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Elizabeth: The Biography of Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor is known internationally as one of the most beautiful and talented women ever to grace the silver screen. She has won two Academy Awards and starred in over sixty films. She is just as well known for her tempestuous personal life, marrying eight times and suffering through innumerable health problems. A cultural icon, she has been written about before . . . but never like this. This moving book traces for the first time Elizabeth's journey through the dark and often lonely world of a fame unparalleled in the 1960s and 1970s, a time during which alcohol and drugs played a major part in her life. It would be with her fifth (and sixth) husband Richard Burton (with whom she made twelve movies, including Cleopatra ) that she would learn life lessons about love and loyalty that would inform the rest of her life and, finally, be the catalyst for her recovery from alcoholism in the 1980s. This book also details her philanthropic work as an AIDS activist in the 1990s as well as her stunning success as a business woman today (with a multi-million-dollar fragrance). Based on years of research, this is not just a star's biography . . . it's an unforgettable woman's story.
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First published August 1, 2006
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About the author
J. Randy Taraborrelli
25 books487 followersJ. Randy Taraborrelli is an author known for biographies of contemporary entertainers and political figures. He is a featured writer in several entertainment magazines in Canada, England, and Australia. He also appears on television as an entertainment news reporter on shows such as Entertainment Tonight, Good Morning America, Today and CBS This Morning. Taraborrelli resides in Los Angeles, California.
Taraborrelli, who has written eighteen books (including updated and expanded editions), has had fourteen of them appear on the New York Times best seller list, the most recent of which was 2014's The Hiltons - The True Story of an American Dynasty. His first best seller was Call Her Miss Ross in 1989. His 2009 biography of Marilyn Monroe - The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe - made a re-appearance on the e-books best-seller list at number two in the summer of 2012.
In November of 2012, it was announced that Reelz cable channel had optioned Taraborrelli's New York Times best-selling book, After Camelot, as a miniseries. It will be his second television miniseries, the first airing on NBC in 2000 and based on his book, Jackie, Ethel, Joan.
Through his newly formed J. Randy Taraborrelli Productions, Taraborrelli is currently developing and producing a number of television projects.
Taraborrelli, who has written eighteen books (including updated and expanded editions), has had fourteen of them appear on the New York Times best seller list, the most recent of which was 2014's The Hiltons - The True Story of an American Dynasty. His first best seller was Call Her Miss Ross in 1989. His 2009 biography of Marilyn Monroe - The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe - made a re-appearance on the e-books best-seller list at number two in the summer of 2012.
In November of 2012, it was announced that Reelz cable channel had optioned Taraborrelli's New York Times best-selling book, After Camelot, as a miniseries. It will be his second television miniseries, the first airing on NBC in 2000 and based on his book, Jackie, Ethel, Joan.
Through his newly formed J. Randy Taraborrelli Productions, Taraborrelli is currently developing and producing a number of television projects.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 145 reviews
March 18, 2009
Wow! I really enjoyed learning about Elizabeth Taylor. I'm fascinated by her lifestyle...and some parts of her I adore, like her steady determination, wry sense of humor, and willingness to fight for a cause (like AIDS).
However, as in every person, Elizabeth clearly has her flaws. I absolutely loathed reading continually about her strict anti-feminist attitude. Being someone that is fiercely feminist and tends to get angry at wives who kowtow to husbands, I was shocked. She continued to accept horrible traits of her husbands, like continued physical and emotional abuse, obsessive controlling, and even husbands using her fame to their advantage (I believe this to be true with Warner, who used her presence to gain political popularity during the first part of their marriage, and then virtually ignored her for the remainder of their marriage. I also resented the way that Elizabeth completely changed herself just to please Richard Burton! True love or not, changing your entire being to impress someone is not admirable, to say the least.
Despite my shock and irritation at such factors in Elizabeth's life, I felt that this book was supposed to be well-written. The author seems to have respect for Elizabeth, as do I, so they write accurately. However, I feel that a much more powerful book, with fewer words, could have been written. Instead of focusing on the raw, dynamic emotion of Elizabeth's life, he reports facts in a manner that I perceived to be somewhat dull. In other words, his style bored me.
