her. “You’re hurt. It pisses me off,” Lisa recalled her mother saying. “But you stood up on your own two legs. God, how I admire and love you for having the courage to do that!”
Judy Garland sees Liza Minnelli as competition
Liza Minnelli and Judy Garland perform at the London Palladium Theater on November 8, 1964.
Len Trievnor/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesIn 1964, Garland invited her daughter to perform with her at the London Palladium Theatre. Initially, this seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but as Lisa’s portion of her performance continued, she realized her mom wasn’t thrilled with the audience’s positive reaction.
“I heard her whisper to our producer, harold davidson: “Harold, get her off my stage!” I heard it! ” Lisa claimed. “Her drive, her competitiveness, will not let her fall behind anyone. It didn’t matter that I was her daughter. … It took me years… no, decades… to understand that her competition with me was a compliment to the performer I was becoming. “
When Lisa made her Broadway debut at age 19 red menace floraher mom called to say she wanted to sit in the front row on opening night. legendary producer Hal Prince This was prevented, but Garland attended a cast party and climbed on the piano to sing, “making her presence known”.
“No one could stop her,” Lisa recalled. “I was furious and resigned, but also proud. Thank God she didn’t disrupt the show. I’m grateful for that.”
Zeitgeist Films Distributed by Atlas Media Corp in Association with Kino Lorber The late Allan Lazare profiles his friend Liza Minnelli in a 2025 documentary, discussing what he called the biggest disappointment of her life. “We have been with Lisa through all her emotional setbacks, such as the miscarriage,” said Lazar, who died in 2024(…)
Judy Garland gives Liza Minnelli acting advice
When Lisa began auditioning for early film roles in 1969 Sterile cuckooher mother was initially skeptical about why she wanted the role. Eventually, however, Garland helped her practice her audition scenes, and Lisa got the part.
“My mom taught me the most valuable lesson for any actor: You have to know how to crawl into a character and make the person come alive,” she recalled.
How Liza Minnelli learned about Judy Garland’s death
On June 22, 1969, Lisa, then 23, was in South Hampton, New York, when she learned that her mother had died in London. “Panic, heartache, and confusion flooded my brain. I was overwhelmed and overwhelmed,” she wrote, noting that she cried for eight days. “At the same time, I realized that someone had to organize a complex public funeral from now on. That person was me.”
Before the funeral, a doctor prescribed Valium to Lisa to help her cope with the “stress and tension” of the funeral, which led to her years-long battle with substance abuse.
“This was the first time I had ever taken such a drug, and I was surprised at how quickly it wore off,” she recalls. “But Valium triggered something terrible in me, like a match lighting a fire. What started as a one-day blessing quickly turned into a habit, and then into a full-blown addiction over the next few years. It was the final gift, the genetic inheritance from my mom that I can’t escape.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline Please call 1-800-662-HELP (4357). If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, there is help available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.
