RIP Liz Taylor

shockey · Mar 23, 2011

NickMordo said:

qtlaw said:

She was a true movie star at her peak which was befuddling to a boy of 12.

Sadly, yes for under 30 crowd, she'll be more known for being Michael Jackson's confidant than Cleopatra. Yes, if that was made today we'd be getting "There goes the lovebirds leaving Starbucks!"
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Some of you "old" guys are moronic sometimes. I just said three posts ago that I'm under 30, know who Liz Taylor was, and I think Raquel Welch was much more of a beauty -- and is still beautiful today. Taylor looked like a pile of goo in the 90's.

Not every young person is an idiot. Sorry.
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not every one. nor are those who don't know who liz was an 'idiot.' but everyone's 'relevance' expires at some point. unless you're a film buff, why would it be hard to believe most -- not all -- folks under 30 know who liz taylor was? i may be wrong, but do kids study 'movie stars' in school now?

don't take these posts so personally....

qtlaw · Mar 23, 2011

shockey said:

NickMordo said:

qtlaw said:

She was a true movie star at her peak which was befuddling to a boy of 12.

Sadly, yes for under 30 crowd, she'll be more known for being Michael Jackson's confidant than Cleopatra. Yes, if that was made today we'd be getting "There goes the lovebirds leaving Starbucks!"
Click to expand...

Some of you "old" guys are moronic sometimes. I just said three posts ago that I'm under 30, know who Liz Taylor was, and I think Raquel Welch was much more of a beauty -- and is still beautiful today. Taylor looked like a pile of goo in the 90's.

Not every young person is an idiot. Sorry.
Click to expand...

not every one. nor are those who don't know who liz was an 'idiot.' but everyone's 'relevance' expires at some point. unless you're a film buff, why would it be hard to believe most -- not all -- folks under 30 know who liz taylor was? i may be wrong, but do kids study 'movie stars' in school now?

don't take these posts so personally....
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Ditto, not calling anyone an idiot.

Bob Slydell · Mar 23, 2011

RIP. She was mega-hot back in the day. And a terrific actress as well, obviously.

But this always makes me laugh.

Great story TigerVols. Also, great humanitarian, I hope they focus on that as much as her 12,000 marriages.

Pilot · Mar 23, 2011

TigerVols said:

During the height of the first Michael Jackson sex scandal, MJ was in Singapore on tour, and his birthday was approaching. I got a call at 5 a.m. from an editor and was told I needed to drop by the office and get $10K in cash and then get to LAX and get myself a first-class ticket on the next Singapore Airlines flight to Singapore. When I got to LAX and discovered the TV remote trucks, I quickly learned why I was given this assignment: Liz Taylor was on the flight.

So I bought the last first class ticket -- 1 way, and I had no luggage! (Can you imagine trying to do that in post-9/11 world?). I quickly discovered that the flight's first-class deck contained La Liz, her new hubby, Larry Fortensky, her bodyguard fresh from the Israeli secret service, 3 undercover paparazzi that I recognized, a producer from A Current Affair and another reporter. Shortly after I settled into my seat and started to sip on my first of many glasses of Veuve Cliquot, the pilot came to me and the other reporter and escorted us off the plane. "I'm sorry, Mr. TV, but there's been a mix-up and your seat was pre-sold."

Long story short, I threw a fit and to the credit of Singapore Airlines, the American VP for the airline came to the gate and told the pilot I was a paid customer and to treat me accordingly.

So once the flight was in the air Moshe, Liz's bodyguard, came to me and the other reporter and offered us a deal: Leave Liz and Larry alone during the flight, and she'll give us an interview when we land.

Naturally, we took the deal...and the next 24 hours (!) on that flight was amazing. Bottles of expensive Champagne, massages, fresh cooked French cuisine, and long story-telling with Moshe. Fun times.

All put at risk only once -- when one of the paparazzi, who had a mini-Minox camera hidden inside a bible -- walked up to the front row "to look at the map on the wall" and proceeded to take pix of La Liz in her sleeping mask and Larry curled up in her lap. Oh well, paps are paps. He got his pix, no harm, no foul.

So after spending several hours in Tokyo on a refueling stop, we eventually made it to Singapore. 24 hours spent in the plane, all told.

