ELIZABETH TAYLOR - FAMOUS BIPOLAR ACTRESS
Elizabeth Taylor was an Anglo-American actress. She is known for her extreme uncommon beauty. Her acting style and performances also earned her recognition. She is considered to be one of Hollywood’s golden age’s greatest actresses. She is placed at seventh by the American Film Institute on the Female Legend’s List. More remarkable about her is that she had many frequent marriages. She was born on 27th February in 1932 at Hampstead.
Taylor began taking ballet lessons at the age of three. Upon the family’s return to England, Taylor signed a six-month renewable contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for $100 per week for seven years. She starred in the Lassie Come Home film as Priscilla. Lassie Come Home was a hit, earning popularity for young Taylor. Her salary was also increased as her performance increased, till it hit a record high of $750 a week by the seventh year. For her first assignment, she was loaned out to 20th Century Fox for the film Charllote Bronte, in which she played Helena Burns. Her stardom was however awakened by her role in National Velvet. The film yielded a gross of over US $ 4 million. Owing to that performance, her contract was renewed with a salary of $30,000 per year.
Taylor was reportedly diagnosed with bipolar disorder, though much is not said about it. Taylor recently broke into tears when she saw a statue of her late husband Richard Burton in Buckingham Palace while attending a gala evening. She was believed to have been depressed during the breakdown of many of her numerous marriages. She was also addicted to alcohol for sometime but was treated.
Apart from acting, Taylor has passion for jewelry. She has bought a number of expensive pieces from a well-known designer. One of the most talked about is the Taylor-Burton Diamond and the Krupp Diamond. She also designs jewelry for The Elizabeth Collection. She also has three perfumes to her credit. The perfumes, “Passion”, “White Diamonds” and “Black Pearls” together yielded and annual sale of US$200 million. Much of Taylor’s time has been dedicated to HIV activism. The American Foundation for AIDS Research has been formed with her help. She also founded the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation, through which she raises funds to support AIDS victims. Taylor also supports the Kabbalah and holds membership to the Kabbalah Center, a religious organization.
A Vincent van Gogh Painting in her possession has been a subject of legal litigation. The US Supreme Court in 2007 decided in her favor.
Elizabeth Taylor has been married seven times. She was first married to Conrad Hilton in 1950 and divorced him in 1951. She married Michael Wilding a year later and divorced him too, five years later. Next was Michael Todd, who lasted for a year. Eddie Fisher followed for a 5 year marriage with the beauty queen. Richard Burton was the fifth and the “longest serving” husband, they were married for 10 years, divorced and remarried again for another year. John Warner came for a 6 year marriage. The last was Larry Fortensky, whose marriage with Taylor lasted for 5 years before ending in divorce in 1996. She has three children.