I actually read this book for summer reading for school, and I'll admit that at first, I sorely regretted picking out a 400-something page book to read. However, it turned out to be worth wading through useless information for the detailed inside look at her life.
However, as in every person, Elizabeth clearly has her flaws. I absolutely loathed reading continually about her strict anti-feminist attitude. Being someone that is fiercely feminist and tends to get angry at wives who kowtow to husbands, I was shocked. She continued to accept horrible traits of her husbands, like continued physical and emotional abuse, obsessive controlling, and even husbands using her fame to their advantage (I believe this to be true with Warner, who used her presence to gain political popularity during the first part of their marriage, and then virtually ignored her for the remainder of their marriage. I also resented the way that Elizabeth completely changed herself just to please Richard Burton! True love or not, changing your entire being to impress someone is not admirable, to say the least.
Despite my shock and irritation at such factors in Elizabeth's life, I felt that this book was supposed to be well-written. The author seems to have respect for Elizabeth, as do I, so they write accurately. However, I feel that a much more powerful book, with fewer words, could have been written. Instead of focusing on the raw, dynamic emotion of Elizabeth's life, he reports facts in a manner that I perceived to be somewhat dull. In other words, his style bored me.
I actually read this book for summer reading for school, and I'll admit that at first, I sorely regretted picking out a 400-something page book to read. However, it turned out to be worth wading through useless information for the detailed inside look at her life.
January 5, 2010
I finally finished this mighty bio-tome!
Long term, I'm not much for non-fiction so I think it says a lot about the author that he kept me completely interested in Elizabeth Taylor (don't call her Liz, she doesn't like it) throughout all of it. Granted, Ms. Taylor does have quite an interesting life, eight marriages and Michael Jackson aside, so perhaps his work was laid out nicely for him.
I thought the author did a great job balancing the writing of her life, marriages, demons, movies and causes, never staying with one portion too long and often restating to remind the reader about something they read 200 pages before.
Now I have some old movies to watch...
Long term, I'm not much for non-fiction so I think it says a lot about the author that he kept me completely interested in Elizabeth Taylor (don't call her Liz, she doesn't like it) throughout all of it. Granted, Ms. Taylor does have quite an interesting life, eight marriages and Michael Jackson aside, so perhaps his work was laid out nicely for him.
I thought the author did a great job balancing the writing of her life, marriages, demons, movies and causes, never staying with one portion too long and often restating to remind the reader about something they read 200 pages before.
Now I have some old movies to watch...
March 10, 2014
This nine weeks I read Elizabeth by J. Randy Taraborrelli. I thought the book was pretty decent but it was very long. There were many boring points but at the same time there were many nail biting points when I could not stop reading. The author did a good job of providing details of her life but at the same time I felt the author gave too much information that seemed irrelevant and ended up boring me. It is very helpful if you want to learn more about Elizabeth Taylor but if you really do not want to learn about her then I do not suggest reading it because it would just be a waste of your time.
June 8, 2017
Not a bad biography. Enjoyed learning more about Elizabeth Taylor. Got a little slow at the end, but still an enjoyable read.
February 23, 2018
I think it would be pretty hard to write a boring book about Elizabeth Taylor. She was just so interesting, not to mention incredibly flawed.
The writing (or narrating in this case–I got this in audiobook form) was obviously skewed in Elizabeth’s favor, even when she clearly in the wrong. You could tell the author had a lot of affection for her and her life story. The writing was romantic without being sensational. Elizabeth was an interesting book to listen to. The three main emotions that I felt while listening was; sadness, annoyance, and, injustice.
Sadness about the way she was raised, with an overbearing stage mother, and a passive father. Her mother spent so much time trying to give Elizabeth the career that she never got, that she never had a childhood. Elizabeth spent so much time acting, that it took her a long time to understand social and romantic relationships. I felt sad about the fact that her body deteriorated so quickly that by the time she was in her fifties, she had to have both hips replaced. I was sad about the fact that she ended up having seven husbands. Perhaps if Mike Todd hadn’t died, three might have been her lucky number. But, that’s probably unlikely.
