Aat around 4 P.M. on a Friday in 1998, Elizabeth Taylor, the most famous movie star of the 20th century, was dressed in her nightgown, applying makeup, and showing her friend Dorothy Flagler, a salesperson at Van Cleef & Arpels in Beverly Hills, a magnificent new yellow diamond ring. Flagler sat cross-legged on the floor of Taylor's bathroom as they chatted away.
But when Taylor's assistant Tim Mendelson walked in and told them that a friend of a friend had passed away from AIDS-related causes that day, the mood in the room changed dramatically.
"He really doesn't have anyone and he has no money," Mendelson told them. There was no money even to bury him.
Taylor told Mendelson to get her business manager on the phone, because she wanted to arrange for his burial. Mendelson called his office and was told that it would have to wait until Monday. When he relayed the message to Taylor, she threw the brush she was using down on the bathroom counter and her eyes went wild.
"We will not fucking wait until Monday. We will do it right now. Get him on the phone again. I want to talk to him. No mother's son is going to lay on a cold, hard slab for the weekend when I can do something to stop it."
This story is from the February 2023 edition of Vanity Fair US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the February 2023 edition of Vanity Fair US.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Of Gods and Men
Despite playing Thor for years, Chris Hemsworth is every inch a human being: an introspective family man with real questions about his career and future. We meet up in Australia on the eve of his favorite role in more than a decade in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Devil's Eve, 1982
Before she was killed by her ex-boyfriend, Dominique Dunne had been poised for Hollywood stardom. The crime launched her father, Dominick, into his calling, covering high-profile court cases for this magazine. The tragedy also reshaped their family, as Griffin Dunne writes in his memoir, The Friday Afternoon Club
Alfred Molina
The actor, currently starring in Uncle Vanya on Broadway, on his love of vinyl, New York, and not being the worst dad in the world
CITIZEN CHAMBERS
Until very recently, Jim \"Fergie\" Chambers was an heir to Cox Enterprises and one of the largest family fortunes in America. With hundreds of millions of dollars on hand, a zeal for revolution, and an innate sense for confrontation, he's becoming America's go-to radical communist
MEMBERS ONLY
Scott Sartiano's private club, Zero Bond, became postpandemic New York's celeb-friendliest playground, luring the likes of Taylor, Elon, and Mayor Eric Adams. What's the secret sauce?
IN VITRO VERITAS
More than half a century ago, in a dusty Roman library, men of science and men of faith gathered together to unlock the mysteries of female fertility. The answer: urine from the brides of Christ. And lo, those nuns gaveth
RUNNING for His Life
His freedom in the balance, Donald Trump's campaign has been big on autocracy and low on the drama that marked previous runs. What might this newfound if terrifying competency mean?
Turner Classic
In the last few years, English actor Callum Turner has worked with Clooney, Hanks, and Spielberg-so yes, you could say it's going well. VF catches up with Hollywood's latest heartthrob as he takes downtown NYC in style
Out of Sight
Inside Apple Park, CEO Tim Cook talks exclusively to vf about the genesis of a "Mind-blowing" new device that will shape his legacy and, perhaps, how we see the world
Queen Anne
Anne Hathaway has become a style icon to gen Z-and embraced who she is after years of self-recrimination and internet noise. With the racy romance the idea of you hitting theaters, the Oscar winner talks about living out loud
