Summer Stock (1950)

Judy Garland suffered a significant blow to her reputation when, plagued by addiction problems, she was fired from 1950's Annie Get Your Gun and then spent three months in a Boston rehab facility. Summer Stock was conceived by MGM as a comeback vehicle for Garland since it harkened back to the backyard musicals that served as reliable moneymakers for the star throughout the 1940's. Director Charles Walters and romantic lead Gene Kelly considered the goofy and simplistic story to be beneath their ambitious talents, but they both signed on since they admired Garland and wished to help her get her career back on track. MGM's pressure to get Garland to lose weight and jump back into filmmaking so soon after her rehab stint contributed to a nasty relapse, which caused both delays and logistical problems in the making of Summer Stock. The resulting movie was still a modest earner, but Garland was unable to make a commitment to 1951's Royal Wedding and her contract with MGM was soon cancelled. Ryan is joined by Sylvan and Cheryl for a closer look at this slight, silly, and endearing feature (it's a bit surprising that so little of Garland's many personal issues are apparent in the finished movie). Talking points for this one include the exploitation of labor, how culture clashes are depicted in Hollywood storytelling, and which part of America is "the real America".