Elizabeth Taylor

Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (born the February 27th 1932 with Hampstead) is an American actress , prize winner of the Oscar of the best actress twice.

Biography

The child-star

Elizabeth was born with Hampstead, in the suburbs of London, with British nationality , parents both Americans and originating in Arkansas City (Kansas). It took its first lessons of dance at the three years age. After the release of the Second world war, his/her parents, installed long time in England, went back food to the United States. His/her mother, Sara, were the first to be left, with the children, while his/her father remained in London to regulate some businesses outstanding. They settled with Los Angeles, where the family of Sara lived. Elizabeth becomes acquainted with the capital of the cinema and very quickly his/her mother presents it to the studios Hollywood.

Elizabeth obtained its first role with the Cinéma in 1941, in a film for the studios Universal. His/her parents signed then a contract with the Subway-Goldwyn-Mayer, which made him turn Fidèle Lassie ( Lassie Like Home ), left in 1943, which accepted a favorable reception. She meets there Roddy McDowall, another child-star, who will remain his friend throughout his career. After two other films, the second for the Twentieth Century Fox, it obtained its first role of “high-speed motorboat”, at the sides of Mickey Rooney, in the Large National in 1944, interpreting an young girl who involves a horse in order to gain the Large National, celebrates horse competition. It falls several times from horse during turning what will cause him evils of back all its life. The film having brought receipts of more than 4 million dollars, Elizabeth Taylor was committed with a contract of long life to MGM. It then continues its studies with the Little Red School of the MGM with other child-star.

Consequently it does not cease any more connecting turnings and conquers the heart of the American teenagers. It finds the mascot of the MGM, the Lassie bitch, in the Courage of Lassie (1946) for the first role then it incarnates the young teenagers with dimensions of Irene Dunne, William Powell, Mary Astor, Wallace Beery, Jane Powell, Greer Garson, Walter Pidgeon… It becomes a delicious small woman in the Four Girls of Doctor March where it shows humor by incarnating the small Amy plague. The transition from childhood to maturity is successful. Sara Taylor, its best publicity agent, will be attentive and demanding during all this period. What will not prevent Liz having idylles and from marrying its first husband in 1950, Conrad Hilton Jr, a marriage which lasted one year.

The beautiful one with the piercing blue eyes

It is from now on ripe for the first roles of woman. At sixteen years, it is the wife of Robert Taylor in Guet-apens , then it plays the young grooms in two small jewels of Vincente Minnelli the Father of married the and its continuation Allons thus, dad! , two comedies, satire of the American middle-class, roundly carried out with a Spencer Tracy to the top of its talent and Elizabeth Taylor beautiful and full with spirit and drolery.

It is during the first of the Heiress that it meets another actor with whom it will have a privileged friendly relation, Montgomery Clift. It will turn with him in 1951 a place to the sun of George Stevens for the Paramount. This film is the adaptation of a work An American tragedy of the novelist Theodore Dreiser whose Josef von Sternberg carried out a first version in 1931. The duet Elizabeth Taylor - Montgomery Clift made of the wonders and in spite of a setting in academic scene the film and the actors receive criticisms eulogistic.

In other films of the period one retains especially Ivanhoé excel film of medieval adventure carried out by Richard Thorpe and turned with the studios of Boreham Wood in England, it there finds Robert Taylor and starts a idylle with London with the actor Michael Wilding. After its marriage flash in 1950, it marries Michael Wilding in 1952 with which it will have two children. The remainder more conventional and is especially built mainly to emphasize the beauty of Elizabeth Taylor ( Rapsodie , the Track of the elephants , the Beautiful Brummel )…

A revealed sensuality

The end of the decade will be happier, the two following films will be two spectaculars. To begin Giant , vast fresco of a family to the Texas where it finds George Stevens with the realization with for partners James Dean and Rock Hudson. The production will cost the moderate amount of 14 million dollars and will be one of greatest successes of the Warner.

