Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and their daughters Liza Todd and Kate Burton, photographer by Murray Garrett at Disneyland, 1968.
“When I say that some of my most fascinating assignments were to cover Hollywood families, that was certainly true of a day in 1968 that I spent with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton on a visit to Disneyland with Liza Todd and Kate Burton. If you ever wanted an example to show how superstars are just plain folk, this was it. At the beginning of the outing, everything about it was strictly VIP. We left Los Angeles International Airport in a chartered helicopter and landed at a heliport near Disneyland.
We were met by a Disney employee, who drove us to the park and escorted us to Walt Disney’s personal apartment. There the special treatment ended.
From the moment we stepped on the park’s sidewalk, the Burton-Taylor family was on its own. I was continually amused at how much their kids were like my own-especially when it came to demands and complaints.
Also familiar were many of Burton’s reactions to the children, where he told them how lucky they were ‘to be able to even be here, insisted on ‘no ice cream before lunch, and protests that ‘you are just too big for us to carry you-we’re tired, too!’
Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton cared deeply for each other, and they adored their children. Although their successful careers caused long and no doubt painful separations from their families, when they were able to be together, it was quality time, filled with warmth and love.”
