Editing Elizabeth Taylor (section)

==Acting career==
{{see also|Elizabeth Taylor filmography|List of awards and nominations received by Elizabeth Taylor}}

===1941–1949: Early roles and teenage stardom===
In California, Taylor's mother was frequently told that her daughter should audition for films.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|27–30}} Taylor's eyes in particular drew attention; they were blue, to the extent of appearing violet, and were rimmed by dark double eyelashes caused by [[Distichiasis|a genetic mutation]].<ref name="palmer20110325">{{cite web |url=https://slate.com/culture/2011/03/elizabeth-taylor-beautiful-mutant.html |title=Elizabeth Taylor: Beautiful Mutant |access-date=July 12, 2021 |date=March 25, 2011 |work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |first=Palmer |last=Roxanne}}</ref><ref name=Walker />{{rp|9}} Sara was initially opposed to Taylor appearing in films, but after the outbreak of war in Europe made return there unlikely, she began to view the film industry as a way of assimilating to American society.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|27–30}} Francis Taylor's Beverly Hills gallery had gained clients from the film industry soon after opening, helped by the endorsement of gossip columnist [[Hedda Hopper]], a friend of the Cazalets.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|27–31}} Through a client and a school friend's father, Taylor auditioned for both [[Universal Pictures]] and [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer]] in early 1941.<ref name="Kashner">{{cite book |last1=Kashner |first1=Sam |last2=Schoenberger |first2=Nancy |title=Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century |year=2010 |publisher=JR Books| isbn=978-1-907532-22-1}}</ref>{{rp|27–37}} Both studios offered Taylor contracts, and Sara Taylor chose to accept Universal's offer.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|27–37}}

Taylor began her contract in April 1941 and was cast in a small role in ''[[There's One Born Every Minute]]'' (1942).<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|27–37}} She did not receive other roles, and her contract was terminated after a year.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|27–37}} Universal's casting director explained her dislike of Taylor, stating that "the kid has nothing ... her eyes are too old, she doesn't have the face of a child".<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|27–37}} Biographer [[Alexander Walker (critic)|Alexander Walker]] agrees that Taylor looked different from the child stars of the era, such as [[Shirley Temple]] and [[Judy Garland]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|32}} Taylor later said that, "apparently, I used to frighten grown ups, because I was totally direct".<ref name="lostinter">{{cite magazine |first=Jonathan |last=Cott |title=Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Interview |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-news/elizabeth-taylor-the-lost-interview-74065/?print=true |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=March 29, 2011 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

Taylor received another opportunity in late 1942, when her father's acquaintance, MGM producer [[Samuel Marx]], arranged for her to audition for a minor role in ''[[Lassie Come Home]]'' (1943), which required a child actress with an English accent.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|22–23,27–37}} After a trial contract of three months, she was given a standard seven-year contract in January 1943.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|38–41}} Following ''Lassie'', she appeared in minor uncredited roles in two other films set in England – ''[[Jane Eyre (1943 film)|Jane Eyre]]'' (1943) playing Helen Burns, and ''[[The White Cliffs of Dover (film)|The White Cliffs of Dover]]'' (1944).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|38–41}}

[[File:National-Velvet-1.jpg|thumb|right|[[Mickey Rooney]] and Taylor in ''National Velvet'' (1944), her first major film role]] Taylor was cast in her first starring role at the age of 12, when she was chosen to play a girl who wants to compete as a jockey in the exclusively male [[Grand National]] in [[National Velvet (film)|''National Velvet'']].<ref name=Walker />{{rp|40–47}} She later called it "the most exciting film" of her career.<ref name="Gussow2">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/24/movies/elizabeth-taylor-obituary.html |title=Elizabeth Taylor, 1932–2011: A Lustrous Pinnacle of Hollywood Glamour |access-date=December 1, 2018 |last=Gussow |first=Mel |date=March 23, 2011 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> Since 1937, MGM had been looking for a suitable actress with a British accent and the ability to ride horses. They decided on Taylor at the recommendation of ''White Cliffs'' director [[Clarence Brown]], who knew she had the necessary skills.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|40–47}} At that time Taylor was deemed too short for the role, so filming was delayed several months in order for her to grow an inch or two. In the interim Taylor spent her time practicing her horseback riding.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|40–47}}

In MGM's effort developing Taylor into a film star, they required her to wear braces to straighten her teeth, and had two of her baby teeth pulled out.<ref name="Walker" />{{rp|40–47}} The studio also wanted to dye her hair, change the shape of her eyebrows, and proposed that she use the screen name "Virginia", but Taylor and her parents refused.<ref name="lostinter" />

''[[National Velvet (film)|National Velvet]]'' became a box-office success upon its release on Christmas 1944.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|40–47}} [[Bosley Crowther]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' stated that "her whole manner in this picture is one of refreshing grace",<ref>{{cite web |first=Bosley |last=Crowther |title='National Velvet,' Color Film, With Rooney and Elizabeth Taylor, at Music Hall – 'Tall in Saddle' Comes to the Palace |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1944/12/15/archives/national-velvet-color-film-with-rooney-and-elizabeth-taylor-at.html |work=The New York Times |date=December 15, 1944 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> while [[James Agee]] of ''[[The Nation]]'' wrote that she "is rapturously beautiful... I hardly know or care whether she can act or not."<ref name=":2">{{cite magazine |first=James |last=Agee |title=Elizabeth Taylor in 'National Velvet' |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/elizabeth-taylor-national-velvet/ |magazine=[[The Nation]] |date=March 24, 2011 |access-date=December 1, 2018 |archive-date=April 13, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190413010239/https://www.thenation.com/article/elizabeth-taylor-national-velvet/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Taylor later stated that her childhood ended when she became a star, as MGM started to control every aspect of her life.<ref name="lostinter" /><ref name="lifemag">{{cite magazine |first=Richard |last=Meryman |title=I refuse to cure my public image |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kFEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA74 |magazine=[[Life (magazine)|Life]] |date=December 18, 1964 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref><ref name=Walker />{{rp|48–51}} She described the studio as a "big extended factory", where she was required to adhere to a strict daily schedule.<ref name="lostinter" /> Her days were spent attending school, and filming at the studio lot. In the evenings, Taylor took dancing and singing classes, and practiced the following day's scenes.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|48–51}} Following the success of ''[[National Velvet (film)|National Velvet]]'', MGM gave Taylor a new seven-year contract with a weekly salary of $750. They cast her in a minor role in the third film of the Lassie series, ''[[Courage of Lassie]]'' (1946).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|51–58}} MGM also published a book of Taylor's writings about her pet chipmunk, ''Nibbles and Me'' (1946), and had paper dolls and coloring books made in her likeness.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|51–58}}

