Trivia

At one point during her life-threatening illness while filming BUtterfield 8 (1960), she was actually pronounced dead.

First actress to earn $1,000,000 for a movie role (in Cleopatra (1963)).

In 1963, while the highest paid American business executive earned $650,000 and President John F. Kennedy's salary was $150,000, she received at least $2.4 million.

Had a tubal ligation at age 25 and a hysterectomy when she was 36.

Admitted in an interview with Barbara Walters in 1999 that she was still willing to act but, because of her medical problems, no movie company would insure her. In addition to many other medical problems, including a benign brain tumor she had removed, she had broken her back four times. This caused her severe pain when walking or standing for long amounts of time.

In 1969, Richard Burton bought her one of the world's largest and most beautiful diamonds from the jeweler Cartier after losing an auction for the 69-carat, pear-shaped stone to the jeweler, who won with a $1-million bid. The rough diamond that would yield the prized stone weighed 244 carats and was found in 1966 at South Africa's Premier mine. Harry Winston cut and polished the diamond, which was put up for auction in 1969. Burton purchased the diamond from Cartier the next day for $1,069,000 to give to Taylor. The small premium was the result of the publicity Cartier garnered from selling the stone, then called the "Burton-Cartier Diamond," to the then "world's most famous couple." Ten years later, the twice-divorced-from-Burton Taylor herself auctioned off the "Burton-Taylor Diamond" to fund a hospital in Botswana. The last recorded sale of the Taylor-Burton was in 1979 for nearly $3,000,000 to an anonymous buyer in Saudi Arabia. The ring was the center of the classic Here's Lucy (1968) episode "Lucy Meets the Burtons," in which Lucy Carter, played by Lucille Ball, gets the famous ring stuck on her finger. The actual ring was used and the episode was the highest rated episode of the very popular series.

She had a great and loyal friendship with 1950s actor James Dean, who co-starred with her in Giant (1956). Dean suddenly died in a car accident in Cholame, California in the early fall of 1955, just before the filming of Giant was wrapping up production. It was reported that Taylor felt so distressed and devastated upon hearing the news of her good friend's tragic death that she had to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital for a few days.

In a 2007 interview with Entertainment Tonight (1981)'s Mary Hart, Taylor revealed that she had recently telephoned ex-husband Eddie Fisher and spoke to him for the first time in nearly forty years.

Ex-husband Larry Fortensky underwent five hours of brain surgery and was in a coma for six weeks after falling off a balcony on January 28, 1999. Taylor immediately notified the hospital she would personally guarantee all of his medical expenses.

Has appeared solo on the cover of PEOPLE magazine 14 times, second only to Princess Diana (as of 1996).

Her third husband Mike Todd gave her a 29-carat diamond ring during their marriage, a feat topped by fifth husband Richard Burton when he gave her the 69-carat "Burton-Cartier" (later renamed "Burton-Taylor") diamond. Fourth-husband Eddie Fisher said that a $50,000 diamond could keep Taylor happy for approximately four days.

First husband Conrad Hilton Jr. was physically abusive, which was partly caused by a drug problem.

Taylor and her husband, Mike Todd, had planned for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) to be her final film, as she intended to retire from the screen. Todd had made a verbal agreement about this with MGM, but after his death, MGM forced Taylor to make BUtterfield 8 (1960) in order to fulfill the terms of her studio contract. As a result, Taylor refused to speak to the director for the entire production, and hated the film.

