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gallery
February 21, 2016

A Glimpse Into Elizabeth Taylor’s Private Life

By Catie L'Heureux

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Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated

Elizabeth Taylor had fame, eight marriages, and a jewelry collection worth $152 million, but after leaving her mark on the film industry, she aged fearlessly and grew beyond Hollywood. In her 50s, after her acting career had declined, she became the first star to launch a perfume line and one of the first celebrity AIDS activists.

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“My fame has been ridiculous,” she once told the gossip columnist Liz Smith. “I often wondered why it persisted. But once I became involved with AIDS, I blessed every lousy photograph, all the fat jokes, every untrue rumor, every true rumor. Les scandales! My crazy fame allowed me to do this work. It all finally made sense.” She co-founded the American Foundation for AIDS Research in 1985, established the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation in 1991, and ultimately earned the Presidential Citizens Medal for her philanthropic work. At the same time, her style grew even more daring with age: She wore big hair and glittering eye makeup, feather boas, miniskirts, and plunging necklines.

In the photographic memoir My Elizabeth, out March 23, photographer Firooz Zahedi presents a rare glimpse into this lesser-known time of Taylor’s life, from age 44 to her death. Over a 35-year friendship with Taylor, Zahedi captured her most private moments on many travels, in her Bel-Air home, and among her famous inner circle: with the Rothschilds, the fashion designer Halston, Michelangelo Antonioni, and her great love Richard Burton. Click ahead to see Taylor relaxing in Cannes, at a White House dinner with Bill Clinton, and more.

Photographs from My Elizabeth by Firooz Zahedi, copyright © 2016, published by Glitterati Incorporated.

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1 / 11 Photos
Wearing her famous Taj Mahal diamond pendant, a gift from Richard Burton, in Iran. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
At a teahouse in Shiraz, Iran, May 1976. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
On the set of A Little Night Music in Vienna, Austria, August 1976. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
With her shih tzu Sugar at home in Bel-Air. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated/imacon
Taking time off from work in Cannes, 1993. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
Holding a condom to promote safe sex in the fight against AIDS in a cover photo for Vanity Fair, November 1992.  Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterat... Holding a condom to promote safe sex in the fight against AIDS in a cover photo for Vanity Fair, November 1992.  Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
Wearing a beaded rhinestone jacket by Gianni Versace (embroidered with faces of some of her most famous roles) at a Premiere magazine shoot in Bel-Air... Wearing a beaded rhinestone jacket by Gianni Versace (embroidered with faces of some of her most famous roles) at a Premiere magazine shoot in Bel-Air, in 1992, where she promoted her perfumes. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
With Baroness Marie-Hélène de Rothschild at Cannes, May 1993. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated/imacon
With Roddy McDowall in Bel-Air, 1997. The two starred in MGM's Lassie Come Home in 1943 and remained close friends. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitte... With Roddy McDowall in Bel-Air, 1997. The two starred in MGM's Lassie Come Home in 1943 and remained close friends. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated/imacon
Seated beside President Bill Clinton and Sophia Loren at the Millennium White House dinner on December 31, 1999. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Inc... Seated beside President Bill Clinton and Sophia Loren at the Millennium White House dinner on December 31, 1999. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated/Copyright Firooz Zahedi
My Elizabeth by Firooz Zahedi, published by Glitterati Incorporated. Photo: Firooz Zahedi/Glitterati Incorporated
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