Every time Elizabeth made a glaringly bad decision when it came to her husbands, I always became annoyed at her parents, Sarah and Francis. Their marriage and the way Francis let Sarah raise Elizabeth set up a foundation that would have never ended up good. I mean, Sarah had Elizabeth’s studio find her a first date! That’s insane! The author made a point to always relate the way Elizabeth interacted with her husband’s to her parent’s marriage and how she was trying to find a man that supported her like her father never did. I still became annoyed having to her sabotage all of her marriages and live her life obsessed with Richard Burton. Even after he died, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
The feeling of injustice was again tied to Elizabeth’s childhood and husbands. After the birth of Elizabeth’s last child, it caused her body so much damage that if she became pregnant again, it would kill her. So her doctor as her current husband if he wanted her sterilized. How ridiculous that Elizabeth was never to be in control of herself and her body. Instead of her mother making all of her decisions, it was her husbands. If not her husband, then it was booze or the pills. It was very rare for Elizabeth to make decisions for herself and just herself. She eventually did so and was one of the reasons that AIDs and HIV were finally spoken in public in the 80s.
By the end of the book, the author felt that Elizabeth had finally gotten a happy ending of her own choice. Getting there took pain, two trips to rehab, a brain tumor, and, seven husbands but she got there. I would recommend this book (or audiobook) even if you have zero interest in Elizabeth Taylor. She’s too interesting to ignore.
The writing (or narrating in this case–I got this in audiobook form) was obviously skewed in Elizabeth’s favor, even when she clearly in the wrong. You could tell the author had a lot of affection for her and her life story. The writing was romantic without being sensational. Elizabeth was an interesting book to listen to. The three main emotions that I felt while listening was; sadness, annoyance, and, injustice.
Sadness about the way she was raised, with an overbearing stage mother, and a passive father. Her mother spent so much time trying to give Elizabeth the career that she never got, that she never had a childhood. Elizabeth spent so much time acting, that it took her a long time to understand social and romantic relationships. I felt sad about the fact that her body deteriorated so quickly that by the time she was in her fifties, she had to have both hips replaced. I was sad about the fact that she ended up having seven husbands. Perhaps if Mike Todd hadn’t died, three might have been her lucky number. But, that’s probably unlikely.
Every time Elizabeth made a glaringly bad decision when it came to her husbands, I always became annoyed at her parents, Sarah and Francis. Their marriage and the way Francis let Sarah raise Elizabeth set up a foundation that would have never ended up good. I mean, Sarah had Elizabeth’s studio find her a first date! That’s insane! The author made a point to always relate the way Elizabeth interacted with her husband’s to her parent’s marriage and how she was trying to find a man that supported her like her father never did. I still became annoyed having to her sabotage all of her marriages and live her life obsessed with Richard Burton. Even after he died, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
The feeling of injustice was again tied to Elizabeth’s childhood and husbands. After the birth of Elizabeth’s last child, it caused her body so much damage that if she became pregnant again, it would kill her. So her doctor as her current husband if he wanted her sterilized. How ridiculous that Elizabeth was never to be in control of herself and her body. Instead of her mother making all of her decisions, it was her husbands. If not her husband, then it was booze or the pills. It was very rare for Elizabeth to make decisions for herself and just herself. She eventually did so and was one of the reasons that AIDs and HIV were finally spoken in public in the 80s.
By the end of the book, the author felt that Elizabeth had finally gotten a happy ending of her own choice. Getting there took pain, two trips to rehab, a brain tumor, and, seven husbands but she got there. I would recommend this book (or audiobook) even if you have zero interest in Elizabeth Taylor. She’s too interesting to ignore.
June 15, 2016
Elizabeth Taylor has to be the most extravagant and willful person Hollywood has ever endorsed. And I love her for it.
