ISSUE DATE: Feb. 28, 1972
THE BUZZ:
When you are Judy’s daughter you inevitably grow up in your mother’s shadow. In her early professional appearances, Liza had to face audiences that came to see her largely because she was “Judy Garland’s kid” and were frankly skeptical about whether she could measure up to the name. In time she did—and then some. She played in an off-Broadway musical, starred in one on Broadway, and won roles in three movies. She made records, appeared on TV and went out on the nightclub circuit. At an age when many performers are still living in fifth-floor walk-ups, Liza was earning close to a million dollars a year.
Today, a few weeks shy of 26, Liza has evolved in her own right into a new Miss Show Biz, a dazzlingly assured and completely rounded performer. The Justice Department should investigate her. She is a mini-conglomerate, an entertainment monopoly. In the new movie musical Cabaret, the full range of Liza’s singing, dancing and acting talents dominates and steals a rambling and disorganized show (TIME, Feb. 21). As Sally Bowles, she is supposed to be a third-rate singer in a second-rate dive, belting out tunes to pay for schnapps and cigarettes. But as soon as she opens her mouth and begins strutting around the stage, the image—and some of the movie’s credibility—goes happily haywire. Her liquid, throaty voice rises stylishly from a caress to pure, ringing brass. Her body—a broad-shouldered 5 ft. 5 in. with long showgirl legs—weaves a rhythm of its own even when she is standing still.
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