And as we all got up to leave, Moshe, true to his word, brought La Liz over to us for her interview. The ACA producer whipped out a camera, stuck a microphone in my hand (even though I didn't work for them), and away we went; she answered my questions for 15 minutes. How is Michael? Why are you here? Is he guilty of molestation? etc. etc. She answered them all -- so many, in fact, that I literally ran out of questions to ask her!

I ran into La Liz a few more times during the week we spent in Singapore. Saw Michael a few times (including when he walked through the lobby of the legendary Raffles Hotel leading a pack of Orangoutangs by the hand) and had a few cocktails with Moshe. A few years later I had to race to her hospital room the morning of the big Northridge quake, but that's another story for another day.

The flight remains one of my favorite assignments ever.

RIP, La Liz.
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Honestly, there were times in this my bullshit detector went off. That probably says a lot more about my experiences in journalism travel ("Hey, we booked you the Motel 6 in the shitty part of town!") compared to yours.

Incredible story.

Steak Snabler · Mar 23, 2011

TheSportsPredictor said:

RIP NYT Liz Taylor obit writer -- six years ago:

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/03/rip_new_york_times_elizabeth_taylor_obit_writer.php
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That's awesome. As I recall, something similar happened with either Bob Hope or George Burns.

TigerVols · Mar 23, 2011

Pilot said:

TigerVols said:

The flight remains one of my favorite assignments ever.

RIP, La Liz.
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Honestly, there were times in this my bullshit detector went off. That probably says a lot more about my experiences in journalism travel ("Hey, we booked you the Motel 6 in the shitty part of town!") compared to yours.

Incredible story.
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I was just telling my mom the story (again) and she did make one correction...it wasn't A Current Affair. We think it might have been Hard Copy.

Everything else is accurate and she has a Xerox photo of me with a microphone in front of Liz on the plane to prove it!

CarltonBanks · Mar 23, 2011

She was a stone-cold hottie back in the day. Also loves her in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woof. One of the greats.

RIP

cyclingwriter · Mar 23, 2011

RIP Elizabeth (Hilton Wilding Todd Fisher Burton Burton Warner Fortensky) Taylor

BNWriter · Mar 23, 2011

Another legend gone. RIP.

A bit of trivia I heard on the radio this morning: Liz died on March 23 -- 53 years to the day that husband & Producer Michael Todd was killed in a plane crash.

playthrough · Mar 23, 2011

BNWriter said:

Another legend gone. RIP.

A bit of trivia I heard on the radio this morning: Liz died on March 23 -- 53 years to the day that husband & Producer Michael Todd was killed in a plane crash.
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Wonder what that's like when you get to heaven and there's all those spouses. Todd should be at the front of the line, really.

Mizzougrad96 · Mar 23, 2011

This is the second time (that I know of) in the last several years that the writer of the NYT obit had died years before it ran. I don't remember if the one who wrote Bob Hope's or someone like that, it was the case then as well.

Steak Snabler · Mar 23, 2011

Mizzougrad96 said:

This is the second time (that I know of) in the last several years that the writer of the NYT obit had died years before it ran. I don't remember if the one who wrote Bob Hope's or someone like that, it was the case then as well.
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WSJ says you are correct:

http://blogs.wSportsJournalists.com/speakeasy/2011/03/23/new-york-times-obit-writer-for-elizabeth-taylor-died-6-years-ago/?mod=google_news_blog

Other obit writers have died before their pieces were published. Times film critic Vincent Canby wrote Bob Hope’s obit but passed away in 2000. Three years later, Canby’s obit on Hope ran on Page One. “His piece was terrific, and we felt our readers would enjoy, and learn from, his last word on Hope,” McDonald said.
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RIP Liz Taylor

shockey Active Member

qtlaw Well-Known Member

Bob Slydell Active Member

Pilot Well-Known Member

Steak Snabler Well-Known Member

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CarltonBanks New Member

cyclingwriter Active Member

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RIP Liz Taylor

shockey Active Member

qtlaw Well-Known Member

Bob Slydell Active Member

Pilot Well-Known Member

Steak Snabler Well-Known Member

TigerVols Well-Known Member

CarltonBanks New Member

cyclingwriter Active Member

BNWriter Active Member

playthrough Moderator Staff Member

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