Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli: All About Their Mother-Daughter Relationship

When it comes to famous mothers and daughters, Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli may be one of the most iconic pairs. The talented mother-daughter duo grew up together: Garland was 23 when she gave birth to Minnelli, who would later say she was her mom’s best friend.

Minnelli has been open about the ups and downs of her childhood, including periods of financial hardship and her mother’s drug and alcohol addiction. But she has always insisted that she had a great upbringing with Garland.

“One of the biggest misconceptions about my mama is that she didn’t provide me with a happy childhood,” Minnelli told Vogue Arabia.

According to Variety, Garland brought her daughter into the limelight at just 14 months in The Pirate (1948), which was directed by Liza’s father, Vincente Minnelli. Liza’s first credited role was in In the Good Old Summertime (1949) at just 3 years old — and she never looked back. Like her mother before her, Minnelli has become an icon of stage and screen.

Here is a look at the special relationship that Liza Minnelli shared with her mother, Judy Garland.

Minnelli was born on March 12, 1946

Garland gave birth to Liza May Minnelli on March 12, 1946. Garland and her second husband, Vincente Minnelli, had married the year before, on June 15, 1945 — just one year after her first marriage to David Rose ended.

Though it was not reported at the time, Garland was hospitalized for a month following her daughter’s birth. Biographer Gerald Clarke wrote in Vanity Fair that Garland had surgery to correct an issue from her cesarean section; she is also believed to have had postpartum depression.

Eleven months later, Garland and Vincente began shooting The Pirate.

Minnelli had a happy childhood with her mother

Despite what many believe, particularly due to Garland’s substance use, Minnelli said she had a happy childhood with her mother and her younger siblings, Lorna and Joey Luft, whom Garland welcomed with her third husband, Sidney Luft.

“One of the biggest misconceptions about my mama is that she didn’t provide me with a happy childhood,” Minnelli told Vogue Arabia. “There were highs and lows for sure, but I can say I was very happy. If people choose to believe that or not, it’s up to them, but I know I was happy.”

Minnelli first appeared on screen alongside her mother at 14 months old in The Pirate; she made her first credited appearance in In the Good Old Summertime when she was 3.

Minnelli joined The Judy Garland Show in the 1960s

The duo began working together years later when Minnelli performed on The Judy Garland Show. The two often sang duets, including the medley “We Could Make Such Beautiful Music Together/The Best Is Yet to Come.”

Minnelli told Vogue Arabia that she was always aware of her connection to Hollywood. “Nearly everybody my parents knew were in show business. So, by default, when I was growing up, nearly everybody I met was in the industry,” she said. “Looking back, of course you realize that wasn’t a regular childhood. But to me, at the time, it was.”

Garland and Minnelli were best friends

Garland was always supportive of Minnelli entering the industry, and the two became especially close as Minnelli grew up. The Cabaret actress told Vogue Arabia: “My fondest memory of my mama was the conversations we had. As I became a teenager, I became her best friend and confidante. We would laugh and talk for hours. Sometimes in person, sometimes on the phone, depending where we were.”

In 1965, Garland attended Minnelli’s Broadway debut in Flora the Red Menace. On the show’s opening night, Garland was “in a happy daze of awe and wonder,” according to The Life of Judy Garland, an excerpt of which was published in the New York Times Book Review. Biographer Gerald Clarke wrote that Garland praised her daughter in a conversation with costume designer Donald Brooks.

“Can you believe that’s Liza up there?” she said, according to Clarke. “We did that! You got her up there looking the way she does. And I got her up there because I’m her mother and conceivably her inspiration — the heck with her motivation.” Minnelli later won the Tony Award for best actress in a musical for her performance.

Minnelli was 23 when Garland died

Minnelli was 23 years old when her mother died in 1969. Garland, at just 47, was found in her home, and her death was attributed to an accidental overdose.

In 1972, Minnelli recalled being the “calm center in the vortex” after her mother’s death. “When she died, I almost knew why,” she told TIME. “She let her guard down. She didn’t die from an overdose. I think she just got tired. She lived like a taut wire. I don’t think she ever looked for real happiness, because she always thought happiness would mean the end.”

Minnelli also recalled frustration during that period, adding: "Elevator men were falling around me weeping. I was the only one standing up. I got so mad at everybody. I remember yelling at someone: 'You cried for her when she sang ‘Over the Rainbow’ and ‘The Man That Got Away.’ Now at last she's at peace. Smile, for God's sake!' "

Minnelli had mixed feelings about the film Judy

In June 2018, Minnelli announced on Facebook that she was not involved in the forthcoming Renée Zellweger film Judy (2019). “I have never met nor spoken to Renee Zellweger,” she wrote alongside an article claiming Zellweger spent time with Minnelli in preparation for the film. “I don’t know how these stories get started, but I do not approve or sanction the upcoming film about Judy Garland in any way. Any reports to the contrary are 100% Fiction.”

A year later, she addressed the film in an Entertainment Tonight interview. “I just hope they don't do what they always do,” she told the outlet. “That's all I've got to say.”

Minnelli reiterated in a 2020 interview with Variety that she did not intend to see the movie. “I hope [Zellweger] had a good time making it,” she added.

She celebrated her mom’s 100th birthday in June 2022

Garland would have turned 100 years old in 2022, and Minnelli made sure to mark the occasion. Speaking to ET with her sister Lorna, Minnelli said that she was frustrated by those who described her mother with pity. “That's the thing that bugs me the most,” she said. "They would say, ‘tragic Judy Garland,’ and I'd say, 'Oh shut up.' It was her humor and her kindness. ... With her family, she was hilarious.”

That year, Minnelli and Lorna honored their mother with the fragrance Judy by Vince Spinnato and planted 1,000 Judy Garland roses in honor of her birthday.