Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age. As one of the world's most famous film stars, Taylor was recognized for her acting ability and for her glamorous lifestyle, beauty and distinctive violet eyes.
National Velvet (1944) was Taylor's first success, and she starred in Father of the Bride (1950), A Place in the Sun (1951), Giant (1956), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), and Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for BUtterfield 8 (1960), played the title role in Cleopatra (1963), and married her co-star Richard Burton. They appeared together in 11 films, including Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), for which Taylor won a second Academy Award. From the mid-1970s, she appeared less frequently in film, and made occasional appearances in television and theatre.
Her much publicized personal life included eight marriages and several life-threatening illnesses. From the mid-1980s, Taylor championed HIV and AIDS programs; she co-founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research in 1985, and the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation in 1993. She received the Presidential Citizens Medal, the Legion of Honour, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and a Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, who named her seventh on their list of the "Greatest American Screen Legends". Taylor died of congestive heart failure at the age of 79.
Academy Awards
Best Actress
Golden Globe Awards
Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama
British Academy Film Awards
Best Actress in a Leading Role
Known For
The Flintstones
(1994)
Pearl Slaghoople
Quo Vadis
(1951)
Christian Prisoner in Arena (uncredited)
Cleopatra
(1963)
Cleopatra
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(1966)
Martha
Giant
(1956)
Leslie Lynnton Benedict
A Place in the Sun
(1951)
Angela Vickers
Little Women
(1949)
Amy
BUtterfield 8
(1960)
Gloria Wandrous
Becket
(1964)
Blonde Village Woman (uncredited)
The Taming of the Shrew
(1967)
Katharina
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(1958)
Maggie
The Mirror Crack'd
(1980)
Marina Rudd
That's Entertainment!
(1974)
Self - Host / Narrator
The Last Time I Saw Paris
(1954)
Helen Ellswirth
Night Watch
(1973)
Ellen Wheeler
Life with Father
(1947)
Mary Skinner
Full Filmography
Acting
There's One Born Every Minute
(1942)
Gloria Twine
Lassie Come Home
(1943)
Priscilla
Jane Eyre
(1943)
Helen Burns
The White Cliffs of Dover
(1944)
Betsy Kenney at Age 10 (uncredited)
Twenty Years After
(1944)
(archive footage)
National Velvet
(1945)
Velvet Brown
Courage of Lassie
(1946)
Kathie Eleanor Merrick
Life with Father
(1947)
Mary Skinner
Cynthia
(1947)
Cynthia Bishop
A Date with Judy
(1948)
Carol Pringle
Julia Misbehaves
(1948)
Susan Packett
Little Women
(1949)
Amy
Conspirator
(1949)
Melinda Greyton
Father of the Bride
(1950)
Kay Banks
The Big Hangover
(1950)
Mary Belney
A Place in the Sun
(1951)
Angela Vickers
Father's Little Dividend
(1951)
Kay Dunstan
Quo Vadis
(1951)
Christian Prisoner in Arena (uncredited)
Callaway Went Thataway
(1951)
Elizabeth Taylor (uncredited)
Ivanhoe
(1952)
Rebecca
Love Is Better Than Ever
(1952)
Anastacia (Stacie) Macaboy
The Girl Who Had Everything
(1953)
Jean Latimer
Beau Brummell
(1954)
Lady Patricia Belham
Elephant Walk
(1954)
Ruth Wiley
Rhapsody
(1954)
Louise Durant
A Star Is Born World Premiere
(1954)
Self
The Last Time I Saw Paris
(1954)
Helen Ellswirth
New York Premiere Telecast 'Giant'
(1956)
Self
Giant
(1956)
Leslie Lynnton Benedict
Operation Raintree
(1957)
Self
Raintree County
(1957)
Susanna Drake Shawnessy
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
(1958)
Maggie
Suddenly, Last Summer
(1959)
Catherine Holly
BUtterfield 8
(1960)
Gloria Wandrous
Scent of Mystery
(1960)
Woman of Mystery
The V.I.P.s
(1963)
Frances Andros
Cleopatra
(1963)
Cleopatra
Elizabeth Taylor in London
(1963)
Herself
Becket
(1964)
Blonde Village Woman (uncredited)
On the Trail of the Iguana
(1964)
Self
The Sandpiper
(1965)
Laura Reynolds
A Statue for 'The Sandpiper'
(1965)
Self
The Big Sur
(1965)
Self
The Love Goddesses
(1965)
(archive footage)
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(1966)
Martha
The Comedians
(1967)
Martha Pineda
The Comedians in Africa
(1967)
Self (uncredited)
Doctor Faustus
(1967)
Helen of Troy
The Taming of the Shrew
(1967)
Katharina
Reflections in a Golden Eye
(1967)
Leonora Penderton
Boom!
