After appearing in Vaudeville theater with her sisters, Judy was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer as a teenager. There she made more than two dozen films, including nine with Mickey Rooney, and the film with which she would be most identified, "The Wizard of Oz" (1939). After 15 years, Judy was released from the studio but gained renewed success through record-breaking concert appearances, including a critically acclaimed Carnegie Hall concert, a well-regarded but short-lived television series, and a return to film acting beginning with "A Star Is Born" (1954).
Despite her professional triumphs, Judy battled personal problems throughout her life. Insecure about her appearance, her feelings were compounded by film executives who told her she was unattractive and overweight. Plied with drugs to control her weight and increase her productivity, Garland endured a decades-long struggle with addiction. Garland was plagued by financial instability, often owing hundreds of thousands of dollars in back taxes, and her first four of five marriages ended in divorce. She attempted suicide on a number of occasions. Garland died of an accidental drug overdose at the age of 47, leaving children Liza Minnelli, Lorna Luft, and Joey Luft.
Legacy
Judy Garland's legacy as a performer and a personality has endured long after her death. The American Film Institute named Garland eighth among the "Greatest Female Stars of All Time". She has been the subject of over two dozen biographies since her death, including the well-received "Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir" by her daughter, Lorna Luft. Luft's memoir was later adapted into the multiple award-winning television mini-series, "Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows", which won Emmy Awards for two actresses portraying Garland (Tammy Blanchard and Judy Davis).
Garland was posthumously awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. Several of her recordings have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. These include "Over the Rainbow," which was ranked as the number one movie song of all time in the American Film Institute's "100 Years...100 Songs" list. Four more Garland songs are featured on the list: "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (#76), "Get Happy" (#61), "The Trolley Song" (#26), and "The Man That Got Away" (#11).
Judy Garland has twice been honored on U.S. postage stamps, in 1989 (as Dorothy) and again in 2006 (as Vicki Lester from A Star Is Born).
Sweet Danger
Judy Garland Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Danger in your letting me,
Danger in your not instantly
Abandoning and forgetting me
Sweet danger, sweet danger
One we know we can share
Unbounded beauty, if we dare
We were destined for divided paths
Fated to be far apart
And there's danger in defying fate
With two foolish hearts
Sweet danger, sweet danger
And although we can share,
Come open with your kiss
Our joy to secretness
And though there's danger waiting there,
We'll be in love and we won't care
The Judy Garland song Sweet Danger explores the perilousness of love and how the attraction and connection between two people can lead to dangerous consequences. The lyrics highlight the danger in loving someone, the danger in being loved, and also the danger in not reciprocating feelings or not letting go of someone you love. The song expresses that despite the danger, the feeling of the unbounded beauty that can come from a shared connection is worth the risk.
The lyrics depict the two lovers as being fated to be apart but are defying fate and taking a chance on their love. Even though their love is forbidden and there is danger waiting for them, they choose to follow their hearts and embrace their feelings. They want to experience the joy and happiness of being in love, even if it means they must keep it secret due to the potential harm it could cause.
Overall, Sweet Danger is a beautiful song that touches on the universal theme of love and the risk it involves. The song's message is that despite the dangers, love is worth pursuing and that the feeling of unbounded beauty that comes with it is worth taking the risk.
Line by Line Meaning
There is danger in my loving you
I might get hurt if I fall in love with you.
Danger in your letting me,
You might put yourself at risk if you allow me to love you.
Danger in your not instantly
The longer you take to abandon me, the more danger we face.
Abandoning and forgetting me
If you stop loving me, I might get hurt and feel betrayed.
Sweet danger, sweet danger
The possibility of getting hurt in love is thrilling and exciting.
One we know we can share
We are both aware of the risks involved in love, but we can experience them together.
Unbounded beauty, if we dare
We can experience profound beauty in love if we are brave enough to take the risk.
We were destined for divided paths
We were meant to go our separate ways.
Fated to be far apart
Our lives were destined to take different paths.
And there's danger in defying fate
Attempting to go against nature could lead to trouble.
With two foolish hearts
We may not be thinking rationally, and our emotions could lead us into danger.
And although we can share,
Even though we can experience love together,
Come open with your kiss
Show me your love openly and passionately.
Our joy to secretness
We may need to keep our love a secret because of the risks involved.
And though there's danger waiting there,
Even though there are risks to our love,
We'll be in love and we won't care
We'll be willing to take the risk because our love is worth it.
Contributed by Aubrey W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.