The other budget impressing of 6 million dollars was for the Tree of life . Large fresco with for backdrop the American Civil War, the MGM wanted to make of it a second Gone With The Wind . But alchemy did not function in spite of the means and the scenario writers who harnessed themselves with the scenario during six years. Turning was stopped for two months following a terrible car accident to his/her friend Montgomery Clift. It crashed to pieces the jaw and half of the face and in spite of the plastic surgeon the accident left him deep after-effects for the remainder of its life.

It meets thereafter Mike Todd, inventor of the process Todd-Ao and producer of cinema in particular of the Round the world tour in 80 days , whereas its couple is with most badly. It is the love at first sight and after having divorced Michael Wilding it remarie Mike Todd in 1957. From this union comes a little girl, Liza, a very painful birth which failed to carry Elizabeth. Seven months later, Mike Todd commits suicide in an air crash. Elizabeth had not finished the turning of the She-cat on an extreme roof which was going to devote its talent. Inconsolable, it after a fashion finished film with the assistance of the realizer Richard Brooks and his partner Paul Newman.

This film and the following Soudain last summer of Joseph L. Mankiewicz is drawn from parts with success of the playwright Tennessee Williams. Elizabeth Taylor makes an irruption upsetting as an ideal interpreter of the turbid and sulfurous universe of this author. It expresses an animal sensuality seldom as well exploited especially in film of Mankiewicz, with dimensions of Montgomery Clift and Katharine Hepburn, where it sets ablaze the screen literally carried by an explosive erotic capacity. Never it was more beautiful and also attractive. The two films gained an enormous success with the Box-office and obtained in all 9 nominations with the Oscars of which twice the best female interpreter for Elizabeth Taylor.

For this period, it approaches the singer Eddie Fisher, the best friend of Mike Todd. But Fisher is married with Debbie Reynolds and after having tenderized America as an inconsolable widow, it appears out of breaker of households. The press breaks out what does not prevent Liz Taylor from marrying Eddie Fischer in 1959. America will forgive the variations of Liz because of the Trachéotomie which it must undergo because of a disease which once again misses embanking it. The Oscar of the best actress is allotted to him in 1961 for a minor film: Venus with the mink . Undoubtedly, the motivations of the voters were centered on the idea of encouragements to the actress, in her combat vis-a-vis this disease, then of correction for all the statuettes which they had not obtained during her preceding nominations. This film completes the contract which binds Elizabeth Taylor with MGM. It will again défraiera the chronicle with its connection with Richard Burton, a few years later.

Cléopâtre and Marc Antoine

In 1963, it becomes the actress best paid cinema, having obtained a seal of a million dollars and 10% of the benefit to play the “title role” in Cléopâtre for the 20th Century Fox, under the direction of Rouben Mamoulian then of Joseph Leo Mankiewicz. It is during this turning that she worked for the first time with her husband-to-be, Richard Burton, with which began a “stormy” connection at once. Turning started with London in the studios of Pinewood in September 1960. Mamoulian is with the realization, Stephen Boyd interprets Marc Antoine and Peter Finch Jules César. But very quickly the production transfers with the catastrophe. Amazing decorations are conveyed in England, the rain, the cold and the fog disturb turning and Liz Taylor falls ill during the first six months of turning. To reduce the astronomical costs the plate is moved with Rome with Cinecittà with the more favourable climate and the distribution is altered. The realizer is replaced and the main actors by Mankiewicz, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison and the film takes again in September 1961 under better auspices. It was without counting the Taylor-Burton meeting which at once is transformed into passion. The scandal bursts, the two actors are married and their link made as well noise as the film failed to be again stopped. The couple is badgered by the Paparazzi, the studios are furious and even the Pape is interfered while being declared shocked. But all will return in the order in front of the enthusiasm of the public and the determination of this explosive couple has to post their relation. An anecdote relative to this turning: badgered by journalists wanting to know if the connection of Elizabeth Taylor and Burton would not actually have masked an intrigue between the actress and the director, this one rétorqua one day with humor, in presence and with the approval of Burton, that it was a smoke screen to dissimulate a connection which would have existed between the two men.

The film finishes, after having put at the edge of the bankruptcy the studios of the 20th Century Fox, with a record of cost of 61 million dollars, the film will bring back 26 of them. In spite of this media outburst each one succeeds in divorcing and they marry finally in 1964.

