Still not as big as the reaction to Liberace in 1955.

One of the many folktales about Judy was that she was seated beside Ray Charles on an airplane flight and they chatted for a long spell, and he didn't know it was her.

​@@akrenwinkle I think that her mellow "speaking" voice hasn't anything to do with her powerful "singing" voice. Even her phrasing is different ❤.. 💜🌿

SciFiGirl007 is

She says she has the flu and then proceeds to kiss everybody. Today, they would all be leaning away from her when she approached.

Arlene Francis told the story of her appearance in great detail in her autobiography. I don't recall her saying Judy was drunk (which doesn't mean she didn't), but she did say the producers had a backup in case she didn't show up, which was to be the man who cast and coordinated the mystery guests... can't recall his name, I'll just call him the casting director. My recollection of Arlene's story is that Judy didn't show up until AFTER the show started (and it was live). She went in her dressing room and slammed the door. The makeup woman followed her in and almost immediately came out in tears. "She screamed at me and told me to get out," the woman said. The casting director went into the dressing room and he too came out moments later, white as a sheet. "My God, her hair's still in curlers!" he exclaimed. He wrote a note to be passed to host John Daly to inform him that he would be the mystery guest after all. The man stood there offstage with chalk in his hand (to write his name on the blackboard in front of the blindfolded guests, as happened in every episode), the show came back from commercial, and John Daly announced, "And now the appearance of our mystery guest..." and continued his usual spiel from there, instructing the cast to put on their blindfolds. Suddenly Judy threw open her dressing room door, all dolled up, makeup done, hair done -- she'd done it all herself. She sidled up next to the casting director. "How long have we got?" she asked. "About five seconds!" he said. "Then what the fuck was rush?" quipped Judy as she grabbed the chalk out of his hand and strolled onstage.

According to Gil Fates in his "What's My LIne?" book, after Judy had refused to appear, Mark Goodson told John Daly, "No problem, I'll be the mystery guest." He stood in the wings, chalk in hand, waiting to enter on John's cue.....when Judy sailed past him, taking the chalk, and strolled on stage as if nothing had happened backstage.

superbu1 Arlene was protecting her by not saying she was drunk or had been drinking. If not drinking she definitely was on pills, hence her sarcastic comment at the end, said in jest.

littlemissmello considering she was high as a kite.

Except for the y at the end of her name

That's a problem?

she never had a problem with the drink ... it was always the uppers / downers ...

juan monge what the hell does that have to do with this show

joey josephs Judy was in New York to attend the wedding of Liza to Peter Allen.

It’s in the genes...i mean family heirloom...the jeans...it’s in the jeans...🌝🌚

She lives with a gay man now....seems that's her deal. Like mother, like daughter.

Miyoshi Umeki wasn't Judy last husband gay too?

Scooter w. She was saying the character she was supposed to play did not take pills... but as someone else mentioned, she was cut from the movie due to erratic behavior from pill taking.

it was a joke...everyone in the known universe was aware that she took pills. its why they all laughed when she said it.

By this show, her singing voice was gone.

When did Celeste Holmes work with Judy? I don't recall any films in which Celeste appeared with Judy.

@@jackanthony976 Celeste Holm, and there's no evidence they worked together, even once. But it's true Judy was pampered, doted upon. Harry Warren, who wrote "On the Atchison, Topeka, and the Santa Fe" for her said that if she had worked for Warner Bros., instead of MGM, she'd have been fired quickly.