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Post by OldFred on Mar 23, 2011 8:31:23 GMT -5
Elizabeth Taylor passed away. She was 79. A beautiful woman in her prime and a wonderful actress.
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Post by scousette on Mar 23, 2011 10:46:10 GMT -5
She was a stunningly beautiful woman and a wonderful actress to watch on screen. I loved her feistiness and her humanitarian efforts. RIP, Dame Elizabeth.
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Post by John S. Damm on Mar 23, 2011 11:59:05 GMT -5
Sorry to hear this news earlier this morning. I broke the news to my 82 year old senior law partner who is more vigorous than most 60 year olds. Liz Taylor was more of his generation than mine and I talked about that with my secretary who is thirty something while I am 48. ' My senior law partner remembers the beautiful, talented actress who was the child star turned to the stunning, sultry actress that every man on this Earth, straight or gay, desired. I was 18 by the end of 1980 and I remember the obese, drunken, pill-popping over-the-hill Liz Taylor who was by then famous for just being famous and all of those marriages. Her health was worse back then and I fully expected her to die in the early 1980's from obesity, alcohol, pills or a combination of all. My secretary was a child when Michael Jackson's Thriller was released and she caught MJ fever and she viewed Liz as the kindly Aunt-like figure to Michael, one of the few people who could relate to what Michael had been through. Like me, my secretary wasn't quite sure why Liz Taylor was famous because her movies meant nothing to my secretary(or me) but she had a kind view of Liz because of MJ. I guess who Liz Taylor was to you depended upon when you were aware of her and to my senior partner she was a famous, sexy movie star, to me she was the junked-up Hollywood has-been and to my younger secretary she was the famous Aunt-like friend of Michael Jackson. R.I.P. Liz, you sure deserve some peace!
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lowbasso
A Hard Day's Knight
Posts: 2,776
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Post by lowbasso on Mar 23, 2011 14:44:37 GMT -5
Sorry to hear this news earlier this morning. I broke the news to my 82 year old senior law partner who is more vigorous than most 60 year olds. Liz Taylor was more of his generation than mine and I talked about that with my secretary who is thirty something while I am 48. ' My senior law partner remembers the beautiful, talented actress who was the child star turned to the stunning, sultry actress that every man on this Earth, straight or gay, desired. I was 18 by the end of 1980 and I remember the obese, drunken, pill-popping over-the-hill Liz Taylor who was by then famous for just being famous and all of those marriages. Her health was worse back then and I fully expected her to die in the early 1980's from obesity, alcohol, pills or a combination of all. My secretary was a child when Michael Jackson's Thriller was released and she caught MJ fever and she viewed Liz as the kindly Aunt-like figure to Michael, one of the few people who could relate to what Michael had been through. Like me, my secretary wasn't quite sure why Liz Taylor was famous because her movies meant nothing to my secretary(or me) but she had a kind view of Liz because of MJ. I guess who Liz Taylor was to you depended upon when you were aware of her and to my senior partner she was a famous, sexy movie star, to me she was the junked-up Hollywood has-been and to my younger secretary she was the famous Aunt-like friend of Michael Jackson. R.I.P. Liz, you sure deserve some peace! JSD, You need to check out the following videos; 1) A Place In The Sun 2) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf 3) Cat On A Hot Tin Roof 4) Giant 5) Raintree County 6) Butterfield 8 7) Suddenly Last Summer 8)Cleopatra 9)National Velvet Any of these films will show you A) What a stunningly beautiful woman Miss Taylor was, and B) that she was one of the best actresses of her generation in some excellent films of the times.
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Post by scousette on Mar 23, 2011 15:00:38 GMT -5
That's an excellent list, lowbasso. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof...OMG.
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Post by John S. Damm on Mar 23, 2011 16:33:17 GMT -5
JSD, You need to check out the following videos; 1) A Place In The Sun 2) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf 3) Cat On A Hot Tin Roof 4) Giant 5) Raintree County 6) Butterfield 8 7) Suddenly Last Summer 8)Cleopatra 9)National Velvet Any of these films will show you A) What a stunningly beautiful woman Miss Taylor was, and B) that she was one of the best actresses of her generation in some excellent films of the times. I probably will as her death has put her back on the radar. I have heard of every one of those films but they were all before my time. I bet that my senior law partner has seen every one of those back in the day. As I say, I know that she was talented it is just that she went through that awful period in the 70's and 80's where she was a gross caricature of her former self. That was in my youth so that's how I remember her. She seemed to have her act together the past twenty years or so. That was cool.
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Post by OldFred on Mar 23, 2011 17:54:57 GMT -5
One of the funniest and most famous of episodes in the 'Here's Lucy' series.
