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168 reviews for:
Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century
Sam Kashner
3.76 AVERAGE
168 reviews for:
Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century
Sam Kashner
3.76 AVERAGE
I did not expect to get so into this. I have always liked old Hollywood and recently read some article that had a quote of something kind of explicit Burton wrote about Taylor and I was like "...dang, no wonder she was so into him." He had a gift for language. Anyway, that led me to this book which I completely loved. Their romance was operatic in scale and surreal to read. It was also tragic. I found it very moving as it meandered toward its not-with-a-bang-but-a-whimper ending. I believe they were truly in love for the entirety of their lives but just could never ever figure out a way to get it to work. It was really sad to read. I also thought this book was very much a love letter to Richard Burton, who has become kind of forgotten, though in his day he was the most famous man in the world. He was a very complicated, troubled and gifted person.
Good book, these two were nuts. Literally. They broke up homes/marriages, fought each other and were just FULL of drama. Interesting read nonetheless.
Furious Love by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger
Harper, 2010
438 pages
Non-fiction; Celebrity
5/5 stars
Source: A bribe from my mom to take my sister to see Eclipse
Summary: The legendary love affair of Liz and Dick although they preferred Elizabeth and Richard, with new insights based on their private letters.
Thoughts: LizandDick is a topic I didn't know much about (I'm actually more of a fan of Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier, a couple with quite a few similarities) so I was excited to dig in to this. I read the excerpt in Vanity Fair and I was sold! I picked up a copy and sat down. It took me a bit longer to read than I expected because of my busy weekend (and my mom "borrowing" it to read) but I loved it!
I loved most everything-it had background on both of them; psychoanalysis on their addictions; gushing over Elizabeth's general fabulousness; extolling of Richard's talent. It's really a shame that he never got an Oscar-I know I enjoyed his performance in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
I quibble with the needless repetition at times but it didn't stop me from loving this book. It also has one of my least favorite ways of citing sources but this is a celebrity gossip book so I can forgive it.
Overall: Compulsively readable and highly recommended!
Harper, 2010
438 pages
Non-fiction; Celebrity
5/5 stars
Source: A bribe from my mom to take my sister to see Eclipse
Summary: The legendary love affair of Liz and Dick although they preferred Elizabeth and Richard, with new insights based on their private letters.
Thoughts: LizandDick is a topic I didn't know much about (I'm actually more of a fan of Vivien Leigh and Laurence Olivier, a couple with quite a few similarities) so I was excited to dig in to this. I read the excerpt in Vanity Fair and I was sold! I picked up a copy and sat down. It took me a bit longer to read than I expected because of my busy weekend (and my mom "borrowing" it to read) but I loved it!
I loved most everything-it had background on both of them; psychoanalysis on their addictions; gushing over Elizabeth's general fabulousness; extolling of Richard's talent. It's really a shame that he never got an Oscar-I know I enjoyed his performance in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
I quibble with the needless repetition at times but it didn't stop me from loving this book. It also has one of my least favorite ways of citing sources but this is a celebrity gossip book so I can forgive it.
Overall: Compulsively readable and highly recommended!
I skimmed through a lot of it. Their love story is compelling, but the book is more or less “fact dumping” without much other thought.
Elizabeth Taylor famously had eight marriages to seven husbands. The discrepancy between the two numbers lies in her dual marriages to Richard Burton, a love affair outlined in this book. While the book could’ve been pared down more — there were times we didn’t need so much repetition — it functions as a thought-provoking, relatively neutral look into the marriage(s) of the two actors. I’m surprised by how much — and what — I learned.
I’d recommend this to fans of celebrity biographies and historical non-fiction.
I’d recommend this to fans of celebrity biographies and historical non-fiction.
This couple was epic
FUCKING EPIC.
I was born in the early 80's so other then catching some of their movies "Liz and Dick" were just some famous people who got married and then divorced. I had no idea the drama "Le Scandale" how could my mother not tell me of this gold mine of epic gossip and decadence? That's what mothers are for to fill you in on what you missed when you were not alive, I do ask that she keep to the important stuff but she missed this bit and when I called her on it she shrugged her shoulders and said she was seven at the time and "I think Elizabeth was a bit nuts" Blasphemy!
So Liz demanded that all her producers buy her expensive jewels as presents while making their movies?
So when she was in Rome and felt like her favourite chilli from L.A. she had it flown over that evening? Who hasn't been there? So Liz and Richard did not want to pay taxes on the money they made so they lived like gypsies for over nine years? Everyone hates taxes.
Yes it seems a bit much and that is what they were like it was decadence, extravagance and to hell with what people said. It is shocking how they spent money, this book is about Elizabeth and Richard's life together, their FURIOUS LOVE.
The diamonds and gems will make your head spin, no one lived like them even royalty seem to astounded at how they spent all their money. "In a decade Richard and Elizabeth made 80 million dollars (660 million today) and spent three-fourths of it on furs,diamonds, paintings, designer clothes, traveling and property."
Alright that's a bit nuts, yes. But what a story. They loved each other so much, they both saw the best in each other and brought out the worst.
Richard was captivated by Elizabeth, he could not get enough. He thought she was one of the best screen actresses in the world, he respected her knowledge of the film industry and the love letter he wrote, he left her letters all the time she would be sleeping and he would write her a letter in the next room about how sexy she was. Do people do love letters anymore?? If given the choice between shelves being put up and garbage going out to love letters and poetry- I'm probably gonna go with shelves and trash. I am a practical girl and Burton didn't seem to do a lot of chores as they had people for that so that explains his idleness.
Elizabeth thought Richard brilliant and talented, and his gruffness and strength was something she was very attracted to. His strength and passion made her crazy.
