NOTORIETY
In 1963 the final footage
of CLEOPATRA – then the most expensive
movie ever made with its casts, locations,
and special effects – was completed
at the Cinecittà studios, Rome.
The two stars of what would become the then
most profitable blockbuster ever screened,
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton –
daughter of an American art dealer
and son of a Welsh miner, creations,
creatures of Hollywood – flew to Sicily,
to continue their affaire. They stayed
at the San Domenico Palace,
a luxury hotel in Taormina.
Two of the highest paid movie actors,
and both married with children, they were grist
to gossip columnists and public
moralists alike. Much was made of their roles
as Cleopatra and Mark Antony.
The San Domenico Palace Hotel
was originally a monastery.
Built on the top of a cliff high above
the Roman Sea it has had many
notorious celebrity guests,
among them emperors from the New World –
George W. Bush and Donald J. Trump.
In 1967 the movies stars
returned to the hotel. Showbiz legend
has Elizabeth Taylor, on the terrace
of the bridal suite, break either an
acoustic guitar or a mandolin
over Richard Burton’s head or back.
As Martha said in Edward Albee’s
WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?
‘Truth or illusion, George, you don’t know
the difference.’ To which George replied,
‘No, but we must carry on as though we did’.
Elise Oliver
May 30, 2025Believe me, the San Domenico Palace Hotel is a long way from this:
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/mar/28/welsh-village-pontrhydyfen-richard-burton-biopic-elizabeth-taylor
The village of Pontrhydyfen still believes in the illusion.
Alan Horne
June 4, 2025Yes, indeed. It’s a fascinating article. I’m sure the photo of Burton and his dad was staged, to bring out the contrast between them. But maybe it’s just a different illusion. I can’t believe Taylor would have hit Burton with a banjo, had that been the only weapon available. But a guitar or mandolin… Plus a mandolin has a very robust form. I’m sure you could easily kill a person by hitting them over the head with one.