Became friends with Marlon Brando while shooting Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967). Brando agreed to pick up her Best Actress Award for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) from the New York Film Critics Circle. When Brando made his appearance at the NYFCC Award ceremony at Sardi's on January 29, 1967, he berated the critics, querying why they hadn't recognized Liz before. He then flew to Dahomey, Africa, where she was shooting The Comedians (1967) with Richard Burton to personally deliver the award, a development Burton thought odd. Several years later Brando socialized with the Burtons, visiting them on their famous yacht the Kalizma, while they plied the Mediterreanean. Brando's ex-wife Anna Kashfi, in her book "Brando for Breakfast" (1979), claimed that Brando and Burton got into a fist fight aboard the yacht, probably over Liz, but nothing of the incident appears in Burton's voluminous diaries. In his diaries, Burton found Brando to be quite intelligent but believed he suffered, like Liz did, from becoming too famous too early and he believed their affinity for one another was based on this (both Liz and Marlon would later befriend Michael Jackson, another superstar-cum-legend who had become too famous too soon). Burton recognized Brando as a great actor, but he felt that he would have been more suited to silent films due to the deficiency in his voice (the famous "mumble"). As a silent film star, Burton believed Brando would have been the greatest motion picture actor ever.

Liz was a close friend of Montgomery Clift until his death in 1966. They met for the first time when Paramount decided that she had to accompany him to the premiere of The Heiress (1949) because they were both to star in the upcoming A Place in the Sun (1951). They liked each other right away. Clift used to call her "Bessie Mae". A few years later, after leaving a party at Elizabeth's house; he had a car accident that disfigured him. It was she who found him first, got into the wreck through the back door, crawled to the front seat and removed two front teeth from Clift's throat that threatened to choke him.

Was a frequent guest at the infamous "Studio 54"

In 2006, she donated $500,000 to the New Orleans AIDS Task Force to purchase mobile medical unit for AIDS sufferers in New Orleans.

As part of the 2000 New Year's Honours List, along with Julie Andrews, she was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, for her services to drama, by Queen Elizabeth II on New Year's Eve, 1999.

Appeared on Larry King Live (1985) to refute claims that she had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and was close to death. (30 May 2006)

The stories of her Oscar win for BUtterfield 8 (1960) have grown legendary. It is generally accepted as truth that she won an Oscar as a vote of sympathy, resulting from the recent death of her husband, Mike Todd, and her near-fatal illness and emergency tracheotomy to save her life. Her scar was very visible on Oscar night. Wisecracker and Rat Pack member Shirley MacLaine, who was favored to win for her role in The Apartment (1960), said afterwards; "I lost out to a tracheotomy.".

Returned to work seven months after giving birth to her daughter Liza Todd in order to begin filming Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958).

Godmother of Prince Jackson, Son of Michael Jackson and Debbie Rowe.

Auctioned off her diamond-and-emerald engagement ring from Richard Burton to raise money for an AIDS charity.

Credited Montgomery Clift with making her take acting seriously. Taylor was so impressed by Clift's incredible preparation and concentration to play a role that she actively began to seek better parts and give more dynamic performances.

Had four children. Two sons with Michael Wilding: Michael Howard (born January 6, 1953) and Christopher Edward (born February 27, 1955). Her daughter with Mike Todd, Elizabeth Frances Todd, called "Liza", was born August 6, 1957. Her adoptive daughter, Maria McKeown, (adopted 1962 with Eddie Fisher; re-adopted 1964 with Richard Burton) was born January 8, 1961.

Along with Mark Hamill and Joe Mantegna, she was one of only three actors to play both themselves and a fictional character in The Simpsons (1989). She supplied the voice of Maggie Simpson in the Season Four episode "Lisa's First Word" and portrayed herself in the Season Four episode "Krusty Gets Kancelled".

After her son Michael had renounced his American citizenship for possession of marijuana, the U.S. Congress passed a bill to block his deportation (1988).

Announced in November 2004 she had been diagnosed with congestive heart failure, but vowed to continue raising funds for AIDS charities and to build a Richard Burton Memorial Theatre in Cardiff, Wales.

Lived in BelAir house once owned by Frank Sinatra when he was married to first wife, Nancy.