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lowbasso
A Hard Day's Knight
Posts: 2,776
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Post by lowbasso on Mar 23, 2011 18:33:55 GMT -5
JSD, You need to check out the following videos; 1) A Place In The Sun 2) Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf 3) Cat On A Hot Tin Roof 4) Giant 5) Raintree County 6) Butterfield 8 7) Suddenly Last Summer 8)Cleopatra 9)National Velvet Any of these films will show you A) What a stunningly beautiful woman Miss Taylor was, and B) that she was one of the best actresses of her generation in some excellent films of the times. I probably will as her death has put her back on the radar. I have heard of every one of those films but they were all before my time. I bet that my senior law partner has seen every one of those back in the day. I'll bet your senior partner has seen every one of those films on TV (unfortunately the only way you can view them now) in the last 5 years! Most of Taylor's films are classics. Miles better than most of the crap that is released today. No special effects, real human dramas, many based on classic books by some of America's greatest playwrights like Tennessee Williams, who loved having Elizabeth Taylor in the film versions of his plays. She had a zest for life like few people ever get the chance to experience. I would recommend you start with "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" based on Tennessee Williams' play, with co-star Paul Newman and Burl Ives. Taylor is hotter in that film than Patti Harrison could ever dream of being! Then watch "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" for one of the best plays ever written and the movie version (with Richard Burton) was Mike Nichols first film as a director who went on to direct many well known films in the 60's, 70's and 80's, and 90's. She was one of the first and biggest (financially) champions of support for AIDS research, especially when her co-star in the movie "Giant", Rock Hudson, died of the disease early on. She suffered from poor health much of her life which left her physically compromised in her later years. Now that she is gone, we no longer have to look at the images of her from the last 15 years or so and can remember her in her prime when she was a stunning woman visually. I hope if I live to 79 years old, no one will remember me as I looked in my final years even though I am not a famous movie star!
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Post by sayne on Mar 23, 2011 23:02:13 GMT -5
There's a small family-owned Mexican restaurant a couple of miles from where I live that is really good. I was there (back in the 80s) and who was there? Liz and Larry Fortinsky. Whoa! The staff took her picture and have hung it on the wall. It's still there. Way cool, but odd.
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Post by John S. Damm on Mar 24, 2011 10:59:44 GMT -5
My problem with Liz Taylor is not only the fact that I became aware of her in her worst period(the 1970's) but also that her movies are always on AMC or TLC and I associate both stations with always showing over-blown, cheesy films from the old days. I have seen bits of her films and I see that Cleopatra now gets praise but wasn't it considered an overwrought bomb back in the day? Even though James Dean grew up not far from my town, I don't hold him in awe as most do. I find much of his work precocious and melodramatic and he was in Giant with Liz. I wish her eternal peace and I sincerely give my condolences to her family but I just cannot get into her like my elders. Give me Demi Moore any day!
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Post by sayne on Mar 24, 2011 15:43:35 GMT -5
It's funny that I have never known for sure after all these years, but isn't that a photo of Elizabeth Taylor dancing with Ringo on the White Album poster photo montage? If not, it sure looks like her, as I remember it.
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Post by scousette on Mar 24, 2011 15:50:26 GMT -5
My problem with Liz Taylor is not only the fact that I became aware of her in her worst period(the 1970's) but also that her movies are always on AMC or TLC and I associate both stations with always showing over-blown, cheesy films from the old days. I have seen bits of her films and I see that Cleopatra now gets praise but wasn't it considered an overwrought bomb back in the day? Even though James Dean grew up not far from my town, I don't hold him in awe as most do. I find much of his work precocious and melodramatic and he was in Giant with Liz. I wish her eternal peace and I sincerely give my condolences to her family but I just cannot get into her like my elders. Give me Demi Moore any day! LOL Give some of those movies listed above by lowbasso a try, John. Liz may yet replace Demi on your list of sexy women. You have to watch Cat on a Hot Tin Roof...
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Post by John S. Damm on Mar 24, 2011 16:51:36 GMT -5
It's funny that I have never known for sure after all these years, but isn't that a photo of Elizabeth Taylor dancing with Ringo on the White Album poster photo montage? If not, it sure looks like her, as I remember it. I always thought so and my dad thought so when I showed it to him(I was trying to get brownie points for The Beatles, showing the old man that the Beatles hobnobbed with the likes of movie stars from his era). My late dad liked Liz Taylor's movies especially Raintree County
. Oh man, sorry scousette; as you probably guessed my Demi Moore crack was to honk off our film purists of which you may be one(with a sense of humor though!). ;D Really though, Demi's early films were what I was watching as a younger man like "St. Elmo's Fire" or "About Last Night." I realize those have not aged nearly as well as Liz's or so you good folks tell me. I'll watch some of her films, to see why her death has so shaken a generation or two.
