Elizabeth: The Life of Elizabeth Taylor

by Alexander Walker

Book Overview

Elizabeth Taylor is one of our last great movie stars. An Oscar-winning actress, she has lived her entire life in front of the spotlights, and her glamour and smouldering, sensual charisma are the stuff of legend. In Elizabeth, Alexander Walker presents the story of a life that was lived, on and off camera, with a passion rarely matched by even today's outspoken celebrities. From her privileged childhood, the influence of her strong-willed mother,...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802137695
• ISBN13: 9780802137692
• Release Date: July 2001
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.6" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

Excellent!

I think this is the classiest bio written about Elizabeth Taylor I really enjoy Alexander Walker as an author and biographer He presents Elizabeth's life as true to life as possible without resorting to foul language or any degrading comments about her life. His writing style will not offend anyone.

Diamonds and divas

Elizabeth Taylor is a hard person to biograph -- she's been awash on controversy since her teens, and became infamous for her luxe lifestyle and many husbands. So it's an especial credit to Alexander Walker's "Elizabeth," which manages to be fair without fawning. Taylor was the daughter of American Anglophiles, who moved to Hollywood during WWII. Her mother Sarah (an ex-actress) managed to get her into films, and the rest is cinema history. She seamlessly made the transition from cute child star to teen idol -- right before marrying abusive hotel heir Nicky Hilton. He was the first of several husbands -- crooner Eddie Fisher, her late soulmate Mike Todd, Brit actor Michael Wilding, a congressman, and most famously Welsh actor Richard Burton. And her tumultuous life was full of gems, health problems, love affairs, and high drama in all she did. Alexander Walker seems to have a liking for beautiful, legendary actresses with personal problems, so it's inevitable that he would have written about Taylor. The difficult part is balancing her positive and negatives, without either fawning or dragging her through the mud. And Walker does an excellent job -- Taylor is not a vixen or a harpy, nor is she an angel. Instead, he studies her personality, with its tendency to replace one love with another, as well as seeking a controlling personality to make her feel secure. Whether it's adultery or financial problems, he doesn't judge so much as lay out the facts so readers can judge for themselves. Best of all, Walker puts a wealth of detail in here. There's plenty of information about her movies, including lesser-known ones like "Cynthia," and Walker describes scenes that mirror or reflect Taylor's talent in detail. He also frames her story with info about the audiences of the times. He even includes unedited, outraged letters sent in after Taylor got involved with Fisher. "Elizabeth: The Life of Elizabeth Taylor" is perhaps the best, fairest and most thorough biography of this living legend. Walker definitely hit the mark with this one.

Luminous Liz!

I was mesmerised by this book. Of course, one often takes biographies with a grain of salt, but I was most impressed with the way that Taylor handled her career like a man -- how she was able to go on despite the pressures of her situation. The love story between Burton and Taylor shines through, and I think I understand a little more about love, even though theirs was a tumultuous one. She is a role model for people in the performing arts who turn their attention toward great and needy causes, and I respect her immensely. Also, the photographs in this book illustrate the fact that Liz was -- and still is -- the most luminous raven-haired beauty in Hollywood. Long may she rule as the last star of Hollywood.

Elizabeth Taylor Revealed

In the book The Life of Elizabeth Taylor, Alexander Walker captures the extraordinary beauty's life in every way. Fans will absolutely love this book. It is a thorough in depth biography filled with more than 30 amazing photos of Elizabeth throughout the years. It starts from the beginning of her life in London where her mother's strong willed attitude pushes Elizabeth forward. Alexander focuses on her success in many movies such as National Velvet, A Place in the Sun, and Cleopatra. The Oscar winning performance she gave in Butterfield 8 and the two academy awards that made her a legend are depicted. Along with all the positive aspects of her life also came the long downfalls that have intrigued us over the years. Elizabeth's eight marriages are uncovered along with her conniving personality that broke apart other people's marriages. Her obsessions of jewelry, clothing, and sex are exposed. The truth behind her ongoing drug and alcohol abuse is revealed. Elizabeth's suicide attempt at age 29 along with the 73 total hospitalizations throughout her life is publicized. This book shows us the real Elizabeth outside of the glamour. The dramatic experiences with facing the public with the on going scandals and personal tragedies is drawn out for the readers. This book gives a true insight in Elizabeth Taylor's life. From the high points to downfalls, her life is captured by Alexander Walker to its fullest. Elizabeth's life has been an often-tragic fairytale that people have followed throughout the past 50 years.