Garland and CBS
Garland's history with CBS prior to the series was a checkered one. She had previously headlined several specials for the network. The first was the inaugural episode of the Ford Star Jubilee which aired in 1955. The special, the first full-scale color telecast on CBS, was a ratings triumph, garnering a 34.8 Nielsen rating. This success led to Garland's signing a three-year, $300,000 contract with the network. Only a single special aired, a live General Electric Theater episode in 1956, before the pact was terminated. The relationship between CBS and Garland and her then-husband and manager, Sid Luft, dissolved in acrimony in 1957 after they and agent Freddie Fields were unable to come to terms with the network over the format of her next special. Garland filed a US$1.4 million lawsuit against CBS for libel and breach of contract (CBS filed a couterclaim) that was not settled until 1961, when Garland and CBS each agreed to drop their claims and negotiations began for a new round of Garland specials for the network.
The first of two specials under this new relationship aired in February 1962 and was entitled The Judy Garland Show. This special, guest starring Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, was nominated for four Emmy awards. Garland signed the deal for the weekly series in December 1962. Garland's final special was the awkwardly-titled Judy Garland and Her Guests Phil Silvers and Robert Goulet, presented in March 1963. Alternately promoted as a preview and a pilot for Garland's upcoming regular series, this special too was nominated for an Emmy.
Read more about this topic: The Judy Garland Show
Famous quotes containing the word garland:
“Hear, my child, your father’s instruction, and do not reject your mother’s teaching; for they are a fair garland for your head, and pendants for your neck.”
—Bible: Hebrew, Proverbs 1:8-9.