(1968)
Flora 'Sissy' Goforth
Secret Ceremony
(1968)
Leonora
Around the World of Mike Todd
(1968)
Self
On Location: Where Eagles Dare
(1968)
Self (uncredited)
Anne of the Thousand Days
(1969)
Masked Courtesan (uncredited)
The Only Game in Town
(1970)
Fran Walker
Zee and Co.
(1971)
Zee Blakeley
Hammersmith Is Out
(1972)
Jimmie Jean Jackson
Under Milk Wood
(1972)
Rosie Probert
Hollywood: The Dream Factory
(1972)
Self (archive footage)
Night Watch
(1973)
Ellen Wheeler
Ash Wednesday
(1973)
Barbara Sawyer
Identikit
(1974)
Lise
That's Entertainment!
(1974)
Self - Host / Narrator
Elizabeth Taylor: An Intimate Portrait
(1975)
Self
The Blue Bird
(1976)
Queen of Light / Mother / Witch / Maternal Love
TVTV Looks at the Oscars
(1976)
Self
Victory at Entebbe
(1976)
Edra Vilnofsky
That's Entertainment, Part II
(1976)
(archive footage)
A Little Night Music
(1977)
Desiree Armfeldt
Return Engagement
(1978)
Dr. Emily Loomis
A Death in Canaan
(1978)
Self (voice) (uncredited)
Winter Kills
(1979)
Lola Comante (uncredited)
The Mirror Crack'd
(1980)
Marina Rudd
Night of 100 Stars
(1982)
Self
Genocide
(1982)
Narrator (voice)
Between Friends
(1983)
Deborah Shapiro
Hollywood Out-takes and Rare Footage
(1983)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Notre Dame de la Croisette
(1983)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Malice in Wonderland
(1985)
Louella Parsons
Hollywood's Funniest All-Star Bloopers
(1985)
Self (archive footage)
George Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey
(1985)
Self (archive footage)
There Must Be a Pony
(1986)
Marguerite Sydney
Super Duper Bloopers
(1986)
Herself
The Spencer Tracy Legacy: A Tribute by Katharine Hepburn
(1986)
Self
Poker Alice
(1987)
Alice Moffit
Montgomery Clift: The Hidden Star
(1987)
Self (archive footage)
Young Toscanini
(1988)
Nadina Bulichoff
In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton
(1988)
Self (Archive Footage)
Michael Jackson: The Legend Continues
(1988)
Self
Happy Birthday, Bob: 50 Stars Salute Your 50 Years with NBC
(1988)
Self (archive footage)
Sweet Bird of Youth
(1989)
Alexandra Del Lago
Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt
(1989)
Self - Introduction Speaker
John Huston: The Man, the Movies, the Maverick
(1989)
Self (archive footage)
Marilyn: Something's Got to Give
(1990)
Self (archive footage)
The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
(1992)
Self
Audrey Hepburn: Remembered
(1993)
Self
That's Entertainment! III
(1994)
(archive footage)
The Flintstones
(1994)
Pearl Slaghoople
The Jackson Family Honors
(1994)
Self
How to Be Absolutely Fabulous
(1995)
Self
Roger Moore: A Matter Of Class
(1995)
Self (archive footage)
Return to 'Giant'
(1996)
Self (archive footage)
Happy Birthday Elizabeth: A Celebration of Life
(1997)
Elizabeth Taylor: A Musical Celebration
(2000)
Self
George Stevens and His Place In The Sun
(2001)
Self
Michael Jackson: 30th Anniversary Celebration
(2001)
Self
AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Barbra Streisand
(2001)
Self
Cleopatra: The Film That Changed Hollywood
(2001)
Self (archive footage)
These Old Broads
(2001)
Beryl Mason
Edith Head: The Paramount Years
(2002)
(archive footage)
Searching for Debra Winger
(2002)
Self (uncredited)
Michael Jackson's Private Home Movies
(2003)
Self (archive footage)
A Letter To True
(2004)
Self (archive footage)
Judy Garland: By Myself
(2004)
Self (archive footage)
Waking Sleeping Beauty
(2009)
Self (archive footage)
Moonwalking: The True Story of Michael Jackson - Uncensored
(2009)
Self (archive footage)
Smash His Camera
(2010)
Self (archive footage)
Michael Jackson: The Inside Story - What Killed the King of Pop?
(2010)
Self (archive footage)
Classic TV Bloopers Uncensored
(2011)
Herself
And the Oscar Goes To...
(2014)
Self (archive footage)
The End of a Beautiful Epoch
(2015)
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Children of 'Giant'
(2015)
Self (archive footage)
Chavela
(2017)
Herself (archive footage)
Sword-and-Sandal
(2019)
Self (archive footage)
Charles Bronson: The Spirit of Masculinity
(2020)
Self (archive footage)
Rat Pack
(2022)
Self (archive footage)
Paul Newman: The Restless
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
AFI Life Achievement Award: 50th Anniversary Special
(2023)
Self (archive footage)
Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes
(2024)
Self (archive footage)
Production