[[File:Elizabeth Taylor and Jane Powell in A Date with Judy.jpg|thumb|left|Taylor and [[Jane Powell]] in ''[[A Date with Judy (film)|A Date with Judy]]'' (1948)]] When Taylor turned 15 in 1947, MGM began to cultivate a more mature public image for her by organizing photo shoots and interviews that portrayed her as a "normal" teenager attending parties and going on dates.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|56–57; 65–74}} Film magazines and gossip columnists also began comparing her to older actresses such as [[Ava Gardner]] and [[Lana Turner]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|71}} ''[[Life (magazine)|Life]]'' called her "Hollywood's most accomplished junior actress" for her two film roles that year.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp| 69}} In the critically panned ''[[Cynthia (film)|Cynthia]]'' (1947), Taylor portrayed a frail girl who defies her over-protective parents to go to the prom; in the period film ''[[Life with Father (film)|Life with Father]]'' (1947), opposite [[William Powell]] and [[Irene Dunne]], she portrayed the love interest of a stockbroker's son.{{sfn|Gehring|2006|pp=157–158}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|58–70}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Life With Father (1947) |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/25245 |publisher=[[American Film Institute]] |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

They were followed by supporting roles as a teenaged "man-stealer" who seduces her peer's date to a high school dance in the musical ''[[A Date with Judy (film)|A Date with Judy]]'' (1948), and as a bride in the romantic comedy ''[[Julia Misbehaves]]'' (1948). This became a commercial success, grossing over $4 million in the box office.{{sfn|Troyan|1999|p=211}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|82}}

Taylor's last adolescent role was as Amy March in [[Mervyn LeRoy]]'s ''[[Little Women (1949 film)|Little Women]]'' (1949), a box-office success.{{sfn|Clark|2014|p=158}} The same year, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' featured Taylor on its cover, and called her the leader among Hollywood's next generation of stars, "a jewel of great price, a true sapphire".<ref name="time19490822">{{cite magazine | url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,800624,00.html | title=Elizabeth Taylor: Star Rising |access-date=December 7, 2018 |date=August 9, 2021 | magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]}}</ref>

===1950–1951: Transition to adult roles===
[[File:Father of the bride 1950 promo.jpg|left|thumb|upright|With [[Spencer Tracy]] in ''[[Father of the Bride (1950 film)|Father of the Bride]]'' (1950)]]

Taylor made the transition to adult roles when she turned 18 in 1950. In her first mature role, the thriller ''[[Conspirator (1949 film)|Conspirator]]'' (1949), she plays a woman who begins to suspect that her husband is a Soviet spy.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|75–83}} Taylor had been only 16 at the time of its filming, but its release was delayed until March 1950, as MGM disliked it and feared it could cause diplomatic problems.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|75–83}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Conspirator (1950) |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/27626 |publisher=American Film Institute |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Taylor's second film of 1950 was the comedy ''[[The Big Hangover]]'' (1950), co-starring [[Van Johnson]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The Big Hangover |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/26224 |publisher=American Film Institute |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> It was released in May. That same month, Taylor married hotel-chain heir [[Conrad Hilton Jr.|Conrad "Nicky" Hilton Jr.]] in a highly publicized ceremony.<ref name="Walker" />{{rp|99–105}} The event was organized by MGM, and used as part of the publicity campaign for Taylor's next film, [[Vincente Minnelli]]'s comedy ''[[Father of the Bride (1950 film)|Father of the Bride]]'' (1950), in which she appeared opposite [[Spencer Tracy]] and [[Joan Bennett]] as a bride preparing for her wedding.<ref name="Walker" />{{rp|99–105}} The film became a box-office success upon its release in June, grossing $6 million worldwide (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|6000000|1950}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars {{inflation/fn|US}}), and was followed by a successful sequel, ''[[Father's Little Dividend]]'' (1951), ten months later.{{sfn|Curtis|2011|pp=599–609}}

Taylor's next film release, [[George Stevens]]' ''[[A Place in the Sun (1951 film)|A Place in the Sun]]'' (1951), marked a departure from her earlier films. According to Taylor, it was the first film in which she had been asked to act, instead of simply being herself,<ref name="lifemag" /> and it brought her critical acclaim for the first time since ''National Velvet''.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|96–97}} Based on [[Theodore Dreiser]]'s novel ''[[An American Tragedy]]'' (1925), it featured Taylor as a spoiled socialite who comes between a poor factory worker ([[Montgomery Clift]]) and his pregnant girlfriend ([[Shelley Winters]]).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|91}} Stevens cast Taylor as she was "the only one ... who could create this illusion" of being "not so much a real girl as the girl on the candy-box cover, the beautiful girl in the yellow [[Cadillac]] convertible that every American boy sometime or other thinks he can marry."<ref name=Walker />{{rp|92}}{{sfn|Moss|2004|p=159}}