This biography chronicles her life in physical and emotional ways. You get the facts and also the stories and opinions that went along with them. You laugh in amazement and wonder and think to yourself "No effing way" when you hear of some of the truly ridiculous and over the top things that she did just for the sake of glamour. You also get to see the very quiet and insecure side of the famed and beloved actress as she wrestled with her demons (Physical and psychological) and tried to find love (even if you think she went about it all wrong.) It astounded me when I found out that she was in several physically abusive relationships even if that was the norm back then. I mean she was Elizabeth Taylor for christ's sake!
As with all biographies you should take it with a little salt, but whether you believe it or not (And why wouldn't you believe it? Why would they lie?) you cannot argue that it is a very entertaining read. Laughter and anger will wash over you as you take in the life of one of the most fascinating actresses of all time. 4/5
This biography chronicles her life in physical and emotional ways. You get the facts and also the stories and opinions that went along with them. You laugh in amazement and wonder and think to yourself "No effing way" when you hear of some of the truly ridiculous and over the top things that she did just for the sake of glamour. You also get to see the very quiet and insecure side of the famed and beloved actress as she wrestled with her demons (Physical and psychological) and tried to find love (even if you think she went about it all wrong.) It astounded me when I found out that she was in several physically abusive relationships even if that was the norm back then. I mean she was Elizabeth Taylor for christ's sake!
As with all biographies you should take it with a little salt, but whether you believe it or not (And why wouldn't you believe it? Why would they lie?) you cannot argue that it is a very entertaining read. Laughter and anger will wash over you as you take in the life of one of the most fascinating actresses of all time. 4/5
June 16, 2021
Well, lady Elizabeth, if this biography is to be believed, was quite the troublemaker! I knew she rotated thought husbands like hipsters do skinny jeans, but I didn't realize she was such an unlikeable person for most of her life. Spoiled, narcissistic, and abusive, Elizabeth finally got the help she needed toward the end of her life which was nice to see. This particular biography was detailed, very detailed. Taraborrelli could have cut out about 100 pages of detail, and we would have still gotten an in-depth picture of her life. That's how biographies go, though, right? The goal is to be as accurate as possible, and the tend to be long fact dumps with little story telling, because storytelling would bend the writing toward sensationalism which a good biographer works to avoid. While dry, I did enjoy learning more about Elizabeth Taylor a sister in the chronic pain and illness community.
June 23, 2017
Fascinating look (albeit a simple one) from the first page onward. The writer's prose elegantly provides insight into not just the actress, but those close around her. The great love affair of Liz Taylor and Richard Burton is detailed and gripping. I'm not usually a reader of biographies, much less one on an arguably vapid person. But the author spins it in a way that is interesting and touching.
August 28, 2020
Il ritratto di una signora semplice e generosa, capitata per la sua straordinaria bellezza in una vita complicata. Vi era un nocciolo sano e una vena divertente in lei nonostante tutte le sue tribolazioni di salute, maltrattamenti, dipendenze e critiche - persino da parte del Vaticano. Considerava il suo mestiere un lavoro come tanti altri, ne‘ più ne‘ meno. Con alti e bassi. Cercò un compromesso tra passione e romanticismo, mai raggiunto. Fu in grado di provvedere bene alla sua famiglia allargata, e quando già matura trovò un pezzo di realtà, vi si dedicò‘ con tenacia.
E‘ notevole che l‘entrata economica più consistente e duratura della sua vita fu la creazione di un profumo. Altrettanto vero che lei ebbe l’umiltà di mettersi in discussione e di accettare l’avanzare della sua età, ormai segnata dai problemi di salute. Tutto questo non ha mai scalfito la sua leggenda cinematografica e personale. Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, questo il suo nome all‘anagrafe.
E‘ notevole che l‘entrata economica più consistente e duratura della sua vita fu la creazione di un profumo. Altrettanto vero che lei ebbe l’umiltà di mettersi in discussione e di accettare l’avanzare della sua età, ormai segnata dai problemi di salute. Tutto questo non ha mai scalfito la sua leggenda cinematografica e personale. Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, questo il suo nome all‘anagrafe.
