Furious Love
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Vatican, vii, 36, 153
Vidal, Gore, 234, 369
Vienna, Austria, 343
cast dinner for Wagner in, 410
Viertel, Peter, 82
Vignale, Raymond, 232, 322, 358, 371
Villain (film), 300–301, 305, 317–18
V.I.P.s, The (film), 42–45, 55–56, 136, 198, 225, 263, 339, 374
Burton-Taylor affair and, 47, 50–51
casting, 53, 168
costumes, 45
director Asquith, 45, 53–54
drinking on set of, 52, 53
Elizabeth’s beauty in, 55
Elizabeth’s jewelry in, 45
reviews, 112, 113
screenplay, 43
Voight, Jon, 289
Voyage, The (film), 367, 377
Wagner (TV film), 409–10, 420, 421
Wales, 69–70, 71, 125, 133–34. See also Pontrhydyfen; Port Talbot
Burton-Taylor trips to, 125, 271, 274–75
hiraeth, 120, 146
self-identity as underdogs, 173
singing, 179
“the black dog,” 120
“Welsh hours,” 203, 279
Walker, Kathryn, 422
“Walk with Destiny, A” or “The Gathering Storm” (TV biopic), 387–88
Wallis, Hal, 73, 260
Wanger, Walter, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 26, 28, 29, 31, 35–36, 46
Warhol, Andy, 44, 134, 136, 325, 326, 375
Warner, Francis, 332, 343
Warner, Jack, 138, 150, 151, 190
Warner, John, Jr., 402–5, 410, 411
Warner, Mary, 411
Warner, Virginia, 411
Warner Bros. Studios, 137, 140, 141, 149, 151, 190, 269, 401
Waterbury, Ruth, 35, 164
Waters, John, 239
Wayne, John, 250, 289, 290, 291, 292, 297
Weintraub, Bernard, 305–6
Welch, Raquel, 329, 330, 332, 341
Welles, Orson, 47, 225
Werner, Oskar, 176
West, Mae, 369
Wexler, Haskell, 140–41
Where Eagles Dare (film), 235, 241, 250, 252, 255, 272, 298, 320, 387
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (film), 129, 136–52, 157, 185, 205, 243, 266, 269, 271, 436
Academy Awards, 152, 177, 205–7
Burton as George, 133, 138–39, 142–49, 152, 205–6
Burton-Taylor relationship reflected in, 107, 162
cinematographer, 140–41
costs of, 142
gifts after completion, 149–50
location, 141, 148–49
Nichols as director, 139–49, 173
payments to Burton and Taylor, 139
premiere, reviews, awards, 151–52, 205
reviews, 177
screenwriter, 137–38
Taylor as Martha, 136–38, 141–49, 152, 162, 168, 218
“Why This Marriage Can’t Be Saved” (Ladies Home Journal), 378
Wild Geese, The (film), 406
Wilding, Beth Clutter, 301, 319, 324
Wilding, Christopher, 5, 40, 79, 82, 115, 129–30, 171, 195, 225–26, 227, 304, 332, 376, 412, 424, 433
Wilding, Layla, 319, 324
Wilding, Michael, 2, 5, 6, 37, 81, 89, 157, 301, 304, 332, 376
Wilding, Michael Howard, 5, 79, 82, 115, 129–30, 171, 195, 225–26, 319–20, 324, 332, 376, 412, 424, 433
marriage of, 301, 303–4
Williams, Alan, 334–35
Williams, Brook, 118, 247, 248, 291, 298, 334, 359, 394, 396, 399, 402, 416, 417, 421, 428, 431
Williams, Emlyn, 19, 42, 66, 75, 98, 106, 118, 134, 162, 178, 249, 334, 399
Williams, Tennessee, 7, 76, 77, 82, 113, 211–12, 213, 214, 216, 234, 239–40, 264, 414, 436
Wilson, Michael, 113
Wilson, Robert “Bob,” 98, 100, 105, 115, 119, 141, 167, 187, 200, 208, 220, 267, 337, 344
Wilson, Sally, 141, 167
Windsor, Duke and Duchess of, vii–viii, 167, 180, 252–53, 325, 326, 327
“Prince of Wales” brooch, 252–53
Woodfall Film Productions, 241
Wyler, William, 114
Wynberg, Henry, 370–71, 374, 380–81, 385, 386–87, 388, 389, 400, 402
X, Y, and Zee or Zee & Co. (film), 301, 305, 310–12, 319
York, Michael, 120, 168, 171–72
York, Susannah, 310–12
Young, Howard, 61
Young, Terence, 383
Zahedi, Ardeshir, 402
Zanuck, Darryl F., 31, 46, 251
Zeckendorf, William, 45–46
Zeffirelli, Franco, 120, 165, 181, 232, 249, 359–60
Zinnemann, Fred, 139, 206, 207
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
First of all, we must thank Dame Elizabeth, whom “Age cannot wither, not custom stale,” as Shakespeare described Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile.