''A Place in the Sun'' was a critical and commercial success, grossing $3 million.{{sfnm|1a1=Capua|1y=2002|1p=72|2a1=Moss|2y=2004|2p=166}} Herb Golden of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' said that Taylor's "histrionics are of a quality so far beyond anything she has done previously, that Stevens' skilled hands on the reins must be credited with a minor miracle."<ref>{{cite web |first=Herb |last=Golden |title=A Place in the Sun |url=https://variety.com/1951/film/reviews/a-place-in-the-sun-1200417074/ |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=August 29, 1951 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> [[A.H. Weiler]] of ''The New York Times'' wrote that she gives "a shaded, tender performance, and one in which her passionate and genuine romance avoids the pathos common to young love as it sometimes comes to the screen."<ref>{{cite web|first= A.H. |last=Weiler |title=A Place in the Sun |url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=EE05E7DF173CE473BC4151DFBE66838A649EDE |work=The New York Times |date=August 29, 1951 |access-date=December 1, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124132433/https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=EE05E7DF173CE473BC4151DFBE66838A649EDE |archive-date=November 24, 2015}}</ref>

===1952–1955: Continued success at MGM===
[[File:Elizabeth Taylor - 1952 portrait.jpg | thumb|left | upright | Portrait, 1952]]

Taylor next starred in the romantic comedy ''[[Love Is Better Than Ever]]'' (1952).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|124–125}} According to Alexander Walker, MGM cast her in the "B-picture" as a reprimand for divorcing Hilton in January 1951 after only eight months of marriage, which had caused a public scandal that reflected negatively on her.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|124–125}} After completing ''Love Is Better Than Ever'', Taylor was sent to Britain to take part in the historical epic ''[[Ivanhoe (1952 film)|Ivanhoe]]'' (1952), which was one of the most expensive projects in the studio's history.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|129–132}} She was not happy about the project, finding the story superficial and her role as Rebecca too small.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|129–132}} Regardless, ''Ivanhoe'' became one of MGM's biggest commercial successes, earning $11 million in worldwide rentals.{{sfn|Stubbs|2013|p=96}}
[[File:The Last Time I Saw Paris 1.jpg|thumb|[[Van Johnson]] and Taylor in the romantic drama ''[[The Last Time I Saw Paris]]'' (1954)]]

Taylor's last film made under her old contract with MGM was ''[[The Girl Who Had Everything]]'' (1953), a remake of the [[Pre-Code Hollywood|pre-code]] drama ''[[A Free Soul]]'' (1931).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|145}} Despite her grievances with the studio, Taylor signed a new seven-year contract with MGM in the summer of 1952.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|139–143}} Although she wanted more interesting roles, the decisive factor in continuing with the studio was her financial need; she had recently married British actor [[Michael Wilding]], and was pregnant with her first child.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|139–143}} In addition to granting her a weekly salary of $4,700 (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|4700|1953}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars {{inflation/fn|US}}), MGM agreed to give the couple a loan for a house, and signed her husband for a three-year contract.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|141–143}} Due to her financial dependency, the studio now had even more control over her than previously.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|141–143}}
[[File:Elizabeth Taylor-1954.JPG|left|thumb|upright|Publicity photo, 1954]]

Taylor's first two films made under her new contract were released ten days apart in early 1954.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153}} The first was ''[[Rhapsody (film)|Rhapsody]]'', a romantic film starring her as a woman caught in a love triangle with two musicians. The second was ''[[Elephant Walk]]'', a drama in which she played a British woman struggling to adapt to life on her husband's tea plantation in [[Ceylon]]. She had been loaned to [[Paramount Pictures]] for the film after its original star, [[Vivien Leigh]], fell ill.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|148–149}}

In the fall, Taylor starred in two more film releases. ''[[Beau Brummell (1954 film)|Beau Brummell]]'' was a [[Regency era]] period film, another project in which she was cast against her will.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153–154}} Taylor disliked historical films in general, as their elaborate costumes and makeup required her to wake up earlier than usual to prepare. She later said that she gave one of the worst performances of her career in ''Beau Brummell''.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153–154}} The second film was [[Richard Brooks]]' ''[[The Last Time I Saw Paris]]'', based on [[F. Scott Fitzgerald]]'s short story. Although she had wanted to be cast in ''[[The Barefoot Contessa]]'' (1954) instead, Taylor liked the film, and later stated that it "convinced me I wanted to be an actress instead of yawning my way through parts."<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153–157}}{{sfn|Daniel|2011|pp=80–81}} While ''The Last Time I Saw Paris'' was not as profitable as many other MGM films, it garnered positive reviews.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153–157}}{{sfn|Daniel|2011|pp=80–81}} Taylor became pregnant again during the production, and had to agree to add another year to her contract to make up for the period spent on maternity leave.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|153–157}}

===1956–1960: Critical acclaim===
[[File:Taylor - Hudson - Giant.jpg|thumb|Taylor and [[Rock Hudson]] in ''[[Giant (1956 film)|Giant]]'' (1956)]]

By the mid-1950s, the American film industry was beginning to face serious competition from television, which resulted in studios producing fewer films, and focusing instead on their quality.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|158–165}} The change benefited Taylor, who finally found more challenging roles after several years of career disappointments.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|158–165}} After lobbying director George Stevens, she won the female lead role in ''[[Giant (1956 film)|Giant]]'' (1956), an epic drama about a ranching dynasty, which co-starred [[Rock Hudson]] and [[James Dean]].<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|158–165}} Its filming in [[Marfa, Texas]], was a difficult experience for Taylor, as she clashed with Stevens, who wanted to break her will to make her easier to direct, and was often ill, resulting in delays.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|158–165}}{{sfn|Moss|2004|pp=215–219}} To further complicate the production, Dean died in a car accident only days after completing filming; the grieving Taylor still had to film reaction shots to their joint scenes.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|158–166}} When ''Giant'' was released a year later, it became a box-office success, and was widely praised by critics.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|158–165}} Although not nominated for an Academy Award like her co-stars, Taylor garnered positive reviews for her performance, with ''Variety'' calling it "surprisingly clever",<ref>{{cite web |title=Giant |url=https://variety.com/1956/film/reviews/giant-2-1200418151/ |work=Variety |date=October 10, 1956 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> and <!-- Did not lose 'Manchester' until 1959. -->''[[The Guardian|The Manchester Guardian]]'' lauding her acting as "an astonishing revelation of unsuspected gifts." It named her one of the film's strongest assets.<ref>{{cite web |title=Elizabeth Taylor: How Guardian critics rated her films |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2011/mar/24/elizabeth-taylor-original-guardian-reviews |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=October 10, 1956 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