Last the star of Hollywood

Liz Taylor with Cléopâtre reached the tops. Its passion for Burton will be reflected with the screen, on its eight following films, seven will be turned with him. She will triumph near the public with International Hôtel , the Knight of sands of Vincente Minnelli and especially with Which is afraid of Virginia Woolf? where she camps one terrifying Martha, in this role of Liz shrew takes fifteen kilos and is aged twenty years. Helped by Richard Burton, it gives one of its best performances and gains its second Oscar. They produce themselves the following film the tamed Shrew of Franco Zeffirelli, its beauty is found and the magic of the couple operates with hundred percent, they gain once again a resounding success. Liz is largest star in the world as well on the screen as in its couple which is recognized in the whole world. At the time, Burton leads large train to the great joy of the paparazzi.

Liz will be still sublime in the sulfurous Reflets in an eye of gold of John Huston with Marlon Brando, without any doubt one of its more beautiful film, and in two films of Joseph Losey Boom and secret Cérémonie . But this time the public does not follow. Elizabeth Taylor devoted much time and energy to the collection of funds for the fight against the AIDS. It also helped with the launching of American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR), after the death of her friend and partner (with the cinema) Rock Hudson. It is estimated that in 1999, it had contributed to the collection of at least 50 million dollars to finance research against the disease. It was honoured with several rewards for its caritative activities.

In addition, in 1999, it was titrated commander of the Ordre of the British Empire by the queen Elisabeth II, which gives him right to protocolar name Dame Elizabeth Taylor .

Since the beginning of the Years 1980, it lives with Bel Air (California).

Its prints of hand and foot “were immortalisées” in the main courtyard of Grauman' S Chinese Theater, while, with Hollywood, on the “walk of the celebrities” (Walk off Famed), one of the 2  000 stars bears its name, with height of the 6336 Hollywood Boulevard.

Private life

Bound to the actor Montgomery Clift by a long “friendship in love” without hope (because of the homosexuality of the actor), Elizabeth Taylor was married eight times with seven different men:
  • from May 6th, 1950 to June 29th, 1951, with Conrad Hilton Jr. (1926-1969) known as Nicky Hilton , heir to the chain of the Hilton hotels and director of TWA;
  • from February 21st, 1952 to January 26th, 1957, with the actor Michael Wilding (1912-1979);
  • from February 2nd, 1957 to March 22nd, 1958, with the producer Michael Todd (1909-1958) known as Mike Todd , of its unions not to only be itself concluded by a divorce;
  • from May 12th, 1959 to March 6th, 1964, with the singer Eddie Fisher, marriage during whom began the connection with Richard Burton;
  • from March 15th, 1964 to June 26th, 1974, with Richard Burton (first marriage);
  • from October 10th, 1975 to July 29th, 1976, with Richard Burton (second marriage);
  • from December 4th, 1976 to November 7th, 1982, with the senator John Warner (born in 1927);
  • from October 6th, 1991 to October 31st, 1996, with the industrialist Larry Fortensky.

Of its various unions, Elizabeth Taylor had several children:

  • with Michael Wilding:
    • Michael Howard Wilding (born on January 6th, 1953),
    • Christopher Edward Wilding (born on February 27th, 1955);
  • with Michael Todd:
    • Elizabeth Frances Todd, called Liza (born on August 6th, 1957);

Moreover, during its marriage with Eddie Fisher, in 1964, it started with this one of the steps aiming to the adoption of a little girl, who was in the final analysis adopted by Taylor and Burton: Maria Burton (born on August 1st, 1961).

Catalog of films

Rewards

Oscar

Golden Globes

Anecdotes

She was named by the American Film Institute seventh better actress of legend of the cinema.

See too

Internal bond

External bond

  • Elizabeth Taylor Fan Latest news, photo collection with over 13,000 photographs, multi-media, close file, forum, etc

  • Card “Elizabeth Taylor” on Internet Movie Database

  • Classic Movies (1939 - 1969): Elizabeth Taylor

Simple: Elizabeth Taylor

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