Had studio lights somehow gotten brighter and hotter since the war?
Steve Rogers tugged at his mask, trying to shift it from the uncomfortable pressure it was putting against his skin. A nervous-looking woman holding a clipboard stopped him, touching his arm, before suddenly pulling back and flushing slightly.
"Captain, um, sir, please don't do that. You might smudge the makeup around your eyes, and that, um, doesn't look right on camera. Sorry."
He couldn't help but feel a twinge of pity at the poor girls deer-in-the-headlights expression, and dropped his hand, leaving his mask alone, content to just chalk the feeling up to nervousness. "No problem, miss. Just a bit of stage fright, I think. It's been a while since I had to dress up for a movie camera". The propaganda shoots he had taken part in during the war had been improvised events, thrown together in a matter of days to get maximum use of him while he was away from the front, he couldn't remember ever stepping inside an actual movie set like the CBS studio he was in now. Which he supposed could be why the lights seemed far hotter than they did back then.
The girl nodded and smiled, her face still flushed "Right, good. Um..." She seemed at a loss for word for a moment "Oh, yes, right! Mrs. Garland wanted to talk to you, before the taping. If you could follow me, please?" She began to move, only to find herself halted by the crowd of people that had suddenly stopped all activity to watch as soon as Steve had stepped through the backstage curtains, more than a few staring in naked awe. The girl's demeanor shifted immediatly, from star-struck to furious. "Oh for- Don't you people have work to do?! We're not on Christmas break yet, what would Mrs.Garland think if she came out and saw you all standing around lolly-gagging like this?! We'd be out of a job, that's what, and rightly so!"
The crowd began to disperse, a few people sending a longing glance back, before returning to their duties. The woman turned to him, an apologetic smile on her face "Sorry Captain, even in this line of work, the novelty of fame doesn't quite wear off for some people. Are you ready?"
He nodded "Lead the way, miss! Don't want to keep Mrs. Garland waiting."
A finely-dressed woman was waiting for them over by the television stage, sitting in one of the arm chairs used for a living room set. Though older than the last time he had seen her on the big screen, back before the war, back before he'd even been Captain America, even in middle age there was no denying her beauty, even in middle age. Judy Garland rose from the chair as she saw them approach across the set, giving the woman next to him a nod.
"Thank you, dear. Can you go check in if Liza is here yet? We need to begin practicing her part as soon as possible."
The girl nodded and quickly scurried off the set, leaving the two of them alone. Garland smiled, taking his gloved hand in hers, and shaking it gently. "Captain America, let me start with saying how grateful I am that you agreed to star on the show! It's truly an honor to have you here, I never would have expected a hero like yourself would have the time to come down and tape a silly little christmas special with me."
"The honor is all mine, ma'm" Steve said, returning her handshake "I was a big fan of yours back, well... before. Wish I could tell myself back then I'd one day get to meet you in person, he'd never have believed it. You were a big Hollywood star, and I was just some random kid from Brooklyn then. Heck, even now, meeting you feels a bit far-fetched."
"Hmm, let me guess, Wizard of Oz is your favorite, isn't it?"
He shrugged sheepishly "Meet Me In St. Louis is a real close second, but Oz always seemed like magic to me, back then. And in those days, not to mention during the war, we needed all the magic we could get. Even if it was from a story that was really more for kids than it was for us. And now, well, I guess it just still sticks with me the same way. Something to tie me to the past..."
"Well, the past does have it's appeal, but I wouldn't discount the present just yet, Captain. It HAS been a rough few years..." She sighed, running her hand through her hair as something like regret flashed across her face, but she quickly forced it back. Steve frowned under his mask, recalling some of the things he'd read about how life had treated her. He wasn't sure how much of it was true, people did like to exagerate when it came to the rich and famous, but it seemed awful regardless.
Garland shook her head, her smile returning "Oh, but nevermind all that, we're here to make something joyful after all, something that really fits the season!" She turned around, picking up a stack of papers from the chair she had been sitting on. "Now, I assume you read through the script the studio sent over? Any questions?"