MGM reunited Taylor with Montgomery Clift in ''[[Raintree County (film)|Raintree County]]'' (1957), a [[American Civil War|Civil War]] drama which it hoped would replicate the success of ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'' (1939).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|166–177}} Taylor found her role as a mentally disturbed [[Southern belle]] fascinating, but overall disliked the film.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|166–177}} Although the film failed to become the type of success MGM had planned,{{sfnm|1a1=Hernán|1a2=Gordon|1y=2003|1p=26}} Taylor was nominated for the first time for an [[Academy Award for Best Actress]] for her performance.<ref name="oscars">{{cite web |title=Elizabeth Taylor |url=https://awardsdatabase.oscars.org/search/getresults?query=%7B%22Nominee%22%3A%22Elizabeth%20Taylor%22%2C%22Sort%22%3A%221-Nominee-Alpha%22%2C%22AwardShowNumberFrom%22%3A0%2C%22AwardShowNumberTo%22%3A0%2C%22Search%22%3A30%7D |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |access-date=January 15, 2025 }}</ref>
[[File:Cat on a Hot Tin Roof13.jpg|thumb|left|In ''[[Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958 film)|Cat on a Hot Tin Roof]]'' (1958)]]
Taylor considered her next performance as Maggie the Cat in the screen adaptation of the [[Tennessee Williams]] play ''[[Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958 film)|Cat on a Hot Tin Roof]]'' (1958) a career "high point." But it coincided with one of the most difficult periods in her personal life.<ref name="lifemag" /> After completing ''Raintree County'', she had divorced Wilding and married producer [[Mike Todd]]. She had completed only two weeks of filming in March 1958, when Todd was killed in a plane crash.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|186–194}} Although she was devastated, pressure from the studio and the knowledge that Todd had large debts led Taylor to return to work only three weeks later.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|195–203}} She later said that "in a way ... [she] became Maggie", and that acting "was the only time I could function" in the weeks after Todd's death.<ref name="lifemag" />

During the production, Taylor's personal life drew more attention when she began an affair with singer [[Eddie Fisher]], whose marriage to actress [[Debbie Reynolds]] had been idealized by the media as the union of "America's sweethearts."<ref name=Walker />{{rp|203–210}} The affair – and Fisher's subsequent divorce – changed Taylor's public image from a grieving widow to a "homewrecker". MGM used the scandal to its advantage by featuring an image of Taylor posing on a bed in a slip in the film's promotional posters.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|203–210}} ''Cat'' grossed $10 million in American cinemas alone, and made Taylor the year's second-most profitable star.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|203–210}} She received positive reviews for her performance, with Bosley Crowther of ''The New York Times'' calling her "terrific",<ref>{{cite web |first=Bosley |last=Crowther |title=The Fur Flies in 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'; Talent Galore Found in Music Hall Film Acting Does Justice to Williams Play |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1958/09/19/archives/the-fur-flies-in-cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof-talent-galore-found-in-music.html |work=The New York Times |date=September 19, 1958 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> and ''Variety'' praising her for "a well-accented, perceptive interpretation."<ref>{{cite web |title=Review: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof |url=https://variety.com/1957/film/reviews/cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof-2-1200419154/ |work=Variety |date=December 31, 1958 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Taylor was nominated for an Academy Award<ref name="oscars" /> and a [[BAFTA]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Film: Foreign Actress in 1959 |url=https://awards.bafta.org/award/1959/film/foreign-actress |publisher=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

Taylor's next film, [[Joseph L. Mankiewicz]]'s ''[[Suddenly, Last Summer (film)|Suddenly, Last Summer]]'' (1959), was another Tennessee Williams adaptation, with a screenplay by [[Gore Vidal]] and also starring [[Montgomery Clift]] and [[Katharine Hepburn]]. The independent production earned Taylor $500,000 for playing the role of a severely traumatized patient in a mental institution.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|203–210}} Although the film was a drama about mental illness, childhood traumas, and homosexuality, it was again promoted with Taylor's sex appeal; both its trailer and poster featured her in a white swimsuit. The strategy worked, as the film was a financial success.{{sfnm|1a1=Lower|1a2=Palmer|1y=2001|1p=158}} Taylor received her third Academy Award nomination<ref name="oscars" /> and her first [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama|Golden Globe for Best Actress]] for her performance.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|203–210}}

By 1959, Taylor owed one more film for MGM, which it decided should be ''[[BUtterfield 8]]'' (1960), a drama about a high-class call girl, in an adaptation of a John O'Hara [[BUtterfield 8 (novel)|1935 novel of the same name]].<ref name=Walker />{{rp|211–223}} The studio correctly calculated that Taylor's public image would make it easy for audiences to associate her with the role.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|211–223}} She hated the film for the same reason, but had no choice in the matter, although the studio agreed to her demands of filming in New York and casting Eddie Fisher in a sympathetic role.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|211–223}} As predicted, ''BUtterfield 8'' was a major commercial success, grossing $18 million in world rentals.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|224–236}} Crowther wrote that Taylor "looks like a million dollars, in mink or in negligée",<ref>{{cite web |first=Bosley |last=Crowther |title=The Screen: Elizabeth Taylor at 'Butterfield 8':Film Based on O'Hara Novel in Premiere |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1960/11/17/archives/the-screen-elizabeth-taylor-at-butterfield-8film-based-on-ohara.html |work=The New York Times |date=November 17, 1960 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> while ''Variety'' stated that she gives "a torrid, stinging portrayal with one or two brilliantly executed passages within."<ref>{{cite web |title=Butterfield 8 |url=https://variety.com/1959/film/reviews/butterfield-8-1200419732/ |work=Variety |date=December 31, 1960 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Taylor won her first Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|224–236}}

