Film
Jun 1, 2011

DEATH OF A FILM LEGEND – ELIZABETH TAYLOR

Fans flocked to the Hollywood star of Elizabeth Taylor this morning to remember and honor the sad passing of this iconic screen actress.  Taylor was a legendary actress known equally for her beauty, talent, and charitable work as well as for her many marriages, her on-going health struggles, and her erratic behavior in her final years.

Taylor died peacefully at Cedars- Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles after being hospitalized there for several weeks due to congestive heart failure, a condition she had struggled with for several years.

She began her career as a child star at Universal and MGM and became a legend during Hollywood’s Golden Age. She is best known for playing the title role in Cleopatra, where she met and later married her co-star Richard Burton. At the time, she was the highest paid actress in Hollywood.
Taylor’s charity work was unparalleled throughout her life as she tirelessly supported research for HIV and AIDS programs. She co-founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research and created the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Many of her long-time fans and supporters are making donations in her honor.
In her final years, Taylor put on a brave face but suffered in pain from a combination of illnesses and a life of broken hearts including eight failed marriages and the recent death of her close friend Michael Jackson.  She did however have the companionship of several close friends, her children who were by her hospital bedside, and her beloved dog Daisy, not to mention the adoration and respect of a nation that watched her grow up on screen.
Turner Classic Movies will present a 24-hour tribute to her work on Sunday April 20th which will include nine films, two for which she won the Best Actress Oscar- Butterfield 8 and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
 
Taylor’s name is synonymous with glamour and she lived at a time when Hollywood actors were stars not celebrities. Her death marks an end of era and she will be remembered for her violet eyes, her passion, and her strength in the face of adversity.  She may be gone, but her star still shines the brightest of them all.