Heartbreaker: A Memoir of Judy Garland by John Meyer

Judy Garland

The Judy Garland who emerges from these pages is hard to like. True, her addictions had, by her early forties, reached a point where carefully monitored weaning would have been necessary in order for her to begin to recover.  Still, towards the end of her needlessly brief life, she seems to have made no effort to seek clinical intervention.  When song-writer John Meyer met Judy Garland, he had written one well-received song and had aspirations to write others.  At the same time, despite their age difference, he found Ms. Garland captivating and delightful-indeed, he asked her to marry him, and she agreed, but they never tied the knot.

Her voice had kept its wellspring of beauty.  What was needed, Meyer felt he could provide:  enough motivation to renew both her vocal strength and the career she had begun to spoil by her reputation as an unreliable addict. The two felt sure they could create a union interwoven of love and abilities.  All the right components were there, but by her early forties, Judy Garland had become almost wholly egocentric and manipulative.  

Judy’s pleasure in stealing from fans I found truly despicable.   Beyond arriving insultingly late for well-paid-for performances, she took any item she fancied from unsuspecting fans, too bedazzled to suspect or accuse.  By way of one example, once in a restaurant, Judy and John began chatting with a couple they had never met before.  Towards the end of the evening, having asked to borrow the woman’s spectacles to check the time, Judy asked, “Can I have these?” claiming they worked better than did her own.  The woman looked distressed, but was shocked and intimidated into consenting.

Still, Judy Garland was often endearing.  Her need for Meyer’s love could be poignant in its intensity.  Fear of forfeiting his affection brought out the almost childlike warmth which had not been jaded. Meyer explores various aspects of their relationship in a tender and compassionate way.  As he concludes, it is heartbreaking that such a magnificent talent was squandered by ingrained dependence on pills and alcohol, joined with the expectations of stardom.  In time, she allowed this power to exploit friends, lovers and audiences with sparse shame or remorse.
  
Ultimately, the book recounts a woman who, over-all, had lost both her path and perspective. In terms of social commentary, Meyer’s book reflects the damage done to those adored from such a young age as to view themselves above the ethics and fairness of human dealings.