Liza Minnelli called her mother, Judy Garland, the “most challenging” part of her childhood.
“My mother was fascinating because she knew so many fascinating people who would come over,” Minnelli, 78, said in an Interview magazine profile published Wednesday, October 16. She also spoke about her father, Vincente Minnelli, referring to him as the “most glamorous” part of her youth.
“My father used to let me go to the set and watch him direct,” she recalled. “I’d go to the dance room where they choreographed stuff and learn it. I’d watch people like Cyd Charisse and Gene Kelly.”
Liza noted that she “bounced back and forth” between her parents because of their divorce. “I loved them both so much,” she added.
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When asked about her parents’ split, Liza said that she had no recollection of that time in her life.
“I don’t even remember how old I was, but you can look it up,” Liza said, noting that she never wished they would reconcile. (Garland and Vincente got married in 1945 and divorced in 1951; Liza would have turned 5 that year.)
“They didn’t really like each other so it wasn’t fun to be around them,” she explained. Liza spoke highly of Vincente, whom she said added “magic and romance” into her life.
“He knew what to bring me and what I would love,” the actress continued. “I remember he designed all the clothes for Radio City Music Hall, and I got five costumes every Christmas — a ballerina, or the costume from ‘Shall We Dance’ from The King and I. One time the costume was a very attractive green bug. It had a little hat and the antennae on top.”
Liza said Garland also understood her — but in a different way.
“My mother was strict, and it depended on what mood she was in or whether she was working too hard, and they were pushing her too much,” Liza recalled. “Or whether she didn’t like who she was married to at the time. Stuff like that. Every kid goes through that. But my father, he treated me like a princess.”
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Vincente died in 1986 at his Los Angeles home at age 83 from emphysema and pneumonia. He was “so proud” of Liza, she recalled during the same interview.
The Cabaret star said her mother was “normal,” but what set her apart from other parents was her “extraordinarily talented body.”
Liza has spoken about her mother a lot over the years, most recently discussing Garland’s death in the documentary Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story, which premiered at the Tribeca Festival in June.
“It was devastating to me,” Liza told director Bruce David Klein in the film. “I didn’t stop crying for eight days, and I had to take on so much.”
Garland died from an accidental overdose at age 47 in 1969.
