FACTOIDS:

• For Me And My Gal was Judy’s first solo billing above the title. It was also her first real adult role.
• “After You’ve Gone”, with the same basic arrangement as in For Me And My Gal, became a popular standard in Judy’s concerts during her later legendary “Concert Years.”
• In hindsight, Judy’s “Concert Years” are eerily foreshadowed in the “Y.M.C.A.” sequence when Judy is performing for the on-screen audience. Some of her stage mannerisms and obvious connection to that audience of extras is very apparent.
• The original finale featured Judy, Gene, and George Murphy reprising the title song – but it was replaced after the first previews necessitated the shifting of the focus onto the Garland & Kelly characters only. The pre-recording survives, and was first presented on the 1977 LP “Cut! Outtakes from Hollywood’s Greatest Musicals, Vol. 3.”
• Although filming only took eight weeks, there were 21 days of retakes due to the June preview audiences saying that George Murphy should have gotten “the gal”. The retakes famously included the scenes making Kelly’s Harry Palmer a hero (by saving an ambulance convoy single handedly) and also re-shooting the finale (as noted above).
• The film first opened in New York on October 19, 1942, as a special benefit for the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. The night of the actual premier, October 20th, MGM staged a midnight Times Square sing-along of World War I tunes, and a special screening of the film for vaudevillians and Broadway celebrities.
• Marta Eggerth, who played Eve Minard, was a star of Budapest and then Broadway. She made many European films, but her only two Hollywood films both starred Judy: For Me And My Gal and Presenting Lily Mars (1943). Eggerth is still very much alive and performing, her most recent appearance was in New York in 2008 (still going strong at age 96!!).
• George Murphy had previously co-starred with Judy in 1940’s Little Nellie Kelly, and was one of the main stars in Judy’s first feature film for MGM, 1937’s Broadway Melody Of 1938. He retired from films in the early 1950’s to pursue a career in politics, eventually becoming a U.S. Senator for California. He died on May 3, 1992.
• Richard Quine had previously appeared with Judy in 1941’s Babes On Broadway. He later moved into directing and producing, including 1958’s Bell, Book and Candle (director) and 1964’s Paris When It Sizzles (producer). He died on June 10, 1989 (which was coincidentally the 67th anniversary of Judy’s birth).
• Keenan Wynn was a very popular and versatile character actor, whose career spanned over 50 years. He had a small but effective part in 1945’s The Clock and would have also appeared with Judy in 1950’s Annie Get Your Gun and 1951’s Royal Wedding if she had been able to complete those films. Some of his other films include: Kiss Me Kate (1953), The Absent Minded Professor (1961), and Finian’s Rainbow (1968). He was performing in films and television up until his death on October 10, 1986.
• Kelly’s starting salary was $750 per week.
• For Me And My Gal was nominated for one Academy Award: “Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture” for Roger Edens & Georgie Stoll. The winners were Ray Heindorf and Heinz Roemheld for Warner Bros.’ Yankee Doodle Dandy.
• Judy & Gene recorded “For Me And My Gal” and “When You Wore A Tulip” for Decca Records on July 26, 1942. These are the only studio recordings the pair made outside of the MGM recording studios.
• The surviving pre-recording sessions were featured on the 1994 laser disc boxed set “Judy Garland: The Golden Years At M-G-M.”
• The complete soundtrack was issued on CD by Rhino Records in 1996. Technically out of print, it can easily be found on auction sites like eBay.