William Shatner reveals what it was really like working with ‘fragile’ Judy Garland

When you’ve been in Hollywood as long as William Shatner has, you definitely have plenty of stories to tell.

The Canadian actor, 94, started acting when he was in college, when he had a small role in a Canadian comedy drama, The Butler’s Night Off, in 1951. He later became best known for his portrayal of Captain James T. Kirk in the Star Trek franchise, which premiered in 1966.

Also among his earliest roles, before Star Trek, was Judgment at Nuremberg in 1961, which also starred Judy Garland.

William, recently speaking with Entertainment Weekly, recalled what it was like working with the legendary actress, remembering her as “very fragile.”

William was a fan of Judy’s since before working with her, and shared: “As a teenager from Montreal, every so often I’d go down with my parents to New York and go to the theater,” though noted: “And I saw her on stage in Times Square doing a concert — but she was drunk.”

“I kept looking at her thinking, ‘My God, she’s my heroine. And I think she’s drunk,'” he added. “I was a teenager. I thought, ‘Why, she can’t possibly be drunk on stage!’ And, well, she was, and made no sense. And I was so disappointed.”

© Getty Images

Judy’s struggles with addiction were well documented later in her life and following her 1969 death aged 47 from an overdose. She was first exposed to drugs when in her teenage years, while filming The Wizard of Oz, under pressure from MGM studio executives including Louis B. Mayer, she took an assortment of pills to manage her weight, energy, and sleep.

William recognized this, also telling the outlet: “I began to read about her problems and what she was dealing with.”

“She was an enormous talent,” he further recalled of having briefly shared the screen with Judy. “When she came on to do her scene, I hadn’t seen anything of her since that experience so many years ago. There she was, doing her fragile bit. And it was part of a continuity that I treasure.”

© Getty Images, CBS WORLDWIDE INC.

Judy was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars for her role in the film, as Irene Hoffmann, a German woman who is called to the Nuremberg trials as a witness, though the nod ultimately went to Rita Moreno for West Side Story, making her the first Puerto Rican woman to win an Oscar (and paving the way to her EGOT status).

© Getty Images

“It was a marvelous, astounding experience for a young actor,” William further shared of the film, noting he “was new to the movie game then.”

“Here I was amongst all these giants who’d come in for a day or two and be filmed and leave. It was a journey. It was beautiful,” he maintained.