The Most Beautiful Woman in the World: The Obsessions, Passions, and Courage of Elizabeth Taylor

by Ellis Amburn

Ellis Amburn's magnificent biography of the Academy Award-winning actress and legendary beauty captures the unparalleled Elizabeth in all her tragedy and splendor—her tumultuous loves, her doomed affections, her shocking excesses, her courage, and her inimitable style. Filled with stunning revelations about the men in her life—Burton, Clift, Hilton, Dean, Fisher—it is a glorious celebration of the turbulent life of a brilliant star that none in Hollywood or heaven could ever outshine.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Film

592 pages, ebook

First published May 1, 2000

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elizabeth Taylor was a BOSS BITCH!

Elizabeth Taylor lived more lives before she was 30 than most people ever would, even if they lived to 1000.

She was an abused child.
She was a child star
She was a teen bride
She was on her second marriage by age 20
She was an abused wife
She was an alcoholic
She was drug addict
She was a mother(both natural & adoptive)
She was a widow
She was homewrecker
She was an Oscar winner 2x(her 3rd was an honorary one)
She was denounced by the media & the Pope
She was an activist
She was a survivor

Elizabeth Taylor survived everything possible and even in her final days she went out fighting. Its safe to say that without Elizabeth Taylor America and world would have continued to ignore the AIDS epidemic. She turned it from being called "the gay disease" to being treated like the humanitarian cause that it is today.

Elizabeth Taylor was ahead of her time. She fought to be paid what she was worth. She never let anyone else's opinions effect her. She bravely fought to overcome a decades long addiction to pain pills and alcohol. She let people know it was okay to seek help.

Elizabeth Taylor wasn't perfect but that's why she's loved by so many people of all ages.

Elizabeth Taylor was a true original.

A must read!

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely pro Elizabeth, but not entirely blind to her faults, this book told me much I did not know about her.

[Dona Krueger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I tried to imagine myself as this little girl - then the captivating creature she became and realized there was no way to understand Elizabeth. Her incredible nned for admiration - her legions of lovers,drugs, alcohol, husbands and expectations. Then her tireless work for AIDS. Seeing her in
"Cat on a hot tin Roof" she is undeniably one of the most beautiful women in the world - and in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf" that to me, is Elizabeth Taylor. I would like to have met her and talked to her because in reading this book, there must have been something else that drew people besides the beautiful fascade with which she was born.

[Renee Kujawski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was surprised - didn't know much about her. Sounds like this author is reputable. Now I'd like to read more about her.

[Belinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well researched, interesting book on Elizabeth Taylor. Her beauty was only skin deep.

[Ashanti Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book, especially Amburn’s dichotomy of loving asexual relationships and loveless sexual ones. Thank you, I can relate. Elizabeth’s relationship in Montgomery Clift is so beautifully written, I could just cry. Prince Charming with sincerity, for a girl is a Gay man…a unicorn. However, to no fault of the author, I don’t believe Ms. Taylor struggled much for roles like Bette Davis and Joan Crawford did. Davis and Crawford really had to reinvent themselves as they got older but Taylor keep right on chugging and gracefully moved on to the licensing her image to keep her coffers filled, which doesn’t make you feel sorry for her. Beauty has its own problems as Amburn clearly states through Taylor’s relationships, but one thing is for sure; this world is the survival of the pretties and the book proves it. Elizabeth Taylor may have had to worry about being used, but she never had to stress over maintaining a roof over her head or food on her table.

[C.A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm...I don't know about the "courage" part.... it doesn't sound very couragous to attemp sucide several times and to leave....uh, I think I am on the 4th husband and I am not even half way through the book.
I watched "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" and "A place in the Sun" almost back to back so I had to read this bio that I have had laying around for ages.
I don't realize that Hollywood was so full of drugs, sex (mostly gay it seems) and such in the 40's and 50's. This book just seems like to much drama and to many messed up families. Someone needed to give Taylor a good smack, not another bottle.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a life! I enjoy biographies, but tend to read about 19th century robber-barons. I loved reading about Taylor's life. I knew she had a history of tragedy and alcoholism, but had no idea how physically frail she was. The book itself is well-written and enjoyable. However the scholar in me was annoyed by the lack of primary sources and interviews. The author told Taylor's story by weaving together published material and other celebrity biographies. Pretty shabby.

[Jessica T. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't really care for this at all... my summary- everyone was a homosexual.. Elizabeth Taylor always looked sexy and trim.. she drank too much and ended up in the hospital where they prescribed her pain pills (which she abused)... P.S. she will steal your husband.

