God’s eye may be on the sparrow but my eye will always be on you

Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton are known far more for their intense and turbulent relationship than for the eleven films they made together (which include Cleopatra (1963) and the 1966 acclaimed Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?). The couple met at a Hollywood party in 1953 and in his diary Burton recalled seeing Elizabeth, who was already a star at 21, for the first time: "... a girl sitting on the other side of the pool lowered her book, took off her sunglasses and looked at me. She was so extraordinarily beautiful that I nearly laughed out loud ... she was unquestioningly gorgeous ... She was lavish. She was a dark unyielding largess. She was, in short, too bloody much, and not only that, she was totally ignoring me.” They would meet again almost ten years later on the set of Cleopatra, their first film together, and it was during the first love scene that sparks started flying, with their kiss taking a lot longer than necessary. Married to other people —Elizabeth to singer Eddie Fisher and Burton to actress Sybil Williams— the two soon embarked on a heavily publicised love affair. The affair was met with public disapproval as well as criticism from the U.S. Congress and the Vatican, the latter condemning the couple for "erotic vagrancy". 

Once divorced from their spouses, "Liz and Dick" —as they were dubbed by the tabloid press that followed them wherever they went— were married on 15 March 1964. They divorced in 1974, then remarried in 1975 and divorced again less than a year later. Their life together had been one of extreme luxury, with millions spent on diamonds, furs, art, grand hotels, a yacht and a jet, et cetera. Also a lot of heavy drinking was involved (by both Burton and Taylor) as well as vicious fighting. After their final divorce, the couple remarried other people but the bond between them would never be broken. Looking back, Elizabeth said later in life: "After Richard, the men in my life were just there to hold the coat, to open the door. All the men after Richard were really just company." And in an interview with Vogue, she admitted: "I was still madly in love with him the day he died. I think he still loved me, too." 

During their time together, Richard Burton wrote Elizabeth Taylor many letters, one of them seen below. In the letter, written in June 1973, he said goodbye to Elizabeth after she had told him their marriage was over. Burton was a womaniser and had several affairs during the marriage and Elizabeth had had enough. It would still take a year, though, before the couple had their first divorce.

Also shown is a passionate love letter from Elizabeth to Richard, written in March 1974 on the occasion of their 10-year wedding anniversary. Shortly thereafter, the couple separated and three months later they were divorced. 

 

June 25, 1973

So My Lumps, 

You’re off, by God! 

I can barely believe it since I am so unaccustomed to anybody leaving me. But reflectively I wonder why nobody did so before. All I care about—honest to God—is that you are happy and I don’t much care who you’ll find happiness with. I mean as long as he’s a friendly bloke and treats you nice and kind. If he doesn’t I'll come at him with a hammer and clinker. God’s eye may be on the sparrow but my eye will always be on you. Never forget your strange virtues. Never forget that underneath that veneer of raucous language is a remarkable and puritanical LADY. I am a smashing bore and why you’ve stuck by me so long is an indication of your loyalty. I shall miss you with passion and wild regret. 

You may rest assured that I will not have affairs with any other female. I shall gloom a lot and stare morosely into unimaginable distances and act a bit—probably on the stage—to keep me in booze and butter, but chiefly and above all I shall write. Not about you, I hasten to add. No Millerinski Me, with a double M. There are many other and ludicrous and human comedies to constitute my shroud. 

I’ll leave it to you to announce the parting of the ways while I shall never say or write one word except this valedictory note to you. Try and look after yourself. Much love. Don’t forget that you are probably the greatest actress in the world. I wish I could borrow a minute portion of your passion and commitment, but there you are—cold is cold as ice is ice.

Source:  Letters of Note

Source: Paul Fraser Collectibles

Transcript:

My darling (my still) My husband 

I wish I could tell you of my love for you, of my fear, my delight, my pure animal pleasure of you - (with you) - my jealousy, my pride, my anger at you, at times.

Most of all my love for you, and whatever love you can dole out to me - I wish I could write about it but I can't. I can only "boil and bubble" inside and hope you understand how I really feel.

Anyway, I lust thee 

Your (still) Wife 

P.S. O'Love, let us never take each other for granted again! 

P.P.S. How about that - 10 years!!

Note: On the back of Elizabeth's letter the following was written: "This letter written by Elizabeth Taylor while renting my home from Feb 15th till April 18th 1974. It was left behind - inside a book in the drawer under the masterbedroom bed." Elizabeth and Richard had rented a private home in Oroville, California, while Burton was filming The Klansman. The owner of the house Antonia Henning had found Elizabeth's letter after the Burtons had already left. Another letter from Elizabeth to her lost cat Cassius (here) was found in the same drawer.

The critics are going to crucify her

I had never heard of the film Ash Wednesday (1973) until I came across today's letter, written by Richard Burton. The film stars Burton's then-wife Elizabeth Taylor as a middle-aged woman who, in an attempt to save her marriage (her husband is played by Henry Fonda), undergoes plastic surgery and then starts an affair with a playboy (Helmut Berger). While the film is nothing more than a soapy melodrama, the critical reception was still mildly positive, especially for Elizabeth who was also nominated for a Golden Globe. 