July 12, 2019
I am reading this fantastic memoir for the second time. I could be obsessed with Elizabeth Taylor. It was said that she was the most beautifully photographed woman in the world. Her story is one of intensity in her upbringing, films, and the many loves of her life. Spurred on by her ambitious, overbearing mother, she reached world-wide success but at a high cost. Struggling to navigate my own love life, I so enjoy reading about this woman who loved truly, madly, deeply everything she touched. On the heels of any happiness she may have obtained was always the dark cloud of disappointment and tragedy. There will never be another Elizabeth Taylor.
December 22, 2020
I found the book absolutely riveting because I have been a fan of Elizabeth Taylor’s movies such as Cleopatra, Cat on a hot tin roof and Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf.
J.Randy Taraborrelli does a wonderful job in covering the life of this larger than life Hollywood legend. He write about her earlier life, the studio system, her stage mother, her many tumultuous relationships and marriages and her addiction to alcohol. There was plenty of drama going on in her colorful, glamorous and unconventional life.
The book is well researched and gives us an insight into the ‘real’ Elizabeth Taylor with her vulnerability, addictions as well as her generosity.
J.Randy Taraborrelli does a wonderful job in covering the life of this larger than life Hollywood legend. He write about her earlier life, the studio system, her stage mother, her many tumultuous relationships and marriages and her addiction to alcohol. There was plenty of drama going on in her colorful, glamorous and unconventional life.
The book is well researched and gives us an insight into the ‘real’ Elizabeth Taylor with her vulnerability, addictions as well as her generosity.
March 4, 2023
I thought this did a great job of giving a whole overview of her life. It gave some very humorous quips while keeping things realistic and sometimes mentioning very serious topics as well. About every 15 pages it was like Oh Elizabeth don't ...( knowing she's about to anyway). You really sympathize with her parents but it also makes you sympathetic at times to her there's time you wonder. I don't think she was malingering I think she had ill health and some very unfortunate accidents. She did enough harm with the drinking and pills she didn't need to break her back etc. It's an easy read if a long one because she was an interesting person and had a long interesting full life.
March 31, 2019
I thoroughly enjoyed this life story of Elizabeth Taylor. You get to really understand where she came from, her family dynamics- including her aggressive stage mom, her career, and how she came to make her "crazy" choices in life. It's very eye opening what happens and what issues occur when you do not take care of me real illness from the first signs of it. I love that we learned about her drug/alcohol abuse as well as her action for finding a cure for AIDS. This book was very enjoyable and very well written!
July 24, 2024
Wow! That was a long book. But then again, it is Elizabeth Taylor. Her marriages are a book in and of themselves, not to mention her movie career. It is very daunting to read and keep all the men straight in the mind while reading. Esp. since she married one of them twice! I was more interested in her movie career which wasn't touched on nearly as much as her personal health crises and marriages. It wasn't the best bio but I know it is dated.
If you don't care that the book is antiquated, then it might be a decent read if you have the time.
If you don't care that the book is antiquated, then it might be a decent read if you have the time.
February 2, 2025
I recommend this to all who see Hollywood starkly for what it is and have grown weary for what it is not. This book confirms the role alcohol plays in further downward spirals of once-promising talents like Richard Burton and exploited beauties like Liz. You will pity her in her rude awakenings after being a battered wife to a young man she was coerced to marry for business reasons of the studio while barely out of her teens. There is an actual scene to support this, and Taraborelli handled the receipts in ways that I seem inside the room with them, moved by all the unpleasant details .
February 13, 2025
My grandmas friend from childhood gave this to me. I haven’t seen her since I was a kid. I didn’t actually see her, she gave it to my Mimi then she gave it to me. It’s very special. My Mimi is also very into movies and celebrity like me. We flipped through the pages of her filmography and I made notes on the movies she and Joe liked. Elizabeth reminds me of my aunt, Mimi’s daughter. She loved life and opulence and marriages, more to her detriment. It’s fascinating reading about her and old Hollywood. A very emotional read for me.
