Biography

The daughter of Judy Garland and producer Sidney Luft, and the half-sister of Liza Minnelli, Lorna Luft was born in 1952 in Santa Monica, California. According to her autobiography, "Me and My Shadows" (1998), she and her younger brother Joey Luft lived an idyllic childhood in Bel Air, oblivious to any problems that may have arisen regarding her mother's ongoing drug addiction and her parents' marriage. By the time she was 12, however, her parents were divorced, and she was forced to face her mother's serious drug problem head-on. But she stuck with her mother, because she knew that Garland truly loved her children when not under the influence of the drugs. She became her mother's care-giver, administering the medication she needed to function, carefully monitoring the amount she took, and dealing with her whenever her behavior got out of control. Eventually, however, she couldn't take it anymore and had a mental breakdown. As painful as it was for her, she and her brother left her mother and went to live with their father. Several months later, Garland overdosed and died. Lorna was crushed and guilty, having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that her mother's death was inevitable, and would have happened had she been there or not. Lorna soon followed in her mother and sister's footsteps to a show business career. She became a professional singer, though never quite reaching the success her mother and sister had in that field. She also appeared on Broadway in "Promises, Promises" and "Snoopy", in a summer stock production of "Grease" and in a national tour of "Guys and Dolls". She hasn't made many films. The ones she has made include Grease 2 (1982), the disastrous sequel to the film version of "Grease", and the beach party film Where the Boys Are (1984), as well as small appearances in Studio 54 (1998) and My Giant (1998). In 1985, she took a supporting role in the sitcom Trapper John, M.D. (1979) as a nurse, but a year and a half later, the show ended its seven-year run. In the 70's and 80's, she also experienced a drug addiction to cocaine, but is now drug-free. She claims she has had to face her sister Liza's drug addictions, as well, and helped to get her into the Betty Ford Center once. She was married to rocker Jake Hooker, who later became her manager, but despite two children, the marriage was not happy. They are now divorced, and she lives in California with her children and her second husband, musician Colin Freeman. Currently (1999), plans are in full swing for a miniseries to be made from her book. She will serve as executive producer on the project.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous

Lorna has followed in the footsteps of her mother and sister in a show business career. Her first professional screen appearance was on The Judy Garland Show (1963) on television in 1963, and she later appeared with her mother at the Palace Theatre in a famed 1967 engagement. Lorna went on to star on Broadway in the shows "Promises, Promises" in the 1970s and off-Broadway productions of "Snoopy" and "Extremities" in the 1980's, appeared in productions of "Grease", "Mame", "Gypsy", "Little Shop of Horrors" and "The Unsinkable Molly Brown", and in the acclaimed national tours of "They're Playing Our Song" in 1980 and "Guys and Dolls" in 1992 thru 1994. As a solo artist, Lorna has appeared on most of the major stages in the US, Canada, and United Kingdom. Her critically acclaimed show, "Songs My Mother Taught Me", has toured throughout North America. In addition, Lorna is the author of the autobiographical "Me and My Shadows: A Family Memoir" and executive producer of the subsequent miniseries starring Judy Davis, Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001).

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous

Lorna Luft's acclaimed career has encompassed virtually every arena of entertainment. A celebrated live performer, stage, film and television actress, best selling author, recording artist and Emmy-nominated producer - she continues to triumph in every medium with critics labeling her one of the most vibrant, versatile and exciting artists on stage today.

Born to legendary entertainer Judy Garland and producer Sidney Luft, music and entertainment was an integral part of her childhood. At age 11, she made her television debut singing on her mother's series, The Judy Garland Show (1963). At 16, already a seasoned performer, she shared the bill with her mom on Broadway in a fabled month-long concert engagement at New York's famed Palace Theater.