Richard Burton was intensely displeased with his wife's participation in Ash Wednesday. In the following letter to Gianni Bozzacchi (personal photographer to both Burton and Elizabeth) Burton rants about what he thought was a "f***ing lousy nothing bloody" film, convinced the critics would crucify Elizabeth. Her only reason for doing the film, he thought, was because she wanted to stay a famous movie star forever ("What the stupid (occasionally) maniac doesn’t realize is that she is already immortalized (as a film person) forever").  

As said, Elizabeth wasn't crucified by the press. Critics who were usually harsh were reasonably mellow in their reviews. Even famed film critic Roger Ebert said that while "the movie's story is not really very interesting, we're intrigued because the star is Taylor".

Source: icollector.com

Transcript:

27 April 1973

(Private)

Dear Gianni

There is perhaps no way for you splendid men to understand my vile temper when I am faced with being on the edges of a film which is essentially vulgar at its base and vicious in its implications. There is not, apart from Elizabeth (possibly) if she acts it well, one single person who shall and will command our sympathy. 

I asked Fonda last night "Why in the name of your God are you doing this piece of shit?" And he replied "For the chance of working with Elizabeth, Richard, and what the hell Richard, I need the bread." "Good enough," I answered. "If you need the loot go in there and get what you can when you can!" 

Once upon a time I did a film (with E) simply for money. 

No longer do I have to do that. E's singular acceptance of this film is because she wants to remain a famous film star. What the stupid (occasionally) maniac doesn’t realize is that she is already immortalized (as a film person) forever. Because films are coming to an end. 

But, day after day, I sit here vulgarised by the idea that my wife is doing —violently against my "taste" a fucking lousy nothing bloody film. The critics are going to crucify her. C'est une huis clos. There is absolutely no way out. Don’t ever show this letter to anybody. I am very fond of you. But indeed to God! That poor child! More and more POOR!

Many Apologies,

Richard

Above: Henry Fonda and Elizabeth Taylor in Ash Wednesday, their only film together. Below: Burton and Taylor, who separated shortly after the shooting of Ash Wednesday. They would divorce in 1974, remarry in 1975 and divorce again in 1976.

It shows that our industry has a warm heart

On 17 April 1961, Elizabeth Taylor received what is generally regarded as a Sympathy Oscar. After having been nominated in the Best Actress category for three consecutive years (i.e. for her performances in Raintree County (1957), Cat On a Hot Tin Roof (1958) and Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)), Elizabeth finally won the Oscar for her role in Butterfield 8 (1960).

The role of call-girl Gloria Wandrous in Butterfield was not a part Elizabeth had wanted to play. In fact, she hated it and she also hated the film. However, due to her contractual obligation to MGM, Elizabeth still owed the studio one more film before she was free to do Cleopatra (1963) for 20th Century-Fox. Butterfield was the film MGM wanted her to make, which she then did under protest. (When Butterfield became a box-office hit she famously said: "I still say it stinks".)

Elizabeth had not been a favourite to win the Oscar, but a few months prior to the ceremony she suddenly became very ill. While filming Cleopatra, she contracted double pneumonia and an emergency tracheotomy was performed to save her life. Thinking that Elizabeth had not survived, some newspapers already ran her obituary. (Joan Collins was standing by to take over Elizabeth's role as Cleopatra in case of her death.) The fact that Elizabeth almost died is considered by many the main reason why she ultimately won. Elizabeth herself later acknowledged that her Oscar win had indeed been a sympathy win: "The reason I got the Oscar was that I had come within a breath of dying of pneumonia only a few months before. Nevertheless, I was filled with gratitude when I got it, for it meant being considered an actress and not a moviestar. My eyes were wet and my throat awfully tight. Any of my three previous nominations was more deserving. I knew it was a sympathy award, but I was still proud to get it."

Elizabeth Taylor, seated next to husband Eddie Fisher, is congratulated on her Oscar win by Greer Garson at the Oscar after-party. Elizabeth won a second Best Actress Oscar for Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966), this time for a performance which earned her much critical acclaim. 

Greer Garson was one of Elizabeth's fellow nominees, being nominated for her role as Eleanor Roosevelt in Sunrise at Campobello. The rest of the nominees were Shirley MacLaine for The Apartment — considered a favourite to win the Oscar, MacLaine would later quip: "I lost to a tracheotomy"—, Deborah Kerr for The Sundowners and Melina Mercouri for Never on Sunday. A month after the Oscar ceremony was held, Garson wrote the following letter to Ted Ashton, unit publicist at Warner Bros., in which she gave her opinion on Elizabeth's "sentimental" Oscar win. 

Incidentally, Greer had won the Golden Globe for her portrayal of Mrs. Roosevelt a month earlier, beating Elizabeth who was also nominated.

Source: icollector.com

Transcript:

May 1, 1961

Dear Ted:

How nice of you to write. Have been out of town and found your letter just now on my return.

