Skip to main content

Elizabeth Taylor, A Passion for Life by Joseph Papa: book review




Elizabeth Taylor, A Passion for Life: The Wit and Wisdom of a Legend (2011) is about the movie actress. It is not a full biography of Elizabeth Taylor – it contains short historical passages, black-and-white photographs, a list of her marriages, and a list of her 56 films. The predominant focus is her quotes – quotes about childhood, marriage, motherhood, rehab, acting, beauty, aging, extravagences, and charitable work.

Elizabeth Taylor (1932-2011) was born in England to American parents. With the onset of World War II, her family moved back to America. Taylor’s first movie in 1942 when she was 10 years old was There’s One Born Every Minute. It was National Velvet (1944) that catapulted her to movie fame when she was 12 years old.

She had four children during 8 marriages to 7 husbands – she married actor Richard Burton twice. The shortest marriage was 7 months to hotelier Conrad Hilton – her first marriage at 18 years of age in 1950. Her longest marriage was to actor Richard Burton from 1964-1974 and 1975-1976, whom she met on the set of the film Cleopatra (1963). All marriages ended in divorce, except her third marriage to Michael Todd in 1957, who was killed 13 months later in a plane crash. Her longest period unmarried was 10 years between John Warner (married 1976-1982) and her last marriage to Larry Fortensky (married 1991-1996).

There were no relationships that did not lead to marriage – if she dated them, she married them. One of her quotes is ‘I am a very committed wife. And I should be committed, too – for being married so many times.’

Of the men she starred with, her favourites were Richard Burton, Montgomery Clift, Clark Gable, Rock Hudson, Roddy McDowall, Spencer Tracy, and John Wayne. She was also known for her luxuries (art, food, diamonds, and houses), although she said the most accessible luxury was perfume.

It’s a short read, and more of a picture and quote book than anything else – not offering much new information – although there are insights about Taylor from her many quotes. It’s more of a gift book or for Taylor fans.  



MARTINA NICOLLS is the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...
1 comment
Read more

Sister cities discussed: Canberra and Islamabad

Two months ago, in March 2015, Australia and Pakistan agreed to explore ways to deepen ties. The relationship between Australia and Pakistan has been strong for decades, and the two countries continue to keep dialogues open. The annual bilateral discussions were held in Australia in March to continue engagements on a wide range of matters of mutual interest. The Pakistan delegation discussed points of interest will include sports, agriculture, economic growth, trade, border protection, business, and education. The possible twinning of the cities of Canberra, the capital of Australia, and Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, were also on the agenda (i.e. called twin towns or sister cities). Sister City relationships are twinning arrangements that build friendships as well as government, business, culture, and community linkages. Canberra currently has international Sister City relationships with Beijing in China and Nara in Japan. One example of existing...
2 comments
Read more

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...
1 comment
Read more