===1961–1967: ''Cleopatra'' and other collaborations with Richard Burton===
[[File:Taylor and Burton Cleopatra.jpg|thumb|left|[[Richard Burton]] as Mark Antony with Taylor as Cleopatra in ''Cleopatra'' (1963)]]
After completing her MGM contract, Taylor starred in [[20th Century-Fox]]'s ''[[Cleopatra (1963 film)|Cleopatra]]'' (1963). According to film historian Alexander Doty, this historical epic made her more famous than ever before.{{sfn|Doty|2012|p=47}} She became the first movie star to be paid $1 million for a role; Fox also granted her 10% of the film's gross profits, as well as shooting the film in [[Todd-AO]], a widescreen format for which she had inherited the rights from Mike Todd.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|10–11}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|211–223}} The film's production – characterized by costly sets and costumes, constant delays, and a scandal caused by Taylor's extramarital affair with her co-star [[Richard Burton]] – was closely followed by the media, with ''Life'' proclaiming it the "Most Talked About Movie Ever Made."<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|11–12,39,45–46, 56}} Filming began in England in 1960, but had to be halted several times because of bad weather and Taylor's ill health.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|12–13}} In March 1961, she developed nearly fatal [[pneumonia]], which necessitated a [[tracheotomy]]; one news agency erroneously reported that she had died.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|12–13}} Once she had recovered, Fox discarded the already filmed material, and moved the production to Rome, changing its director to Joseph Mankiewicz, and the actor playing [[Mark Antony]] to Burton.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|12–18}} Filming was finally completed in July 1962.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|39}} The film's final cost was $62 million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=62|start_year=1962|r=0}} million in {{Inflation-year|US}}), making it the most expensive film made up to that point.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|46}}

''Cleopatra'' became the biggest box-office success of 1963 in the United States; the film grossed $15.7 million at the box office (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=15.7|start_year=1963|r=0}} million in {{Inflation-year|US}}).<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|56–57}} Regardless, it took several years for the film to earn back its production costs, which drove Fox near to bankruptcy. The studio publicly blamed Taylor for the production's troubles and unsuccessfully sued Burton and Taylor for allegedly damaging the film's commercial prospects with their behavior.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|46}} The film's reviews were mixed to negative, with critics finding Taylor overweight and her voice too thin, and unfavorably comparing her with her classically trained British co-stars.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|56–58}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|265–267}}{{sfn|Doty|2012|pp=48–49}} In retrospect, Taylor called ''Cleopatra'' a "low point" in her career, and said that the studio had cut out the scenes which she felt provided the "core of the characterization."<ref name="lifemag"/>

Taylor intended to follow ''Cleopatra'' by headlining an all-star cast in Fox's black comedy ''[[What a Way to Go!]]'' (1964), but negotiations fell through, and [[Shirley MacLaine]] was cast instead. In the meantime, film producers were eager to profit from the scandal surrounding Taylor and Burton, and they next starred together in [[Anthony Asquith]]'s ''[[The V.I.P.s (film)|The V.I.P.s]]'' (1963), which mirrored the headlines about them.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|42–45}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|252–255,260–266}} Taylor played a famous model attempting to leave her husband for a lover, and Burton her estranged millionaire husband. Released soon after ''Cleopatra'', it became a box-office success.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|264}} Taylor was also paid $500,000 (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=.5|start_year=1963|r=2}} million in {{Inflation-year|US}}) to appear in a [[CBS]] television special, ''[[Elizabeth Taylor in London]]'', in which she visited the city's landmarks and recited passages from the works of famous British writers.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|74–75}}

[[File:Taylor-Burton-Sandpiper.jpg|thumb|right|Taylor and Burton in ''The Sandpiper'' (1965)]]

After completing ''The V.I.P.s'', Taylor took a two-year hiatus from films, during which she and Burton divorced their spouses and married each other.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|112}} The [[supercouple]] continued starring together in films in the mid-1960s, earning a combined $88 million over the next decade; Burton once stated, "They say we generate more business activity than one of the smaller African nations."<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|193}}<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Christopher |last=Bateman |title=Liz and Dick: The Ultimate Celebrity Couple |magazine=Vanity Fair |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2010/06/liz-and-dick-the-ultimate-celebrity-couple |date=June 1, 2010 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Biographer Alexander Walker compared these films to "illustrated gossip columns", as their film roles often reflected their public personae, while film historian Alexander Doty has noted that the majority of Taylor's films during this period seemed to "conform to, and reinforce, the image of an indulgent, raucous, immoral or amoral, and appetitive (in many senses of the word) 'Elizabeth Taylor{{Single+double}}.<ref name="Walker" />{{rp|294}}{{sfn|Doty|2012|p=51}} Taylor and Burton's first joint project following her hiatus was Vincente Minnelli's romantic drama ''[[The Sandpiper]]'' (1965), about an illicit love affair between a bohemian artist and a married clergyman in [[Big Sur]], California. Its reviews were largely negative, but it grossed a successful $14 million in the box office (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=14|start_year=1965|r=0}} million in {{Inflation year|index=US}}).<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|116–118}}

