Elizabeth Taylor Thought Her First Oscar Was a ‘Sympathy’ Vote After Surgery

Elizabeth Taylor believed her first Oscar win in 1961 was a “sympathy” vote, given after she barely survived a severe bout of pneumonia, which led to a much-publicized tracheotomy.

The late actress, who passed away in 2011 at the age of 79, delves into this challenging time in her life in the new HBO documentary Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes. The documentary is based on a series of interviews conducted by Life journalist Richard Meryman.

These candid recordings, originally intended for a magazine profile and Taylor’s 1965 memoir, remained unheard until Meryman’s death in 2015.

Taylor was nominated for Best Actress at the Academy Awards for four consecutive years from 1958 to 1961. Before she eventually won for her role in BUtterfield 8, she had missed out for her performances in Raintree County, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and Suddenly, Last Summer.

Though BUtterfield 8 was a commercial hit, critics largely disapproved of the film. In the documentary, Taylor can be heard expressing her disgust, describing it as a “piece of s***.” She believed her win was an act of sympathy from the Academy.

“BUtterfield 8 was my fourth nomination in a row, and I won the award for my tracheotomy,” Taylor stated in the recordings.

When Meryman asked if she genuinely believed that, Taylor responded, “Yes I do. There must have been some kind of sympathy thing because the film is so embarrassing. It’s just dreadful.”

In another conversation with fellow actor Roddy McDowall, Taylor added, “The lines were so diabolical. It was such a piece of s***.”

Directed by Daniel Mann, BUtterfield 8 was based on a 1935 novel by John O’Hara. The film’s title referenced the telephone exchange that served Manhattan’s Upper East Side, where the letters BU represented the number 28.

In March 1961, while shooting Cleopatra in England, Taylor developed life-threatening pneumonia, requiring a tracheotomy. The situation was so dire that one news agency incorrectly reported her death.

Recalling the event, Taylor said, “I was on the operating table for 18 hours. Actually four times I was called dead, and stopped breathing. They had pipes going into my lungs, pulling the gook out and shoving oxygen in. When I came to on the table, the operating table, I tried to scream and no sound came out. The air was coming out of a big hole in my throat where they’d slit it open.”

Taylor went on to win a second Best Actress Oscar in 1967 for her performance in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes is available to stream now on Max.

Source: HBO