She owned some of the world's most magnificent jewelry, including the 33-carat "Krupp Diamond", the Duchess of Windsor diamond brooch, the Grand Duchess of Russia emeralds, the "LaPeregina Pearl" (which was a Valentine present to her from Richard Burton), and the famous pear-shaped 69-carat "Burton-Cartier Diamond" which Burton gave her in 1969 (subsequently renamed the "Burton-Taylor Diamond.").

After the death of husband Mike Todd, she and Todd's son sued the company Ayer Lease Plan, Inc. for $5,000,000 charging negligence. They were awarded only $40,000, of which $13,000 went to attorney's fees. The remaining $27,000 went to their daughter, Frances.

Taylor and Shirley Jones are the only actresses to win Oscars for playing prostitutes in the same year: Taylor for BUtterfield 8 (1960) (Best Actress) and Jones for Elmer Gantry (1960) (Best Supporting Actress).

1976: Won the title of "Most Memorable Eyebrows" in a magazine poll. The first runner up was Lassie.

Was unable to attend the civil partnership ceremony of her friend Sir Elton John in England due to her illness. (December 2005)

Painful hip replacements in the mid-1990s largely contributed to the demise of her last marriage.

Is one of 14 Best Actress Oscar winners to have not accepted their Academy Award in person, Taylor's being for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966). The others are Katharine Hepburn, Claudette Colbert, Joan Crawford, Judy Holliday, Vivien Leigh, Anna Magnani, Ingrid Bergman, Sophia Loren, Anne Bancroft, Patricia Neal, Maggie Smith, Glenda Jackson and Ellen Burstyn.

Although Taylor was raised as a Christian Scientist, in 1959, at the age of 27, she converted to Judaism. She denied that her conversion was motivated by her marriages to Mike Todd or Eddie Fisher (both of whom were Jewish), saying that she had always been drawn to Judaism. Her conversion took place at Temple Israel of Hollywood, where she had studied Torah and Jewish history and traditions under Rabbi Max Nussbaum. It is traditional for converts to receive a Hebrew equivalent to their names upon conversion (since they wouldn't have received one shortly after birth, as those born into Judaism would have); Taylor's was Elisheba Rachel, Elisheba being the Hebrew for "Elizabeth," and Rachel being the name of Jacob's second wife in the Torah.

Robert Wagner stated, in his biography, that it was useless to wait for Elizabeth to attend breakfast because, by the time she arrived; it was time for dinner.

In February 1972, Raquel Welch upset Elizabeth when she "crashed" her birthday bash after Elizabeth specifically uninvited her.

Was unable to give evidence at Michael Jackson's trial due to illness.

The premiere of her film Father of the Bride (1950) took place two days after her real-life marriage to Conrad Hilton Jr.. The publicity surrounding the event is credited with helping to make the film so successful. The marriage lasted the duration of the 3 month European honeymoon. Irreconcilable differences were cited in the divorce court.

Appeared on the cover of Life magazine a record 14 times (more than any other movie star), starting when she was just 15 years old.

Got Sharon Tate fired as an extra from The Sandpiper (1965) in 1964 because she didn't want fans comparing the looks and youth of the two.

Disliked it when people referred to her by the nickname "Liz".

Michael Jackson's music video "Leave Me Alone" (from his 1987 album Bad) was created as tribute for Elizabeth Taylor, taking several pieces of footage of Taylor from her most famous movies, mixing it using the CGI technology that existed at that time.

Close friend Colin Farrell read Gerard Manley Hopkins' poem "The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo" aloud before Taylor was laid to rest at Forest Lawn cemetery in Glendale (CA).

Eddie Fisher married her 3½ hours after divorcing Debbie Reynolds.

Was a heavy smoker from ages 18 to 58, usually two packs a day. She finally quit at her physician's recommendation following a severe bout with pneumonia in 1990.

Received a $500,000 divorce settlement from Conrad Hilton Jr. in 1951.

Taylor underwent more than 40 operations during her lifetime and was hospitalized at least 100 times. She reportedly told doctors in 2010 that she didn't want any more life-saving surgeries despite being in daily pain.