Their next project, ''[[Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (film)|Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?]]'' (1966), an adaptation of a [[Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?|play of the same name]] by [[Edward Albee]], featured the most critically acclaimed performance of Taylor's career.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|142,151–152}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|286}} She and Burton starred as Martha and George, a middle-aged couple going through a marital crisis. In order to convincingly play 50-year-old Martha, Taylor gained weight, wore a wig, and used makeup to make herself look older and tired – in stark contrast to her public image as a glamorous film star.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|136–137}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|281–282}} At Taylor's suggestion, theatre director [[Mike Nichols]] was hired to direct the project, despite his lack of experience with film.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|139–140}} The production differed from anything she had done previously, as Nichols wanted to thoroughly rehearse the play before beginning filming.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|141}} ''Woolf'' was considered ground-breaking for its adult themes and uncensored language, and opened to "glorious" reviews.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|140,151}} ''Variety'' wrote that Taylor's "characterization is at once sensual, spiteful, cynical, pitiable, loathsome, lustful, and tender."<ref>{{cite news |title=Review: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? |url=https://variety.com/1965/film/reviews/who-s-afraid-of-virginia-woolf-3-1200420919/ |work=Variety |date=December 31, 1965 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> [[Stanley Kauffmann]] of ''The New York Times'' stated that she "does the best work of her career, sustained and urgent."<ref>{{cite news |title=Screen: Funless Games at George and Martha's:Albee's 'Virginia Woolf' Becomes a Film |first=Stanley |last=Kauffman |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1966/06/24/archives/screen-funless-games-at-george-and-marthasalbees-virginia-woolf.html |work=The New York Times |date=June 24, 1966 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> The film also became one of the biggest commercial successes of the year.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|151–152}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|286}} Taylor received her second Academy Award, and BAFTA, [[National Board of Review]], and New York City Film Critics Circle awards for her performance.
[[File:Liz Taylor en Richard Burton tijdens persconferentie op Schiphol betreft film , Bestanddeelnr 917-6937.jpg|thumb|Taylor and Burton in 1965]]
In 1966, Taylor and Burton performed ''[[Doctor Faustus (play)|Doctor Faustus]]'' for a week in [[Oxford]] to benefit the [[Oxford University Dramatic Society]]; he starred and she appeared in her first stage role as [[Helen of Troy]], a part which required no speaking.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|186–189}} Although it received generally negative reviews, Burton produced it as a film, ''[[Doctor Faustus (1967 film)|Doctor Faustus]]'' (1967), with the same cast.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|186–189}} It was also panned by critics and grossed only $600,000 in the box office (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=.6|start_year=1967|r=2}} million in {{Inflation year|index=US}}).<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|230–232}} Taylor and Burton's next project, [[Franco Zeffirelli]]'s ''[[The Taming of the Shrew (1967 film)|The Taming of the Shrew]]'' (1967), which they also co-produced, was more successful.<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|164}} It posed another challenge for Taylor, as she was the only actor in the project with no previous experience of performing Shakespeare; Zeffirelli later stated that this made her performance interesting, as she "invented the part from scratch."<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|168}} Critics found the play to be fitting material for the couple, and the film became a box-office success by grossing $12 million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|index=US|value=12|start_year=1967|r=2}} million in {{Inflation year|index=US}}).<ref name="Kashner" />{{rp|181, 186}}

Taylor's third film released in 1967, [[John Huston]]'s ''[[Reflections in a Golden Eye (film)|Reflections in a Golden Eye]]'', was her first without Burton since ''Cleopatra''. Based on a [[Reflections in a Golden Eye (novel)|novel of the same name]] by [[Carson McCullers]], it was a drama about a repressed gay military officer and his unfaithful wife. It was originally slated to co-star Taylor's old friend Montgomery Clift, whose career had been in decline for several years owing to his substance abuse problems. Determined to secure his involvement in the project, Taylor even offered to pay for his insurance.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|157–161}} But Clift died from a heart attack before filming began; he was replaced in the role by [[Marlon Brando]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|175,189}} ''Reflections'' was a critical and commercial failure at the time of its release.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|233–234}} Taylor and Burton's last film of the year was the adaptation of [[Graham Greene]]'s novel, ''[[The Comedians (1967 film)|The Comedians]]'', which received mixed reviews and was a box-office disappointment.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|228–232}}

===1968–1979: Career decline===
[[File:Elizabeth Taylor 1971.jpg|thumb|Taylor in 1971]]

Taylor's career was in decline by the late 1960s. She had gained weight, was in her late 30s and did not fit in with [[New Hollywood]] stars such as [[Jane Fonda]] and [[Julie Christie]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|135–136}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|294–296,307–308}} After several years of nearly constant media attention, the public was tiring of Burton and her, and criticized their jet set lifestyle.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|142, 151–152}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|294–296,305–306}} In 1968, Taylor starred in two films directed by [[Joseph Losey]] – ''[[Boom! (1968 film)|Boom!]]'' and ''[[Secret Ceremony]]'' – both of which were critical and commercial failures.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|238–246}} The former, based on Tennessee Williams' ''[[The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore]]'', features her as an ageing, serial-marrying millionaire, and Burton as a younger man who turns up on the Mediterranean island on which she has retired.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|211–217}} ''Secret Ceremony'' is a psychological drama that also stars [[Mia Farrow]] and [[Robert Mitchum]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|242–243, 246}} Taylor's third film with George Stevens, ''[[The Only Game in Town (1970 film)|The Only Game in Town]]'' (1970), in which she played a Las Vegas showgirl who has an affair with a compulsive gambler, played by [[Warren Beatty]], was unsuccessful.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|287}}<ref name="BFIliz">{{cite web |first=Simon |last=McCallum |title=Late Liz: 10 forgotten Elizabeth Taylor films |url=https://www.bfi.org.uk/lists/late-liz-10-forgotten-elizabeth-taylor-films |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |date=February 27, 2017 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