November 1, 2019
I LOVE to read biographies and autobiographies and find it hard to review them. The reviews tend to reflect the person more than the book itself. With that being said, I enjoyed this book, there was a personal feel about the writing. The book was long, but I felt I got a full story including a bit of the lives of the people close to her which helped in understanding her and her life. A good read for someone interested in her complicated life.
March 9, 2025
Usually I like people - celebrities, scientists, regular people writing about their lives - better after reading about their lives. This book is an exception. I disliked Elizabeth Taylor more and more with each chapter. She had many good qualities, but she really seemed to have no regard for the damage she did as she whirled like a tornado of 'want' through people's lives. This book had its interesting parts, but on the whole it was a slog.
April 30, 2020
What can I say about this Book? Other then that I read it in 2 days & it is a very lengthy book. I could not stop reading it. I read one other book about Elizabeth that was written earlier but this one was so much better. The author kept me me hooked on seeing what happened next in her life. This is the first book I have read by J. Randy Taraborelli but I will be looking for more!
May 5, 2020
I appreciate that this bio is less about Taylor's movies than it is about her personal life. I assume the "source" thanked in the acknowledgments is her brother, given the situations that are detailed from Taylor's early life that only family members could speak on.
She isn't given a sainthood here. The author is tough on her about the things she was responsible for.
She isn't given a sainthood here. The author is tough on her about the things she was responsible for.
May 16, 2023
A hefty read on a lady (or, should I say Dame) who led a life stranger than fiction. While somewhat dated by today's standards, it's nonetheless a well researched archive of Miss Taylor's memories, and takes care not to sugarcoat her faults. As a longtime fan of Taylor's, I found this to be a decently well-rounded jaunt through the actress's life.
January 23, 2024
3.5 stars - The first half of this book was the most interesting to me, I enjoyed hearing about her childhood.
Taraborrelli obviously did extensive research, the book was full of details, at times too many. You almost need a spreadsheet to keep track of Taylors marriages. I did like learning more about her support of AIDS research. I think she was a great influence for good.
Taraborrelli obviously did extensive research, the book was full of details, at times too many. You almost need a spreadsheet to keep track of Taylors marriages. I did like learning more about her support of AIDS research. I think she was a great influence for good.
November 19, 2018
It's always nice to escape from reality in the excesses of celebrity but this biography isn't exactly that. It's interesting to read about a fairly complex figure with all the privelege in the world just as lost as the rest of us.
January 26, 2021
Tremendous! Powerful! All the superlatives related to greatness should be included when describing this book. I loved the simplistic story telling, the cast of characters as well as flow of the book from page one all the way to the end. Glad I read it. Recommended.
February 22, 2021
What a life Elizabeth Taylor, she really just wanted a childhood which was taken away from her by her mother who was so ambitious for her daughter (projecting her life through Elizabeth). Elizabeth had no idea what life, love and trust was all about. She did live a life though!!
April 27, 2021
A thorough story of Taylor's turbulent life. Lots of "inside info", but I couldn't shake the feeling that a lot of it is speculation and there's an odd condescending tone (masking as admiration) in the author's voice. But, since I love Taylor, it still was a good read.
May 26, 2022
Before reading this book I didn’t think I liked Elizabeth Taylor, however now I believe I do.
4 stars because I felt the author was rather too uncritical of his subject, but overall seemed pretty balanced.
4 stars because I felt the author was rather too uncritical of his subject, but overall seemed pretty balanced.
December 13, 2023
Probably not the best book to choose if you are interested in Elizabeth Taylor’s life story. I didn’t feel as though I knew any more about her when I finished the book. She married, divorced and starred a movies.
April 25, 2024
I learnt so much about Elizabeth Taylor reading this. And the author wasn’t afraid to share her faults, they didn’t just praise her; the book showed her from all different perspectives.
My only con - it could’ve been much shorter. On multiple occasions I lost interest and had to stop reading.
My only con - it could’ve been much shorter. On multiple occasions I lost interest and had to stop reading.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 145 reviews