Show Tj!':' "!?!GV'(WJ In a way it wasn't surprising that — JW' Ten days before crash Todds lunch with Cohn (right) I t - T ! i if w 1 f i p I fife 53ntjpl U©IEDUn333flEn3G practically the first boy to show real interest in Liz also became her first husband According to friends "The marriage was doomed before it started" Nicky Hilton was only fours years older than Liz a playboy and every bit as spoiled as she His father had sent him to hotel school in Switzerland but Nicky had more fun giving parties After a few months he became such a disturbing influence that he was asked to leave the school He was as incapable of accepting responsibilities as his bride Their marriage started with the most publicized wedding in recent Hollywood history and led to a turbulent honeymoon in Europe where Liz reportedly accused him of excessive gambling and drinking He fought back by claiming she was just a toy wife who "spent too much of his money The quarrels mounted in intensity until Nicky reluctantly agreed to give Liz a divorce It didn't take Liz long to convince herself that what she really needed was an older man who would look after her with gentle understanding Michael Wilding was just the Mght" age — old enough to be her father He claimed to be 39 when he married Liz in London on Feb 21 1952 The best guess is that he was around 44 For two years Liz convinced herself that Michael was all she wanted He was charming gracious understanding If his career lagged behind hers it made no difference Besides she insisted that she didn't really like to work and did it only "because I like to live comfortably" They called each other "Nose" and "Nostril" "Lazy" and "Old Drawers" and other nicknames which nobody could figure out They dressed casually —some people called it sloppily —and lived a lazy uneventful life Their "friends" accepted invitations to the Wilding home more out of curiosity than for a stimulating evening In the meantime Liz and Michael spent money easily even carelessly had to extend a helping hand to help pay the obste- trician's bill for their second child It didn't seem to bother either of them Typical of their attitude was Wilding's present for Liz's birthday a white Cadillac convertible "How can we afford it?" Liz asked "It was easy" Michael replied "I just sold the blue Cadillac you gave me as a present two years ago" yy No one not even the principals involved can explain what makes marriages break up in Hollywood In the case of Liz and Michael Wilding the best guess is that she finally became irked with the easygoing attitude she once admired and also with his apparent unwillingness to work His calmness in face of her increasing anger only kindled more anger But the final factor was the gradual switch 19-year-- old does the future hold for her? Metro-Goldwyn-Ma- conversation but most people were convinced she was simply too lazy to think Why should she? Everything came to Liz without effort Liz also had the problem of growing up too fast "I was a child one day and an adult the next" she complained Physically this was true But if she kept pace mentally it was a secret — even after two well-hidd- en marriages Liz had difficulty discussing any subject except movies and animals She was unable to make friends because she had no interest in anyone except her current beau or husband She could capitalize on her beauty but on nothing else —until- she met - Mike Todd Before him the only satisfaction she derived from life was her work While she would be late for most appointments she was always on time on the set and never came unprepared for the day's shooting After her marriage to Hilton Liz admitted she was completely unprepared for the responsibilities of matrimony She'd had only a few dates with boys her age and strange as it may seem often had a hard time finding any date at all Fellows were too awed by her position to ask her out i Frequently her mother would talk her brother Howard into taking her to parties which he did reluctantly because as he put it "Nobody wants a movie star tagging along" yer in relationships— Liz the bride who wanted to lean on somebody found herself bolstering an increasingly dependent husband Rumors that "another man" had entered the picture — perhaps Montgomery Gift or Rock Hudson— were never taken seriously by anybody but Hollywood's more malicious gossips When she and Michael separated Liz showed no more regret than she had when she left Nicky Hilton The marriage like life itself had been a bore there was nothing to look back to or forward to except her sons Michael Howard now 5 and Christopher Edward now 3 Liz still So at 24 reigned as Hollywood's most beautiful woman— and most empty one twice-divorc- ed Then the incredible Mike Todd burst upon the scene—the brash boisterous sometimes crude always Boy Wonder of Broadway and Hollywood A millionaire before he could vote Mike made and lost fortunes as other men change shirts "I have been broke many times but I have never been poor" he used to say There was about the same age difference between Liz and Mike Todd as there had been between her and Michael Wilding At the time of his death Mike's age was given as 50 But he looked and acted so young that Liz once remarked with a grin "Sometimes I think I'm too old for Mike" Mike's influence on Liz was immediate and spectacular He brought out a quality which her closest associates never thought she possessed: he made her interesting Mike himself vibrated excitement that attracted people to him just as Liz's beauty attracted people to her And this excitement rubbed off on her Yet if the marriage of Mike" and Liz was "ideal" it was also hectic There was a constant cycle of fights reconciliations and gifts Mike loved the publicity that went with it and Liz insisted she enjoyed arguments be cause it was so much fun to make up again— particularly with such presents as a Rolls Royce and diamond tiara to salve her feelings The change in Liz became evident to everyone who kneW her Until she met Mike reporters dreaded interviewing her she never had anything to say Once when asked about a tour of Europe she said "It was nice" Crossing the main street in Cactus Junction would have sounded like a more thrilling experience How different was her account of a trip to Moscow with Mike last Winter! Without being coaxed she gave a detailed and informative report on everything from Russian fashions to their attitude toward Americans Indications of the "new" Liz were even more evident in her attitude toward work Except when she was before the cameras Liz used to be as disinter- wise-cracki- ng self-assur- ed (Continued on page 23) Family Weekly July 20 195 |