The three 1972 films in which Taylor acted were somewhat more successful. ''[[X Y & Zee]]'', which portrayed [[Michael Caine]] and her as a troubled married couple, won her the [[David di Donatello for Best Foreign Actress]]. She appeared with Burton in the adaptation of Dylan Thomas's ''[[Under Milk Wood (1972 film)|Under Milk Wood]]''; although her role was small, the producers decided to give her top-billing to profit from her fame.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|313–316}} Her third film role that year was playing a blonde diner waitress in [[Peter Ustinov]]'s ''Faust'' parody ''[[Hammersmith Is Out]]'', her tenth collaboration with Burton. Although it was overall not successful,<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|316}} Taylor received some good reviews, with [[Vincent Canby]] of ''The New York Times'' writing that she has "a certain vulgar, ratty charm",<ref>{{cite web |first=Vincent |last=Canby |title=Hammersmith is Out (1972)|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9904E6DF1F3EE63BBC4D51DFB3668389669EDE|work=The New York Times |date=May 25, 1972 |access-date=December 1, 2018 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307123157/https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9904E6DF1F3EE63BBC4D51DFB3668389669EDE |archive-date=March 7, 2016}}</ref> and [[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' saying, "The spectacle of Elizabeth Taylor growing older and more beautiful continues to amaze the population."<ref>{{cite web |first=Roger |last=Ebert |title=Hammersmith is Out (1972) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hammersmith-is-out-1972 |work=Roger Ebert |date=May 26, 1972 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Her performance won the [[Berlin Film Festival Award for Best Actress|Silver Bear]] for Best Actress at the [[Berlin Film Festival]].<ref name="BFIliz" />

[[File:Burton Taylor Divorce His Hers 1973.jpg|thumb|left|In ''Divorce His, Divorce Hers'' (1973), Taylor's last film with Burton]]

Taylor and Burton's last film together was the [[ITV Wales & West|Harlech Television]] film ''[[Divorce His, Divorce Hers]]'' (1973), fittingly named as they divorced the following year.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|357}} Her other films released in 1973 were the British thriller ''[[Night Watch (1973 film)|Night Watch]]'' (1973) and the American drama ''[[Ash Wednesday (1973 film)|Ash Wednesday]]'' (1973).<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|341–349,357–358}} For the latter, in which she starred as a woman who undergoes multiple plastic surgeries in an attempt to save her marriage, she received a Golden Globe nomination.<ref name="goldenglobes">{{cite web|title=Elizabeth Taylor |url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/person/elizabeth-taylor |publisher=[[Hollywood Foreign Press Association]] |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> Her only film released in 1974, the Italian [[Muriel Spark]] adaptation ''[[The Driver's Seat (film)|The Driver's Seat]]'' (1974), was a failure.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|371–375}}

Taylor took fewer roles after the mid-1970s, and focused on supporting the career of her sixth husband, [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] politician [[John Warner]], a US senator. In 1976, she participated in the Soviet-American fantasy film ''[[The Blue Bird (1976 film)|The Blue Bird]]'' (1976), a critical and box-office failure, and had a small role in the television film ''[[Victory at Entebbe]]'' (1976). In 1977, she sang in the critically panned film adaptation of [[Stephen Sondheim]]'s musical ''[[A Little Night Music (film)|A Little Night Music]]'' (1977).<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|388–389,403}}

===1980–2007: Stage and television roles; retirement===
[[File:Elizabeth Taylor 2.jpg|thumb|upright|Taylor in 1981 at an event honoring her career]]

After a period of semi-retirement from films, Taylor starred in ''[[The Mirror Crack'd]]'' (1980), adapted from an [[Agatha Christie]] mystery novel and featuring an ensemble cast of actors from the studio era, such as [[Angela Lansbury]], [[Kim Novak]], Rock Hudson, and [[Tony Curtis]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|435}} Wanting to challenge herself, she took on her first substantial stage role, playing Regina Giddens in a Broadway production of [[Lillian Hellman]]'s ''[[The Little Foxes]]''.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|411}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}} Instead of portraying Giddens in negative light, as had often been the case in previous productions, Taylor's idea was to show her as a victim of circumstance, explaining, "She's a killer, but she's saying, 'Sorry fellas, you put me in this position'."<ref name=Walker />{{rp|349}}

The production premiered in May 1981, and had a sold-out six-month run despite mixed reviews.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|411}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}} Frank Rich of ''The New York Times'' wrote that Taylor's performance as "Regina Giddens, that malignant Southern bitch-goddess ... begins gingerly, soon gathers steam, and then explodes into a black and thunderous storm that may just knock you out of your seat",<ref>{{cite web |first=Frank |last=Rich |title=Stage: The Misses Taylor and Stapleton in 'Foxes' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/08/theater/stage-the-misses-taylor-and-stapleton-in-foxes.html |work=The New York Times |date=May 8, 1981 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> while Dan Sullivan of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' stated, "Taylor presents a possible Regina Giddens, as seen through the persona of Elizabeth Taylor. There's some acting in it, as well as some personal display."<ref>{{cite web |first=David |last=Ng |title=Elizabeth Taylor remembered: Always a star, even on the stage |url=https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/03/elizabeth-taylor-.html |work=Los Angeles Times |date=March 23, 2011 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> She appeared as evil socialite [[Helena Cassadine]] in the day-time soap opera ''[[General Hospital]]'' in November 1981.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}} The following year, she continued performing ''The Little Foxes'' in London's [[West End theater|West End]], but received largely negative reviews from the British press.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}}