"Yeah, one, but it's a pretty big one..." Steve answered as he accepted the script from her, flipping through the pages as he spoke "The regular scenes aren't any problem, but the song numbers... Ma'm, I'm not a singer, not a real one anyway. I mostly just let the chorus girls drown me out during the propaganda shows I took part in, I don't have any actual training for this."
"Oh, that's what's bothering you? Don't worry yourself grey, Captain. Trust me, you got natural talent with that deep voice of yours, I can tell. I just stepped out on stage as a child, and it all came to me naturally. I have a feeling it'll be the same for you. What do you say, you ready to give it a try?"
...
The Judy Garland Christmas Special, Original Airdate: December 22nd, 1963, CBS
-now, as you all know, we have a very special guest visiting us for tonight's episode. Captain America, who so graciously agreed to take time away from his busy schedule to come celebrate Christmas here with us on our show. Captain, it's a delight to have you here tonight!"
"It's an honor to be here, Mrs. Garland, and I'm very happy to take part in celebrating. Mr. Mel Thorpe, it's a pleasure to meet you as well!"
"The pleasure is all mine, Captain! I understand you're planning on entertaining all the folks at home with your own rendition of one of my songs?"
"Well, I might be persuaded to, as long as Mrs. Garland is willing to join me?"
"Ready when you are, Captain!"
"Alright, I suppose I'll start with... All Through the Year we Waited... Waited Through Spring and Fall...."
.....
"Did you know Steve could sing?"
Stark is holding a cup of eggnog, which judging from the taste I had is mostly bourbon with a bit of nog thrown in for good measure, in front of his face, frozen in the middle of taking a drink as he watches Captain America break out in a surprisingly good rendition of "The Christmas Song" on the tv.
"I did not know Steve could sing. I doubt he did either."
We were in the middle of decorating the mansion christmas tree, a modest one Thor had dragged into the living room last night over Stark's objections, as indoor trees shedding pine needles all over his obscenely expensive rugs were apparently one of the many things he enjoyed not having to deal with during his previous non-Avengers holidays. His suggestion of hiring decorators to decorate the tree for us had also been soundly rejected by the rest of the team, leading to him claiming conscious objector status over the whole thing and parking himself in front of the tv with the bourbon nog he'd mixed together. Janet had been in her Wasp form at the top of the tree, fixing the star in place, when she had reminded us that Steve's TV guest appearance was airing tonight.
Which had led to the current situation of the Avengers standing around a christmas tree in the mansions living room, frozen in place with christmas decorations in our hands, as we watched Steve Rogers make a singing debut on a sitcom christmas special. The red glass ball in my hand almost roll out, leaving me fumbling with it for a moment before I manage to actually stick it on one of the branches.
"Well, that explains why Steve said he was volunteering at a soup kitchen tonight. I mean, I'm like 99% certain he actually did, but this time, there was an added reason besides his being an almost comically nice guy."
Stark finally snaps out of his shock, grinning like a loon as he drains the rest of his eggnog "Oh, he's gotta come back home sooner or later, and I plan to get my money's worth out of this moment. I'm going to start writing down jokes about it now so I won't forget any!" He actually starts looking around for a pen. Dr Blake, who had been wrapping tinsel around the lower part of the tree, peeks out from behind one of the branches.
"Come on Tony, be nice! I thought that was pretty lovely actually, Captain Rogers has a surprisingly good singing voice..."
"That's not the point, Blake. I'm sure if Thor was here, he'd have some crazy story about how back in Asgard, all the warriors used to get hopped up on mead and sing battle hymns, but here on Earth..." He blinks "Hey, speaking of which, not that I don't like having you here too, but Thor did take the tree in, I'm surprised he didn't want to help decorate it too."
"Same reason The Hulk isn't here" Banner says from where he's trying to straighten out some cables for the tree lights "Because having our alter egos around your very breakable christmas ornaments, some of which Jarvis informed me are not only antiques but belonged to your grandparents, didn't seem like the best idea..."
Stark just waves it off, going back for more nogg "Maybe not, but it would have made for some pretty unforgettable christmas memories. But I'll settle for warming myself with Captain America's television singing debut!"