When we first embarked on this venture, we happened to mention our proposed book on “the Taylor-Burton romance” to a young theater major who had recently graduated from college. Her response stunned us: “I never knew Elizabeth Taylor was married to Tim Burton!” It also stunned Dame Elizabeth when the story was told to her. Concerned that Richard Burton’s name and legacy were in danger of being forgotten, she agreed to work with us, behind the scenes as it were, by making available a trove of some forty letters and notes written to her by Richard Burton. She also allowed us to see parts of her 1965 autobiography, Elizabeth Taylor, that she had suppressed for fear that they might hurt various people or disappoint her fans. As she has always refused to speak publicly about her affair with and marriage to Richard, we feel that this book is the closest we’ll come to her thoughts and feelings on the “great love and tumultuous passion,” in Burton’s words, that first shook the world in 1962.
We must also express our gratitude to those closest to Elizabeth Taylor. We are respecting their wishes to remain unnamed, but their help and encouragement truly made this book possible. We salute your generosity of spirit, your insights, your wisdom, your impeccable hospitality.
We also want to thank Sally Hay Burton, Richard’s widow, for her continued graciousness and many kindnesses to us. We are truly grateful for her permission to quote from Burton’s published and unpublished works, including his diaries, letters, two poems, and several short stories and essays: “A Christmas Story,” “Meeting Mrs. Jenkins,” and “Traveling with Elizabeth.” We also thank Elisabeth Bennett, archivist at the Swansea University Library, for her advice and guidance, and Melvyn Bragg, for his masterful life of Richard Burton and for permission, through Sally Hay Burton, to quote from Burton’s diaries published in Rich: The Life of Richard Burton.
We also extend our thanks to Kate Burton, who gave us her blessing, and to many who met with us and allowed themselves to be interviewed, including those who helped us during the research and writing of “A First Class Affair,” an article about the making of the Burtons’ second film together, The V.I.P.s, which originally appeared in Vanity Fair magazine. They are Gianni Bozzacchi, Sally Burton, Gabriel Byrne, Linda Christianson, John Cullum, Denis Ferrara, David Frost, Henry Grossman, Robert “Tim” Hardy, John Heyman, Waris Hussein, Gavin Lambert, Brenda Maddox, Christopher Mankiewicz, Keith McDermott, Peter Medak, Mike Nichols, Tony Palmer, Liz Smith, Victor Spinetti, Richard L. Sterne, Rod Taylor, Gore Vidal, Elisabeth Woodthorpe, Michael York, and Franco Zeffirelli.
A particularly deep bow to the most gracious of men, Graydon Carter, for the pleasure of his friendship and the privilege of working for him at Vanity Fair; the incomparable Doug Stumpf, patient friend and editor nonpareil at Vanity Fair; and his indispensable editorial assistant, Christopher Bateman. To Ann Schneider, high priestess of photography at Vanity Fair and for this book, our deep admiration for your grace under pressure. To Chris Garrett, David Friend, and Beth Kseniak at Vanity Fair, for their wisdom and many kindness. To our friend Dick Guttmann, who makes all things possible, we are forever in your debt.
Finally, where would we be without our indefatigable agents
, Justin Manask in Hollywood and David Kuhn in New York, as well as David’s able assistant, Billy Kingsland? Or our brilliant researcher, Eva Burch, and our transcriber, the poet Richard Lucyshyn? And our deepest gratitude to our editor, Rakesh Satyal, who brought his own considerable gifts to our effort, and to Jonathan Burnham, publisher of HarperCollins and a true prince of the city. Our book would have been much diminished without their enthusiasm and encouragement. It was a privilege to work with HarperCollins.
“I don’t care what you write about me,” Dame Elizabeth told us. “God knows, I’ve heard it all, just as long as you honor Richard.” We hope that in telling their story, we have honored them both.
About the Authors
SAM KASHNER, a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, is the author of three books of nonfiction and one novel, Sinatraland.
Poet and biographer NANCY SCHOENBERGER is the author of Dangerous Muse: The Life of Lady Caroline Blackwood. She directs the Creative Writing Program at the College of William and Mary.
Visit www.AuthorTracker.com for exclusive information on your favorite HarperCollins author.
ALSO BY SAM KASHNER AND NANCY SCHOENBERGER
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A Talent for Genius: The Life and Times of Oscar Levant
ALSO BY SAM KASHNER
When I Was Cool: My Life at the Jack Kerouac School
Sinatraland: A Novel
Don Quixote in America (poetry)
ALSO BY NANCY SCHOENBERGER
Dangerous Muse: The Life of Lady Caroline Blackwood
Long Like a River (poetry)
Girl on a White Porch (poetry)
Credits
Jacket photography © Henry Grossman
Jacket design by Christine Van Bree and Archie Ferguson
Copyright
FURIOUS LOVE. Copyright © 2010 by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book onscreen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
FIRST EDITION
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
EPub Edition © May 2010 ISBN: 978-0-06-199697-9
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* published with permission of Sally Hay Burton