Wasn’t She Iconic?

When a legend passes, the masses pause to either silently send a prayer or absorb the reality that everyone has their expiration date. Such a comment may sound cold or callous. Not so in this case. Just the daunting truth. With Elizabeth Taylor, one has to admit that she was indeed a cat with nine lives – and then some. This cat knew how to handle that hot tin roof.

Rather than feel sad for the death of Dame Elizabeth this morning, I want to celebrate her full, rich, troubled, exciting, lusty life. What a movie star she was! What a saucy lady-broad! She could keep up at the bar stool with the likes of Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole. She could accept and love many of Hollywood’s closeted hunks when others turned away, hoping that Rock would end up with a real Doris Day.

She was The Real Thing of Hollywood legend: The diamonds, marriages, scandals, yachts, addiction, rehab, gowns – the classic image of tabloid and silver screen glamour. AND she could ACT! AND she was the first public figure to take action on AIDS activism. Bravo! Such a wakeup call to the public changed not only the perception of AIDS, but also influenced political decisions. Ronald Reagan’s attitude toward HIV was greatly affected by her unrelenting focus on educating him, as well as his wife Nancy, on the disease, which, in turn, caused Mrs. Reagan to influence her physician brother in Miss Taylor’s crusade against mass ignorance. A second Bravo!

Beyond news reports, I’ve always heard that she was a wonderful mother. How many times has anyone seen pictures of her 4 children over the years? That’s right. You have to think about it and realize that it has been years and years. She deftly shielded her children from PR exposure, unlike the child parades of her peers “in the day” and what is now in place with several high profile families whose only purpose with their children, it seems, is the latest photo-op for one publication or another’s cover.

In fact, so rare were pictures of her children that the only time I was ever in the same room with one, I had a sincere “Be still my heart” moment. I didn’t know who the gorgeous human specimen with the eyes of Elizabeth Taylor and long black hair was when he opened the door of a room I was in and walked toward me with a piercing stare.

Holy sheet – who is this guy? After a moment, the visual comparison and a whisper in my ear from a friend put it together. Ohhhhh. It’s Michael Wilding, Jr. No wonder…those eyes…that black, black hair! He had certainly been keeping a low profile, although I can’t imagine anyone passing him on the street without fainting...at least with how he looked at that time.

I have no idea what he looks like now – it was over twenty years ago – and he was married. Sigh. But my point is that with one or two photo exceptions, exploitation on both sides – from Miss Taylor or her children – didn’t exist.

So, now it’s time to bid farewell to one of the last of the golden stars of an era long gone. Raise a glass, a flask, a diamond, a caring eye – whatever suits your fancy – and toast Our Lady of The Hey-Days!

May your star continue to shine bright in the center of the starry-starry heavenly klieg-lights.

R.I.P. - dear Elizabeth.