The actress looks back on the creation of ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.’

OBrien was fortunate enough to witness the creation of the standard, which debuted in the film.

Garlands version immortalized the song, making it a Yuletide tradition.

But become an icon it did.

But the song had been changed.

[The original lyrics were] Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas / It may be your last.

She wanted it to be much lighter and and more Christmasy.

So she went to Hugh Martin.

She put a lot of her input into that song.

And of course, then it became the Christmas song thats played every year.

Theres not a Christmas goes by you dont hear Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.

And a lot of that is due to Judy too for sticking up and saying it must be changed.

What are your memories of filming the song?

Did it feel particularly festive?

Was Judy in a good mood?Oh, Judy was in a lovely mood.

She was in a wonderful mood all during that movie.

She was very happy making that movie.

He didnt overwork her.

People dont realize she was a very lively, wonderful person, with a wonderful sense of humor.

So she was kidding me and making me laugh.

Then we had to get very serious, in the mood of the song.

I was having a hard time crying during that song.

I said, Well, Judys so much fun and shes making me laugh.

So we had this contest going at MGM, Who was the best crier at MGM?

That made me cry.

Thats how they got me to cry during that song.

These things usually require multiple takes.

That was done very quickly.

They wanted to catch the moment.

Then you run out of the house and knock down the snow-people.Oh, yes.

I had fun doing that.

I loved being Tootie.

But that one, for some reason, I was able to really cry.

That one was easier to cry.

What were the snow-people made of?

They look so sturdy.They were.

They had styrofoam underneath.

[They were] made of styrofoam, and then they would spray crystals and things over it.

So it really looked like real snowmen.

Yeah, but they were pretty sturdy and they werent the easiest to knock down.

Because they werent actual snow.

It looks like youre whacking a few of them multiple times to get them to break apart.I did.

it took a few times to actually knock them down.

What are your memories of the Halloween scene?

Was it fun to throw flour in an adults face?Well, I loved playing Tootie.

I just went with the flow and everything, but I loved being able to be that mischievous.

My mother had wanted more money.

I was working for very little, and I had done several big movies.

I love New York, and well just go on to New York and have fun there.

[But he used this girl to take a stab at call her bluff.]

Then they had to tell this little girls family she was not going to do it.

Her father became mental.

He worked in the lighting department, [and he] wanted to drop a light on me.

They were so upset that their daughter did not do it.

Did you and Judy really come to feel like sisters on set?Yes.

She acted like a big sister.

She loved being with the kids on the set.

I always had a little stand-in that was my age on all the movies I made.

And Judy loved playing with us when we had time off.

Judy was really a very happy person.

She loved jumping rope.

We would jump rope when we had time on the set, and she would do that too.

So that was the happy side of Judy that I saw.

What makes this film work so well is the sense all of you really are a family.

Did it feel that way on set?

But I would see Judy from time to time at different functions and luncheons.

She would always come over and say, Hello, Margaret, how are you?

Im always thinking about you.

She was always very sweet.

Because a lot of times when you do finish, you dont come over and say hello.

you’re free to be at the same luncheon and never see the person that you knew.

But Judy always came over.

I always remember that about her.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.