She is considered one of the last classic movie stars, if not the last. Before there was Bennifer and Brangelina there was Elizabeth Taylor and her eight marriages.Much of her life was controversial and headline worthy. She has been ridiculed for her support of Michael Jackson and is the Godmother of two of his children. She was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II. She loved expensive jewelry and her fourth husband joked that a $50,000 diamond could keep her happy for approximately four days. In recent years her health has held her back from furthering her career and she has become more of an activist especially for AIDS.
But what really made her famous was her beauty and her engaging acting. There is no denying her talent. She was the first actress to earn $1,000,000, for her part in Cleopatra, and it was certainly not her last time. Despite the ups and downs of her career she was nominated for five Oscars and won twice. Elizabeth Taylor once explained that "Success is a great deodorant. It takes away all your past smells."I never understood why I often heard her as the butt of jokes, especially when I was younger. Her looks have changed with age, which is not surprising. Luckily I've also noticed that people seem to think better of others when they have left this world. Gerald Ford was considered a dud until the day that he died and people began to fondly remember an undervalued man. Perhaps that is the day the people will look back on the life of Elizabeth Taylor and stand in awe of what she was able to accomplish. Maybe then she will be added to the ranks of Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn.
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I think most folks see her as eccentric in a lot of ways, but still respect the hell out of her. For her philanthropic causes, her acting career, and her past beauty and glamour. She is a true American icon.
ReplyDeleteI fully agree and sincerely feel that in the near future, due to her ailing health, she will be remembered as one of the greatest American figures of the last century.
ReplyDeleteWell behaved women rarely make history! Elizabeth Taylor has the talent and the, er, interesting reputation that will make people remember her for a looong time
ReplyDeleteDL-So true! You do have to be a bit bossy to make it into the history books!
ReplyDeleteWhen I was growing up in the 1960s, there were a lot of women in our small town in Montana -- so I know there must have been a lot of women every where -- who tried to look as much like Liz Taylor as they could. In those days, we didn't have People magazine. The magazine of choice was something called Photoplay, and it often featured Liz on the cover. I've always thought -- those I have no proof -- that the soap opera character of Erica Kane on all my children is based on Liz Taylor. And Erica may have now been married more times than Liz.
ReplyDeleteSteve-That's a great point. I would agree that she has influenced our culture in ways that I haven't even considered. My generation grew up with her being the butt of jokes while yours grew up with her still being an icon. I wonder how many girls were named Elizabeth because of her.
ReplyDeleteEven my mom, who doesn't follow People magazine, ended up naming me after a celebrity. It happens more often than you'd think.
Who were you named after? I guess I never heard of that. I bet your mom remembers the old Photoplay magazines. Our Grandma Anderson subscribed to the magazine and we loved to read as children. Lots of gossip and photos of our glamorous stars.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was little I thought that I was named (middle name) after the goddess Diana and I loved having such a historical tie. It wasn't until the night that we were watching the coverage of Princess Diana's car accident that mom told me she had named me after her. It seemed out of character...but then again Dylan is named after a rock and roll singer so I shouldn't be too surprised!
ReplyDeleteI'll have to ask her if she remembers those magazines (her memory isn't quite as good as yours!).