Encouraged by the success of ''The Little Foxes'', Taylor and producer [[Zev Buffman]] founded the Elizabeth Taylor Repertory Company.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}} Its first and only production was a revival of [[Noël Coward]]'s comedy ''[[Private Lives]]'', starring Taylor and Burton.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|413–425}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}}<ref>{{cite news |last=Brenner |first=Marie |title=The Liz and Dick Show |url=https://nymag.com/arts/theater/features/50176/ |access-date=December 1, 2018 |newspaper=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |date=May 9, 1983}}</ref> It premiered in Boston in early 1983, and although commercially successful, received generally negative reviews, with critics noting that both stars were in noticeably poor health – Taylor admitted herself to a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center after the play's run ended, and Burton died the following year.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|413–425}}<ref name=Walker />{{rp|347–362}} After the failure of ''Private Lives'', Taylor dissolved her theatre company.<ref>{{cite news |last=Hanauer |first=Joan |title=Liz-Zev Split |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/11/08/LIZ-ZEV-SPLIT/3735437115600/ |access-date=December 1, 2018 |work=[[United Press International]] |date=November 8, 1983}}</ref> Her only other project that year was the television film ''[[Between Friends (1983 film)|Between Friends]]''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Between Friends |url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/5194/Between-Friends/overview |access-date=December 1, 2018 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160325115752/https://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/5194/Between-Friends/overview |department=Movies & TV Dept. |work=[[The New York Times]] |author=Mark Deming |date=2016 |archive-date=March 25, 2016}}</ref>
[[File:BobHopeElizabethTaylorUSOMay1986.jpg|thumb|left|Taylor and [[Bob Hope]] perform in a [[United Service Organization]] show aboard the training aircraft carrier [[USS Lexington]] during the celebration of the 75th anniversary of naval aviation in 1986]]
From the mid-1980s, Taylor acted mostly in television productions. She made cameos in the soap operas ''[[Hotel (U.S. TV series)|Hotel]]'' and ''[[All My Children]]'' in 1984, and played a brothel keeper in the historical mini-series ''[[North and South (miniseries)|North and South]]'' in 1985.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|363–373}} She also starred in several television films, playing gossip columnist [[Louella Parsons]] in ''[[Malice in Wonderland (1985 film)|Malice in Wonderland]]'' (1985), a fading movie star in the drama ''[[There Must Be a Pony]]'' (1986),<ref>{{cite web|first=John J. |last=O'Connor |title='There Must Be a Pony', with Elizabeth Taylor |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/03/arts/there-must-be-a-pony-with-elizabeth-taylor.html |work=The New York Times |date=October 3, 1986 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> and a character based on [[Poker Alice]] in the eponymous [[Poker Alice (1987 film)|Western]] (1987).<ref name=Walker />{{rp|363–373}} She re-united with director Franco Zeffirelli to appear in his French-Italian biopic ''[[Young Toscanini]]'' (1988), and had the last starring role of her career in a television adaptation of ''[[Sweet Bird of Youth]]'' (1989), her fourth Tennessee Williams play.<ref name=Walker />{{rp|363–373}} During this time, she also began receiving honorary awards for her career – the [[Cecil B. DeMille Award]] in 1985,<ref name="goldenglobes" /> and the [[Film Society of Lincoln Center]]'s Chaplin Award in 1986.<ref>{{cite web |title=Chaplin Award Gala |url=https://www.filmlinc.org/about-us/chaplin-award-gala/ |publisher=[[Film Society of Lincoln Center]] |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref>

In the 1990s, Taylor focused her time on HIV/AIDS activism. Her few acting roles included characters in the animated series ''[[Captain Planet and the Planeteers]]'' (1992) and ''[[The Simpsons]]'' (1992, 1993),<ref>{{cite news |last=Snierson |first=Dan |title=Elizabeth Taylor: 'Simpsons' exec producer Al Jean remembers the film legend's one-word turn as baby Maggie |url=https://ew.com/article/2011/03/24/elizabeth-taylor-simpsons-al-jean/ |access-date=December 1, 2018 |newspaper=[[Entertainment Weekly]] |date=March 24, 2011}}</ref> and cameos in four CBS series – ''[[The Nanny]]'', ''[[Can't Hurry Love]]'', ''[[Murphy Brown]]'', and ''[[High Society (1995 TV series)|High Society]]'' – all airing on February 26, 1996, to promote her new fragrance.<ref>{{cite news |last=Shales |first=Tom |title=CBS Follows the Scent of Missing Pearls |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-02-28-ca-40800-story.html |access-date=December 1, 2018 |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=February 28, 1996}}</ref>

Her last theatrically released film was the critically panned, but commercially successful, ''[[The Flintstones (film)|The Flintstones]]'' (1994), in which she played [[Pearl Slaghoople]] in a brief supporting role.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|436}} Taylor received American and British honors for her career: the [[AFI Life Achievement Award]] in 1993,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afi.com/laa/laa93.aspx |title=1993 Elizabeth Taylor Tribute |publisher=American Film Institute |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> the [[Screen Actors Guild Life Achievement Award|Screen Actors Guild]] honorary award in 1997,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sagawards.org/nominees/life-achievement-award-recipient/34th |title=34th Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient, 1997: Elizabeth Taylor |publisher=[[Screen Actors Guild]] |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> and a [[BAFTA Fellowship]] in 1999.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bafta.org/heritage/features/100-bafta-moments-24-days-to-go |title=100 BAFTA Moments – Dame Elizabeth Taylor Receives the BAFTA Fellowship |work=[[British Academy of Film and Television Arts]] |date=January 15, 2015 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> In 2000, she was appointed a [[Commander (order)#United Kingdom|Dame Commander]] in the chivalric [[Order of the British Empire]] in the millennium New Year Honours List by [[Elizabeth II|Queen Elizabeth II]].<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=55710|date=December 30, 1999|page=34 |supp=y}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/750290.stm |title=Queen honours movie Dames |publisher=[[BBC]] |date=May 16, 2000 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> After supporting roles in the television film ''[[These Old Broads]]'' (2001) and in the animated sitcom ''[[God, the Devil and Bob]]'' (2001), Taylor announced that she was retiring from acting to devote her time to philanthropy.<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|436}}<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2880173.stm |title=Liz Taylor retires from acting |work=BBC News |date=March 24, 2003 |access-date=December 1, 2018}}</ref> She gave one last public performance in 2007, when she performed the play ''[[Love Letters (play)|Love Letters]]'' at an AIDS benefit at the Paramount Studios with [[James Earl Jones]].<ref name=Kashner />{{rp|436}}