Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra
With Paul Newman in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”
Taylor and Burton
Taylor in “Virginia Woolf”
During the making of “Cleopatra,” Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, both married to others, became involved in a torrid love affair, resulting in divorce for both. Taylor married Burton just nine days after her divorce from singer Eddie Fisher. Elizabeth Taylor once said, “You find out who your real friends are when you’re involved in a scandal.” Taylor and Burton had a tumultuous, on and off again relationship, which resulted in the two marriages and, ultimately, two divorces. Burton was known for his intimate love letters to Taylor. Having had a hysterectomy at age 36 and unable to bear any more children, Taylor and Burton adopted a daughter, Maria. Though Burton was not Taylor’s final husband, he is often considered the great love of her life. The movie “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” is considered by many to be a parallel to the love affair of Taylor and Burton.
Taylor was married a total of 8 times (including the 2 marriages to Richard Burton, who himself was wedded 5 times”> and has four children and numerous grandchildren. She acted as godparent to two of close friend Michael Jackson’s children, Paris and Prince Michael.
She was famous for her love of diamonds, and third husband Michael Todd gave her a 29-carat diamond ring, only to be outdone by Burton when he bestowed upon her a massive 69-carat diamond. Eddie Fisher (Taylor’s fourth husband”> joked that a diamond valued at a meager $50,000 could keep Taylor happy for approximately four days. Taylor has been quoted as saying, “Big girls need big diamonds.”
In 1963, Andy Warhol created the now-famous portrait of Taylor that sold at auction for more than $23 million dollars in 2007. In late 2010, another Warhol painting of Taylor, this one a 7-foot tall black and white titled “Men in Her Life,” sold for more than $63 million, stunning art dealers.
Taylor did not pursue acting in her later years due to her poor health. She was convinced that no studio could afford to insure her.