Richard had a serious drinking problem but Liz would not stop drinking, so he drank more which slowly killed him. Richard was never accepted in Hollywood so he kept Elizabeth away this caused her to lose touch with many of her friends, she over compensated her this with a gigantic entourage and spending all the monies. They would fight half the night and then spend the rest of it making up, they were both extremely possessive and emotionally needy. Recipe for disaster non?
Even after their divorce (the 2nd one) they would talk for hours on the phone keeping each other up to date, talking about different projects and making each other laugh.
Best quotes in the book
"How did I know the woman was so fucking famous" R.B
"Let's face it -a lot of my life has lacked dignity" E.B
"I don't ever want to be that much in love again" E.B
"Everyone after Richard the men in my life were just there to hold the coat, to open the door. They were just company" E.T
FUCKING EPIC.
I was born in the early 80's so other then catching some of their movies "Liz and Dick" were just some famous people who got married and then divorced. I had no idea the drama "Le Scandale" how could my mother not tell me of this gold mine of epic gossip and decadence? That's what mothers are for to fill you in on what you missed when you were not alive, I do ask that she keep to the important stuff but she missed this bit and when I called her on it she shrugged her shoulders and said she was seven at the time and "I think Elizabeth was a bit nuts" Blasphemy!
So Liz demanded that all her producers buy her expensive jewels as presents while making their movies?
So when she was in Rome and felt like her favourite chilli from L.A. she had it flown over that evening? Who hasn't been there? So Liz and Richard did not want to pay taxes on the money they made so they lived like gypsies for over nine years? Everyone hates taxes.
Yes it seems a bit much and that is what they were like it was decadence, extravagance and to hell with what people said. It is shocking how they spent money, this book is about Elizabeth and Richard's life together, their FURIOUS LOVE.
The diamonds and gems will make your head spin, no one lived like them even royalty seem to astounded at how they spent all their money. "In a decade Richard and Elizabeth made 80 million dollars (660 million today) and spent three-fourths of it on furs,diamonds, paintings, designer clothes, traveling and property."
Alright that's a bit nuts, yes. But what a story. They loved each other so much, they both saw the best in each other and brought out the worst.
Richard was captivated by Elizabeth, he could not get enough. He thought she was one of the best screen actresses in the world, he respected her knowledge of the film industry and the love letter he wrote, he left her letters all the time she would be sleeping and he would write her a letter in the next room about how sexy she was. Do people do love letters anymore?? If given the choice between shelves being put up and garbage going out to love letters and poetry- I'm probably gonna go with shelves and trash. I am a practical girl and Burton didn't seem to do a lot of chores as they had people for that so that explains his idleness.
Elizabeth thought Richard brilliant and talented, and his gruffness and strength was something she was very attracted to. His strength and passion made her crazy.
Richard had a serious drinking problem but Liz would not stop drinking, so he drank more which slowly killed him. Richard was never accepted in Hollywood so he kept Elizabeth away this caused her to lose touch with many of her friends, she over compensated her this with a gigantic entourage and spending all the monies. They would fight half the night and then spend the rest of it making up, they were both extremely possessive and emotionally needy. Recipe for disaster non?
Even after their divorce (the 2nd one) they would talk for hours on the phone keeping each other up to date, talking about different projects and making each other laugh.
Best quotes in the book
"How did I know the woman was so fucking famous" R.B
"Let's face it -a lot of my life has lacked dignity" E.B
"I don't ever want to be that much in love again" E.B
"Everyone after Richard the men in my life were just there to hold the coat, to open the door. They were just company" E.T
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What was good about Furious Love? so many people in the story, including Elizabeth Taylor, were interviewed for this book or at least gave their blessing. Richard's widow also allowed the author access to his personal diaries and writings. The bad: the book was repetitive at times. I mean, how many times can Elizabeth's figure be described as "voluptuous" and Richard's face as "pock marked" from cystic acne? Furious Love could have used some serious editing.
Most of the book was spent on the build up of the relationship. Then, just as things were coasting along with happiness and sunshine and lots of love, the breakup happens with little explanation. It just came out of nowhere, which is probably not how it happened in real life.
Furious Love is worth a read if you like Old Hollywood stories, because Burton and Taylor were the last of that dying breed, but remember that this is a Hollywood biography, not great literature.
What was good about Furious Love? so many people in the story, including Elizabeth Taylor, were interviewed for this book or at least gave their blessing. Richard's widow also allowed the author access to his personal diaries and writings. The bad: the book was repetitive at times. I mean, how many times can Elizabeth's figure be described as "voluptuous" and Richard's face as "pock marked" from cystic acne? Furious Love could have used some serious editing.
Most of the book was spent on the build up of the relationship. Then, just as things were coasting along with happiness and sunshine and lots of love, the breakup happens with little explanation. It just came out of nowhere, which is probably not how it happened in real life.
Furious Love is worth a read if you like Old Hollywood stories, because Burton and Taylor were the last of that dying breed, but remember that this is a Hollywood biography, not great literature.
The editing in this book is atrocious, and the narrative all over the place. It is not a "good" book by any means. Richard and Elizabeth were just bonkers. But my god what a great story. The lack of editing actually works in their favor because you really need to savor the gossipy nature of their lives, as they would have intended. 10/10 beach read since you can easily skip around and ignore parts of it. It does what it came to do.
dark
informative
I wanted so much to like this! Epic Hollywood romance, the tail end of the Studio Era, yachting the Mediterranean, getaways to the Swiss Alps, giant diamonds, wild characters. But this clunky, exhaustive chronological retelling of the evolution/devolution of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s epic love affair, while entertaining in places, was mostly a drag that I found myself working hard to push through and finish.