Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor.Photo:Trevor Humphries/Central Press/Getty
Trevor Humphries/Central Press/Getty
Elizabeth Taylorand Richard Burton’s creative partnership had a particularly damaging dynamic, according to author Roger Lewis.Ahead of the publication of his bookErotic Vagrancy: Everything about Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, which comes out March 26 from Mobius, Lewis explains why he feels that theCleopatraactress may have hindered the career of husband Richard Burton.
The book hews close to its title, offering a 600+ page, thoroughly researched look at one of Hollywood’s most glamorous couples, who were married twice: once from 1964 to 1974, and then again from 1975 to 1976. Lewis takes readers into Taylor and Burton’s collaborations on screen, their infamous breakups and entourage and offers his own perspective on their dynamic.
Richard Burton in 1981.Harry Langdon/Getty
Harry Langdon/Getty
“One of the big things that happened when Burton met Taylor was that was the end of his career on the stage,” Lewis tells PEOPLE, acknowledging that Burton did take a few turns on the boards after he met his wife-to-be. “I know later on he didCamelot, he didEquusand then made the movie ofEquus…but basically that was it as far as his Shakespearean ambitions went.”
Burton, who had made a name for himself in the on stage throughout the 1950s, was set to become the next great “Laurence Olivier-style Shakespearean actor,” Lewis says.“By meeting Elizabeth Taylor, that destroyed him as a classical actor,” he continues. “On the other hand, all his roles in the movies he made, he’s still got that wonderful voice and that wonderful presence and that great swagger of his.”
Elizabeth Taylor.API/GAMMA/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
API/GAMMA/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
In contrast, the author says that Taylor thrived professionally within her marriage to Burton. Though Taylor was a child actress in films like 1944’sNational Velvet, she would become known for her later roles, such as in 1958’sCat on a Hot Tin Roofand 1960’sButterfield 8,for which she won an Oscar for Best Actress.Lewis says the 1963 drama-comedy filmThe V.I.P.s, however, showcased her talent in a new way.
Mobius
When it came time for films like the 1966 Mike Nichols-directedWho’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, which starred both Burton and Taylor, as well as George Segal and Sandy Dennis, the couple largely excelled as a unit, Lewis says.
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton in ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'.FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty
FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty
“I think they did learn from each other, and maybe detract from each other a bit, and added a bit to each other,” he says of their performance as husband and wife George and Martha. “They’re in real harmony as artists…it’s like their marriage there we’re watching [in the film], but sort of in a stylized way. It’s turned into art.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Erotic Vagrancyhits shelves on March 26 and is now available for pre-order.
source: people.com
