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Elizabeth Taylor was an actress of immeasurable emotional depth and beauty. In her heyday, men around the world adored her and women wanted to be like her.
Elizabeth Taylor was born to beauty and success, a
never-to-be-forgotten British-born icon of stage and screen and a
"billionairess" in her own right.
For playing Cleoptatra in 1963, she is credited with the
distinction of almost bankrupting 20th Century Fox, commanding a $1m fee,
which, after lawsuit and counter lawsuit between the stars and the film
company, was increased to around $7m. She performed her role of Cleopatra
alongside her Welsh husband, Richard Burton, who played Mark Anthony.
In 1991, a deal was struck with the cosmetic giant,
Elizabeth Arden, to market perfumes under Taylor's name and "White
Diamonds" and "Passion" produced sales last year of $69m.
A Unique Childhood Star
She was born in 1932 and, as a child, lived
in London near Hampstead Heath, where she rode her horse bareback and went to
ballet classes like any other middle-class girl. She and her parents left the
UK for America when the second World War broke out and they lived in Beverley
Hills. Here, this talented young girl won a part in Lassie Come Home,
(1943) and later, in National Velvet, (1944).
Taylor is remembered fondly by other actresses who worked
with her. Angela Lansbury remembers a strikingly beautiful little girl with
bright violet eyes and black hair. Shirley MacLaine comments on the maturity
and extreme emotional depth of her performances.
Elizabeth moved, effortlessly, from child-star to adult
actress. Her first adult film with Montgomery Clift was A
Place in the Sun, followed by many more, including
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Cleopatra and Who's Afraid of
Virginia Woolf.
Seven Husbands - Eight Marriages
Taylor had seven husbands and eight marriages, as she
married Richard Burton twice:
- Conrad Hilton ~ 1950
- Michael Wilding ~ 1952
- Mike Todd ~ 1957
- Eddie Fisher ~ 1961
- Richard Burton ~ 1969
- Richard Burton ~ 1975
- John Warner ~ 1977
- Larry Fortensky ~ 1991
Elizabeth Taylor was greatly
influenced by her second husband, Mike Todd and deeply traumatised when he died
in a plane crash after just over a year of marriage.
The chemistry
between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton was intense and their relationship
was volatile.
I remember watching a television interview many years ago, in the
late sixties or early seventies - Richard wanted something from Elizabeth's
handbag and he literally took it from her and riffled through it. She glanced
at him sideways, looking half-pleased, as though she welcomed that level of
intimacy between them and Burton's presumption that it was actually okay to do
that.
She was not always
so passive. They argued frequently, yet they found it hard to be apart.
Elizabeth Taylor
divorced her last and her eighth husband, Larry Fortensky in 1996.
A
Great Loss to the World, but Her Legacy Lives On
At the age of 79
on Wednesday 23 March 2011, Elizabeth Taylor died of congestive heart failure.
She'd been ill for a long time and had become overweight and wheelchair bound,
but she never lost that indefinable sparkle and overt charisma that were so
integral to her persona.
Since her death,
hand-written letters have been revealed detailing her young romance with
William Pawley Jr dating back to 1949, in which she expresses her great love
for this young man. "I've never known this kind of love before - it's so
perfect and complete - and mature," she says.
Charitable
Works
Elizabeth Taylor
contributed generously to charitable causes. When her close friend, Rock
Hudson, died in 1985, Elizabeth Taylor set up her Aids foundation which raised
$270m. In 1993, she received an honorary Oscar for outstanding contributions to
humanitarian causes and you can watch the video of her acceptance speech by
clicking here.
Sources:
- "Not just an icon, Elizabeth Taylor was also worth a billion dollars." The Independent. 30 March 2011.
- England's Elizabeth - Elizabeth Taylor, BBC4, 31 Ma
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