[Aly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elizabeth Taylor has long been someone I've looked up to. She's more than a woman who was married almost 10 times, she's a survivor and that's what drew me to her. This was in my opinion the best bio out there about her and I've read a few

[Diane Raitanen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great summertime reading! It is a bit dated now - but still gives a complete history of Elizabeth up until 2000. It showed her in a full 360 perspective, with the good along with the bad parts of her life. She did a lot of good for AIDS research and was very sympathetic to the homosexual community. Also she was a diva, extravagant, overbearing and selfish with her lovers, of which, there were many! I love reading about these uninhibited, voracious, passionate women! I think the author did a good job of researching and portraying the whole woman.

[Michelle Mccrary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even though the book had an odd, almost incomplete ending, it was pretty interesting to see how Elizabeth Taylor helped usher in the economy of the big budget movie star salary. It was also sad to see how many talented actors were trapped in the "celluiloid closet" and how it ruined their lives in some cases. I wanted to know more about Michael Jackson and Taylor-there wasn't enough of that. Great beach read.

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING: 3.5 STARS
(Review Not on Blog)

Since I have been into classic Hollywood, I have been a fan of Elizabeth Taylor's work as an actress and been interested in her life. This was my first biography of Elizabeth Taylor and it was a great insight inside the super gorgeous star. I was surprised to learn that she stood by Rock Hudson when he was diagnosed with HIV during the AIDS hysteria. Her generousity, search for love, vulnerability and diva-ness makes me want to read more about her.

[Maxtonio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, but way too much sex stuff. Did I really need to know what someone thought of Montgomery Clift's foreskin? Although I had always liked Elizabeth Taylor, after reading this book, she appears to be someone totally immersed in herself and concerned only with her own appetites, from sex to drugs to food.

[Evan · Rating 1 out of 5]

How much credibility can you lend to an author who refers to Fred Zinnemann as "Fred Zimmerman"? I abandoned the book after 90 pages or so. It reads like a compilation of tabloids instead of a film bio. Liz Taylor was a deeper person, and far more talented and consumed with her craft, than Ellis cares to explore.

[Roxanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow! I don't know how this woman had time for kids. She was too busy swearing, drinking and having sex. Very entertaining, but can't she her life is one I would be proud of. I guess when you are a child star you have a lot of "garbage" to work through. This woman was both blessed and cursed.

[Cindy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was well researched but the author seems compelled to put as many factoids in as possible even when they are about secondary or tertiary people in Elizabeth's life. Therefore the pace seems slow and takes a life of incredible drama and renders it dry and somewhat boring.

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super gossipy, long book about Elizabeth Taylor. This is one of those books you're a bit ashamed to have read but enjoyed while you were doing it. The updated ending seemed to have been hastily done and jumped around everywhere.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read, Dame Elizabeth sure had a full life of many wild & crazy experiences.

[Jeannie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ugh...found it at the hotel pool. It was tawdry and fascinating and I couldn't look away. Vintage Hollywood history though if you are interested in that kind of thing...

[Elvis2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very interesting book so much. Elizabeth was incredibly spoiled, crude, messed up, alcoholic, demanding, and fascinating. She was very sheltered and confused knock down drag out fights with love. It appears that most of her husbands used her to advance their own careers. Mike Todd. Burton. Fisher. Possibly the most despicable of them was John Warner, who, when in college, made a list of the richest girls on campus and landed Catherine Mellon before zeroing in on Elizabeth. My problem with the book is the inexcusable lack of research and some glaring mistakes. They make me wonder how much of the book is accurate.

First of all, Aileen Getty is not dead. Ellis Amburn killed her off twice in the book. In fact, last year she bought Brad Pitt's estate for 30+ million dollars.

Secondly, and this mishmash is something I have a glancing connection to, has to do with the burial of Mike Todd. Amburn states that Todd is buried in the Jewish Waldheim Cemetery in Zurich, Illinois. There is no Zurich, Illinois, and that cemetery is in Forest Park. There is, however, a Lake Zurich, Illinois, which Elizabeth may have visited during her sad trip to the Chicago area to bury Todd and see his family. I went to school in Lake Zurich with Mike Todd's nephew, Geoff, and always thought Mike's brother lived in Long Grove but perhaps it was, in fact, Lake Zurich which is nearby.

All in all, it's a book not to be missed. Perhaps take some of it with a grain of salt.

[Vera Hanks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been a Liz watcher since I was a child. I always knew her life was scandalous, but since I admired her, I overlooked a lot of her behavior. This book goes into her life & then some. If you want to know about her excesses, this book will go into great detail. It seemed like every page, I was saying Oh My God! I recommend if you like a scandalous story & this one is true.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read..not bad.. but I felt that a lot of episodic details were taken over by eddie fisher s book I have read recently. Elizabeth Taylor will always fascinate..May She rest in peace.

[Debbie Lesar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found Elizabeth Taylors life fastinating.