'Wizard of Oz' star Judy Garland's younger lover wasn't surprised by her tragic death: 'She liked disorder'
John Meyer, Judy Garland’s former lover, wasn’t surprised when the actress died in 1969 at age 47.
"John and I, and a lot of other people, were in no way surprised," Garland historian and author Lawrence Schulman told Fox News Digital.
"Everyone knew it was coming," he added. "If you look at pictures of Judy at the end of her life, she looks like someone who has come out of a concentration camp. She was so thin, so frail, so undernourished. The life was already gone in the months before she died. So, no. No one was surprised."
Meyer, a pianist and composer, died in February at age 86. Before he died, the musician developed a friendship with Schulman, and they frequently exchanged letters over the years.
"He sent these very intimate thoughts to me about Judy and his reflections about Judy all these years later," said Schulman. "I lost a good friend.
"These letters left a mark on me," Schulman explained. "He knew Garland for only two months in late ’68. That’s not a long time to know somebody. It takes a long time to get to know somebody. But I know John loved Garland.
"I don’t know whether it was reciprocal. That’s an open question. I never talked about that with John because it’s not a nice thing to talk about. . . . But when you have a passion for somebody, it doesn’t matter whether it lasts two months, two years, or 20 years. It sticks with you. And those two months were some of the most essential moments of his life.
"What was so remarkable to me was that, so many years later, the love was still there," Schulman continued. "It was the center of his life. . . . That passion endured so many decades later. That was fascinating to me."
Meyer was 28 years old when he met Garland, 46, at a New York City studio of a mutual friend. The attraction was instant.
But life for "The Wizard of Oz," star, once considered Hollywood royalty, was chaotic.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
"She was homeless," Schulman explained. "For such a great icon, a great star to be homeless, that was very shocking. She was literally on the street. She had nothing. She had a $5 bill in her purse. That was it. She had no money. She couldn’t pay for food. She couldn’t pay for a hospital. She couldn’t pay for anything. She was using the bunk bed of a friend. John met her at a very low point in her life. She was hanging on at that point.
"He was trying to find someone who could keep her above water — that was John," Schulman added.
According to People magazine, Garland owed several million dollars to the IRS after her agent had embezzled most of her earnings. She was divorced from husband No. 4 and had been kicked out of New York’s St. Moritz Hotel for not paying the bill. At the time, she was living there with her two younger children. She was also struggling with a crippling addiction to barbiturates and amphetamines.
It didn’t take long for Garland to move into the Park Avenue apartment of Meyer’s parents.
"She needed a 24-hour nurse," said Schulman. "She was taking pills and not well at the time. John became her lover, assistant, partner, pharmacist. She was in a terrible condition at that point, and all he wanted to do was help her. He wrote a few songs for her, and she went on to sing those songs at some talk show appearances. He helped her out. He was a lifesaver."
The romance was passionate, and Meyer was determined to do whatever he could for Garland. According to Schulman, Meyer convinced a local nightclub owner to hire Garland to sing a few songs for $100 cash and cab fare.
"He truly loved her," said Schulman. "He did his best to help, but no one could save Judy Garland at that point. … She was a lost cause. . . . And when you were Garland’s lover, you were on call 24/7. You had to be there at all times, whether it was physically or calling her at three in the morning. . . . She resented you if you couldn’t be there for her 24 hours a day. And that’s why she broke things off."
Garland was gearing up to fly to London for a five-week concert series in 1969. Ten days before her flight, Meyer became ill with a 104-degree fever.
"That’s nothing. I’ve been on stage with 106," Garland told him, according to Schulman.
Garland dropped Meyer and flew to London, where she was joined by Mickey Deans, People magazine reported. According to the outlet, he was a nightclub manager she’d first met when he'd delivered her a box of uppers. He became husband No. 5 that year.
Meyer flew to London in hopes of winning Garland back. But his efforts failed. Her response was a kiss and a "So long, Johnny."
He never saw her again. Garland died several months later from a barbiturate overdose.
"Over the years, many treated Garland as a tragic figure, a star with a very sad life who married five times and died," Schulman explained. "But the truth was, she was very happy at the end of her life. If you look at photos of her shortly before she died, she had a big smile on her face. Judy Garland liked disorder. She didn’t like a home.
"She didn’t like an ordinary life. . . . She was very happy. She loved London. She was excited about being married again, and she was making plans for her future. There were talks of more concerts, even documentaries."
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
"That’s what John loved about Judy," Schulman said. "She had a wonderful sense of humor about it all. She was very buoyant and happy. She made jokes and took life lightly. It wasn't all tragic."
Meyer went on to write a memoir, "Heartbreaker," which was republished in 2006. In the book, he detailed how "great fun" Garland was, even as she struggled during her final months.
Today, Schulman hopes his friend will be remembered for being a positive influence in Garland’s life.
"He was just a regular guy," he said. "I was honored he shared such wonderful memories with me. He really was a friend. I’ll miss him."