Summer Stock

I couldn't resist. It was only $8.99 at Costco.

This is why some people cannot be trusted to go shopping, even with a list. If the route includes a walk past the bargain DVD bin, I am sunk. There are so many classic movies available! And they MUST be viewed!

But can anyone in their right mind walk past Judy Garland and Gene Kelly and Marjorie Main and Hans Conried and Phil Silvers? In a musical? I think not!

I had heard about the movie for years but never took the trouble to rent it, even though it was touted as one of Judy's best. After watching the Making Of tidbits, it's a downright miracle that it was ever made!

First off, it was supposed to be a 'reunion' movie, a years-after rehash of the old Judy Garland / Mickey Rooney "Let's do a Show!" routine from the Andy Hardy series. The story is practically the same, only the specific situation has changed.

But apparently nobody thought Mickey Rooney had the chops - or the popularity anymore - to handle it, so they went looking for someone else. And it was Judy who got one of her old friends to jump in. [Apparently, she had helped Gene Kelly when he was just starting out, and they remained close over the years.]

Can't imagine it without Gene and his choreography. It would've been a much, much different - and much inferior - show had he not come along.

But the show almost didn't happen, because it was during a period of Judy's life when she was struggling with depression and anxiety, and stressing out over her weight; and it would be gracious to say that she was a bit unstable. Her co-stars were annoyed and frustrated by her inability to show up on time, or to work regular hours, or to even show up at all some days. However, they all pulled together to make it happen, going far past the extra mile to encourage her and lift her up when she really needed it.

They talked about (in the Making Of) how they all tried to make her laugh. Apparently when she laughed, her depression would subside. And then things would get better.

And whenever she sang, all her troubles were gone, and it was magic. Her friends all said that all the annoyance and frustration was worth it once she started performing.

Most importantly, the head of MGM didn't lose faith in her even when she was falling apart. He said (in effect) that she had made them so many millions of dollars, they could afford to cut her some slack.

The one thing about the picture that really grabbed me, was the scene where she has just got her tractor, and she's singing "Howdy, Neighbor!" as she's driving down the country lane behind the wheel of that beautiful, new tractor, past the fields and the orchards and farms.

It's uncanny. It reminds me of Mom. That's the way I picture her when she was a kid, back on the farm in Indiana, sitting up on the tractor with a big smile on her face, waving at everyone, happiest person on the planet. She certainly gets the same look in her face sitting on the tractor over at Uncle Joe's. And I'm sure she gets that same look on her face as she's cruising around the grounds down in Texas.

I can watch that scene over and over again, and think of Mom the whole time.

Happy tractorin', Mom!