Poster Power
We live in a world today where scandal is a common occurrence, and nobody really seems to care anymore. Despite all the talk shows and waxing eloquently constantly on peoples' indiscretions, we seem to value the reality that it's a "Get what you want – take what you can" world.
In the late '50s, there was a scandal to rival all of the ones happening today. And Elizabeth Taylor was made a pariah throughout the world. After Mike Todd's death, Elizabeth Taylor made the unwise choice of choosing Eddie Fisher as her lover and husband. In hindsight, I'm sure Elizabeth would have been happy to let Debbie keep him! But I'm not sure Debbie would have done that if "the scandal" hadn't happened. But happen it did.
Eddie Fisher was one of Mike Todd's friends, not his best friend, and certainly if Mike had seen what happened after his death, I don't think Eddie would have been his friend at all. Be all this as it may, the reality of the situation for all parties was this: Elizabeth Taylor made some of her finest movies during the '50s, "A Place in the Sun", "Giant", "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", and "Suddenly, Last Summer". She had been nominated for an Academy Award many times during these years, but because of "the scandal", her chances were slim. She gave a remarkable performance in "Suddenly, Last Summer" and she should have definitely gotten the Academy Award for this movie, but at the time, the producers were seriously worried that no one would even go see the movie. To put it simply, the movie was about homosexuality and cannibalism, and remember, this was the '50s! So how do you sell a movie with such dire and heavy overtones, despite having the world's most beautiful woman as the lead? This is what the producers did.
They made a poster.
The poster was of Elizabeth Taylor in a very sheer, white bathing suit, looking extraordinarily sexy and provocative. The producers knew this was their key to getting people in the theatre and the poster worked. This was the poster from "Suddenly, Last Summer" that was the ticket to ride.
Elizabeth would later be nominated again for an Academy Award for this movie, and as a fan, I thought she more than deserved it. Her last scene was remarkable and startling. Naturally, as most people know who were around then, Elizabeth did not win for this movie, either. However, the following year on the set of "Cleopatra", Elizabeth fell ill and newspapers reported her near death. When "Butterfield 8" was released the following year, she was again nominated for the award. Because of her near-death experience, "the scandal" was forgiven and Elizabeth received the long-awaited Academy Award for a movie she truly did not like. What this proves is, posters are powerful tools. The right poster can make all the difference in the world. In this case, it sold a movie.
In the late '50s, there was a scandal to rival all of the ones happening today. And Elizabeth Taylor was made a pariah throughout the world. After Mike Todd's death, Elizabeth Taylor made the unwise choice of choosing Eddie Fisher as her lover and husband. In hindsight, I'm sure Elizabeth would have been happy to let Debbie keep him! But I'm not sure Debbie would have done that if "the scandal" hadn't happened. But happen it did.
Eddie Fisher was one of Mike Todd's friends, not his best friend, and certainly if Mike had seen what happened after his death, I don't think Eddie would have been his friend at all. Be all this as it may, the reality of the situation for all parties was this: Elizabeth Taylor made some of her finest movies during the '50s, "A Place in the Sun", "Giant", "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", and "Suddenly, Last Summer". She had been nominated for an Academy Award many times during these years, but because of "the scandal", her chances were slim. She gave a remarkable performance in "Suddenly, Last Summer" and she should have definitely gotten the Academy Award for this movie, but at the time, the producers were seriously worried that no one would even go see the movie. To put it simply, the movie was about homosexuality and cannibalism, and remember, this was the '50s! So how do you sell a movie with such dire and heavy overtones, despite having the world's most beautiful woman as the lead? This is what the producers did.
They made a poster.
The poster was of Elizabeth Taylor in a very sheer, white bathing suit, looking extraordinarily sexy and provocative. The producers knew this was their key to getting people in the theatre and the poster worked. This was the poster from "Suddenly, Last Summer" that was the ticket to ride.
Elizabeth would later be nominated again for an Academy Award for this movie, and as a fan, I thought she more than deserved it. Her last scene was remarkable and startling. Naturally, as most people know who were around then, Elizabeth did not win for this movie, either. However, the following year on the set of "Cleopatra", Elizabeth fell ill and newspapers reported her near death. When "Butterfield 8" was released the following year, she was again nominated for the award. Because of her near-death experience, "the scandal" was forgiven and Elizabeth received the long-awaited Academy Award for a movie she truly did not like. What this proves is, posters are powerful tools. The right poster can make all the difference in the world. In this case, it sold a movie.
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