Elizabeth Taylor at age 12 in National Velvet

Taylor and Bette Davis on a show that was celebrating Taylor's life, late 1981, image by Alan Light

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Elizabeth Taylor

Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor DBE (born February 27, 1932) is an iconic two-time Academy Award-winning British-American actress. more...

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Her trademark is her violet eyes framed by a double row of eyelashes. Known for her acting skills and the depth of her personality along with her beauty, she is considered one of the great actresses of Hollywoodâ€™s golden years, as well as a larger-than-life celebrity.

The American Film Institute named Taylor among the Greatest Female Stars of All Time, ranking at No. 7.

Biography

Life and career

She was born in Hampstead, London, England, the second child of Francis Lenn Taylor (December 28, 1897 â€“ November 20, 1968) and Sara Viola Warmbrodt (August 21, 1896 â€“ September 11, 1994), who were Americans residing in England. Her older brother is Howard Taylor (born in 1929).

Though sometimes referred to as "Liz," she is not fond of that name and prefers her given name to be pronounced Eee-lizabeth. Her first names are in honor of her paternal grandmother, Elizabeth Taylor, who was born Elizabeth Mary Rosemond. Taylor was born a U.S. citizen. She relinquished her American citizenship after marrying Richard Burton, and became a British subject.

Both of her American parents were originally from Arkansas City, Kansas. Her father was an art dealer and her mother a former actress whose stage name was Sara Sothern. Sara retired from the stage when she and Francis Taylor married in 1926 in New York. It was also reported that her father was a weak figure who always capitulated to her mother.

At the age of 3, Elizabeth began taking ballet lessons. After the UK entered World War II, her parents decided to return to the United States to avoid hostilities. Her mother took the children first, while her father remained in London to wrap up matters in the art business. They settled in Los Angeles, California, where Sara's family, the Warmbrodts, were then living.

Taylor appeared in her first motion picture at the age of 9 for Universal. They let her contract drop, and she was signed with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Her first movie with that studio was Lassie Come Home (1943), which drew favorable attention. After a few more movies, the second on loan-out to 20th Century Fox, she appeared in her first leading role and achieved child star status playing Velvet Brown, a young girl who trains a horse to win the Grand National in Clarence Brown's movie National Velvet (1944) with Mickey Rooney. National Velvet was a big hit, grossing over $4,000,000 at the box-office, and she was signed to a long-term contract. Gene Tierney originally was offered the role in MGM's National Velvet but production was delayed so Tierney signed with Fox. The rest is Hollywood history.