By 19, she was stopping the show on her own; starring on Broadway in Neil Simon's hit musical, "Promises, Promises". She continued on the NY stage as "Peppermint Patty" in the musical, "Snoopy", and then took a dramatic turn alongside Farrah Fawcett in "Extremities". In addition to regional theatre productions of "Grease", "Carnival", "Little Shop of Horrors", "The Unsinkable Molly Brown", "Girl Crazy", "Mame" and "Gypsy", she starred in national tours of "They're Playing Our Song" and as "Miss Adelaide" for 2 years in Jerry Zaks' world tour production of "Guys & Dolls". She toured the UK in the acclaimed musical revues "Hollywood & Broadway" and "The Magical World of Musicals". Following the 2004 West End debut of her one woman show, "Songs My Mother Taught Me", she starred in the 2006 blockbuster UK premiere production of Irving Berlin's "White Christmas: The Musical". She quickly followed that success with the 2007 hit revival of Rodgers and Hart's "Babes in Arms" at the prestigious Chichester Festival Theatre. Lorna will reprise her role in "White Christmas: The Musical" for the 2007 winter season at the Edinburgh Playhouse and the Wales Millennium Centre.

Concurrent with her theatrical career, Lorna is a gifted live performer, frequently featured as a concert artist at the world's most prestigious venues including The Hollywood Bowl, Madison Square Garden, Carnegie Hall, The London Palladium, and L'Olympia in Paris. She's had the honor of performing for the Royal Family at London's Royal Albert Hall in concerts celebrating Sammy Davis Jr. and Ira Gershwin. In 2006 and 2007, she garnered acclaim for her surprise duet appearances with singer/songwriter Rufus Wainwright at his celebrated tribute concerts to Judy Garland.

In the summer of 2007, Lorna joined Alan Cumming and Margaret Cho as part of the talented voice cast of Logo Network's new animated series Rick & Steve. A UK television favorite, she frequently appears as a guest and sometime co-host on ITV's popular Loose Women. In 2004, she was the subject of a highly-rated BBC documentary titled Somebody's Daughter, Somebody's Son. In the U.S., she's appeared on virtually every talk and variety program and has had featured roles on episodic series including Murder, She Wrote (1984), The Nanny (1993), and was a series regular on the CBS drama, Trapper John, M.D. (1979). She joined her sister, Liza Minnelli, in an electrifying duet on The Tony Awards and was a featured performer on PBS's Jerry Herman's Broadway at the Bowl. In films, she is most remembered by fans of all ages as Pink Lady "Paulette Rebchuck" in the camp classic, Grease 2 (1982).

In 1998, Lorna added a new dimension to her multi-faceted career, that of NY Times best-selling author upon the release of her critically acclaimed memoir -- "Me and My Shadows". It was optioned by ABC-TV and broadcast as a 4-hour miniseries, starring Judy Davis in Feb. 2001. Lorna served as co-executive producer on Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001), which garnered the highest ratings of the season and won 5 Emmy Awards.

One of her most ambitious projects to date is the highly-acclaimed multi-media production, "Songs My Mother Taught Me--A Celebration of the Music of Judy Garland". This theatrical extravaganza melds one of the world's most familiar songbooks with personal memories of a loving daughter. "Songs My Mother Taught Me", which Variety called "a rousing, dramatically riveting musical event", was awarded two Los Angeles Theatre Alliance Ovation Awards (Best World Premiere Musical & Best Musical Direction). The LA Times called her performance "heart-stopping and thrilling... an incandescent revelation not to be missed". A CD based on the concert, produced by Barry Manilow and Colin Freeman, is scheduled for release on October 22, 2007 from First Night Records. Lorna has two children, Jesse Hooker and Vanessa Hooker, is married to celebrated musician, Colin Freeman, and divides her time between in Los Angeles, California and the UK.

From her early work with her mother to spectacular concert performances, acclaim on Broadway, and in television, Lorna proves again and again that she's a stellar entertainer and humanitarian, proudly carrying the torch of her family's legendary show business legacy.

- IMDb Mini Biography By: Team Lorna (Official Lorna Luft Website)