Sunday, October 13, 2024

Liz Taylor: How to Endure a Day of “Experts” and “Close Friends”

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Liz Taylor goes to her grave without an official autobiography. Many hacks–like C. David Heymann–did write around books about her. They will undoubtedly turn up everywhere. The only book Taylor wrote, “Elizabeth Taylor Takes Off,” was about weight loss and was published in 1988. It’s out of print. Last year a pair of writers worked with her to publish the love letters between her and Richard Burton. “Furious Love” is still available, and the Vanity Fair excerpt is probably on line. The real friends are George Hamilton, Mickey Rooney, Carrie Fisher, Joan Collins, Liza Minnelli and Taylor’s family. If ex husband Larry Fortensky turns up like a bad penny, or people claiming to have been her “last love.” I’d take all that with a big bucket of salt. Taylor was smart. By never setting any record straight, she leaves her Hollywood legend intact. In months to come, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of her kids turns up with a memoir that will offer some clues to the great star’s mythic life. But until then, we will have to sit back and listen to a lot of gabbing from people who’ve “aggregated” their news from other third party sources. As one insider put it this morning: “She’s taken it all with her.”

Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News, where he created the Fox411 column. His movie reviews are carried by Rotten Tomatoes, and he is a member of both the movie and TV branches of the Critics Choice Awards. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. He is also the writer and co-producer of "Only the Strong Survive," a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals, directed by DA Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.

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