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lowbasso
A Hard Day's Knight
Posts: 2,776
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Post by lowbasso on Mar 24, 2011 18:38:32 GMT -5
It's funny that I have never known for sure after all these years, but isn't that a photo of Elizabeth Taylor dancing with Ringo on the White Album poster photo montage? If not, it sure looks like her, as I remember it. I always thought so and my dad thought so when I showed it to him(I was trying to get brownie points for The Beatles, showing the old man that the Beatles hobnobbed with the likes of movie stars from his era). My late dad liked Liz Taylor's movies especially Raintree County
. Oh man, sorry scousette; as you probably guessed my Demi Moore crack was to honk off our film purists of which you may be one(with a sense of humor though!). ;D Really though, Demi's early films were what I was watching as a younger man like "St. Elmo's Fire" or "About Last Night." I realize those have not aged nearly as well as Liz's or so you good folks tell me. I'll watch some of her films, to see why her death has so shaken a generation or two. Many of them will be on Turner Classic Movies in the next few days. They will be saluting Elizabeth Taylor.
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Post by sayne on Mar 24, 2011 23:29:27 GMT -5
Anyone agree with this statement:
When all is said in done on the history of cinema, with nods to Humphrey Bogart, Clint Eastwood, Robert De Niro, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, George Clooney, Henry Fonda, Harrison Ford, Jimmy Stewart, etc and Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Meryl Streep, Jane Russell, Glenn Close, Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, Greta Garbo, etc, THE leading man was Cary Grant and THE leading woman was Elizabeth Taylor?
If not, who are your two and why?
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lowbasso
A Hard Day's Knight
Posts: 2,776
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Post by lowbasso on Mar 25, 2011 14:40:39 GMT -5
Anyone agree with this statement: When all is said in done on the history of cinema, with nods to Humphrey Bogart, Clint Eastwood, Robert De Niro, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, George Clooney, Henry Fonda, Harrison Ford, Jimmy Stewart, etc and Katherine Hepburn, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Meryl Streep, Jane Russell, Glenn Close, Jane Fonda, Vanessa Redgrave, Greta Garbo, etc, THE leading man was Cary Grant and THE leading woman was Elizabeth Taylor? If not, who are your two and why? I'll play; Paul Newman (Cat On A Hot Tin Roof & Hud)and/or Robert Redford (The Natural, The Sting, & Butch Cassidy) might give Cary Grant a run for best leading man in a poll. They both could act better, IMO, than Cary Grant and they had the looks as well; albeit a little more "grittier" than Grant, who looked "too clean" in my book, and women seem to like that look (Newman/Redford)better in a man? Taylor was both stunning and a good actress, so I'll go with her as well.
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Post by scousette on Mar 25, 2011 15:20:03 GMT -5
lowbasso, I like your take on this. It would be a split decision for me as well between Newman and Redford.
Elizabeth Taylor, absolutely the quintessential leading actress.
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Post by winstonoboogie on Mar 25, 2011 19:55:13 GMT -5
I liked/like Newman and Redford as well. Humphrey Bogart, too. As for actress, I nominate Audrey Hepburn. My wife strongly believes that women were just better looking back in the 40's and 50's - not just the lighting and makeup. I respectfully disagree, but viva la difference, as the French say!
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Post by OldFred on Apr 4, 2011 12:37:55 GMT -5
To Johnny and everybody else, Turner Classic Movies will be spotlighting Elizabeth Taylor on April 10th, showing a full day of her films. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys classic films and good acting. And Johnny, I hope you'll at least sample a couple of the films, I think you might enjoy a few. This is worth firing up the old DVR.
Turner Classic Movies - Sunday, April 10th
6:00 AM Lassie Come Home (1943) Cast: Roddy McDowall, Elizabeth Taylor, Donald Crisp. Dir: Fred M. Wilcox. C-89 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format
7:30 AM National Velvet (1944) Cast: Mickey Rooney, Elizabeth Taylor, Donald Crisp. Dir: Clarence Brown. C-124 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format
10:00 AM Conspirator (1949) Cast: Robert Taylor, Elizabeth Taylor, Harold Warrender. Dir: Victor Saville. BW-87 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format
11:30 AM Father of the Bride (1950) Cast: Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett. Dir: Vincente Minnelli. BW-93 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format
1:15 PM Father's Little Dividend (1951) Cast: Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Bennett. Dir: Vincente Minnelli. BW-81 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format
2:45 PM Raintree County (1957) Cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift, Eva Marie Saint. Dir: Edward Dmytryk. C-173 mins, TV-PG,
6:00 PM Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) Cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Burl Ives. Dir: Richard Brooks. C-108 mins, TV-PG,
8:00 PM Butterfield 8 (1960) Cast: Elizabeth Taylor, Laurence Harvey, Eddie Fisher. Dir: Daniel Mann. C-109 mins, TV-PG,
10:00 PM Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) Cast: Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Sandy Dennis. Dir: Mike Nichols. BW-131 mins, TV-MA,
12:30 AM Giant (1956) Cast: James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson. Dir: George Stevens. BW-201 mins, TV-PG,
4:00 AM Ivanhoe (1952) Cast: Robert Taylor, Elizabeth Taylor, Joan Fontaine. Dir: Richard Thorpe. C-107 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format
All times Eastern Standard Time.
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