Certainly missed you at the Academy Awards presentation and am so disappointed that you were prevented from seeing it even on television. Bob Hope paid me a fine compliment when he introduced me and said I had played E.R. so convincingly that now Westbrook Pegler [journalist who had a feud with Mrs. Roosevelt] hates me! If the award of Oscar this year to Elizabeth was a sentimental award, as many claim, then I am very glad indeed because it shows that our industry, often accused of being cold and cynical, has a warm heart. I for one was well pleased to see it go to her at this time and I am sure it will speed her good recovery. She is a fine actress, too, and has done splendid work before and will do lots more, I am sure. As for me, I was thrilled and very happy to have a nomination and to be part of the whole exciting business and occasion.

So you speak German... I have been invited to represent the USA as one of the nine judges at the West Berlin Film Festival this summer. I don't think I am going to be free to accept, but if I were I would beg Messrs. Warner and Orr to give you a couple of weeks leave to come along and help me - provided, of course, that it seemed an interesting project to you.

Well, maybe there will be another opportunity before too long for us to work together. I do hope so. Meanwhile, good luck, Amigo, and all the best as always from

Yours sincerely,

(signed 'Greer')
GREER GARSON

-Go here to watch a still weak Elizabeth Taylor receive her Oscar.
-Go here to watch the ever elegant Greer Garson present the Best Actor Oscar after being introduced by Bob Hope (as mentioned in her letter).

Greer Garson and Elizabeth Taylor in Julia Misbehaves (1948), their only film together in which Garson played Elizabeth's mother.

Elizabeth Taylor's letter to her lost cat

Growing up in the English countryside, Elizabeth Taylor loved being around animals and felt more comfortable around them than children her own age (chickens, pigs, horses, cats, dogs etc. —young Liz befriended them all). As she grew older, Elizabeth's profound and unconditional love for animals remained and she once called them her "sweetest and most cherished friends". "I sometimes think I prefer animals to people", she said. "And I was lucky. My first leading men were dogs and horses" (referring to Lassie Come Home (1943) and National Velvet (1944)).

Throughout her life, Elizabeth had numerous pets and among them many cats. One of her beloved cats was Cassius. In 1974 when her then-husband Richard Burton went to Oroville (California) to film The Klansman, Liz accompanied him, bringing Cassius with her. The couple had rented a private house in town, but Cassius had trouble settling into his new environment and soon went missing. Looking everywhere for her furry friend, Liz was unable to find him. Very upset, she then wrote Cassius this touching letter, urging him to come back. Sadly, he never did. 

(The letter was later found in a drawer by the owner of the house, long after the Burtons had left.) 

Source: Letters of Note

Transcript:

Letter to my Lovely Lost Cat

I see you, my beauty boy, in the reflection of those shining black-brown rocks ahead of me. I see the green o’ thy eyes in every rained, sweated leaf shaking in my eyes.

I remember the sweet smell of your fur against my neck when I was deeply in trouble and how, somehow you made it better — you knew! You knew always when I hurt and you made comfort for me, as I did once for you when you were a broken kitten.

Anyway, I love you Cassius — and thank you for your beauty.

Please come back!

A fan - from a fan

Bette Davis, a fan of Elizabeth Taylor — who would have thought? 

Well, apparently Bette was, judging from a note written to Elizabeth for her birthday. Bette's note (accompanying a gift which was "a fan") read: Dear Elizabeth - Happy Birthday - I am one also! Bette

The fan and the note were among the items Elizabeth had kept at her home at 700 Nimes Road, Los Angeles — the house where she lived from 1982 until her death in 2011.

Bette and Elizabeth never worked together, but Elizabeth once did an impersonation of Bette on the big screen. In the opening scene of Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf? (1966), Elizabeth imitates Bette saying the line "What a dump" a few times, a line Bette herself had uttered in the film Beyond the Forest (1949).

November 1981: Bette presents Elizabeth with the Filmex Trustees Award during a ceremony at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.

Source: Public Delivery

I want to do it more than any script I have ever read

Elizabeth Taylor was fed up with the roles MGM kept giving her and wanted better roles, especially after being cast against her will in the period drama Beau Brummell (1954). In 1953, while in Rome with husband actor Michael Wilding, Elizabeth met director Joseph L. Mankiewicz who had started the preparations for his next film The Barefoot Contessa (1954). Elizabeth desparately wanted to play the Maria Vargas part and asked Mankiewicz if she could read the script. Back in London, she wired MGM-executive Benny Thau, letting him know that she had met Mankiewicz in Rome and that she wanted to do The Barefoot Contessa "more than any script [she had] ever read". Much to Elizabeth's dismay, Thau wired back that the role had already been given to Ava Gardner.

Elizabeth's telegram to Thau and her subsequent telegram to Mankiewicz (sent in November 1953) are seen below. Having been denied the role in The Barefoot Contessa, Elizabeth next starred in The Last Time I saw Paris (1954), a film she liked and of which she later said: "[It] convinced me I wanted to be an actress instead of yawning my way through parts."

DEAREST, DARLING BENNY: SAW JOE MANKIEWICZ IN ROME AND ASKED HIM TO LET ME READ BAREFOOT CONTESSA. I WANT TO DO IT MORE THAN ANY SCRIPT I HAVE EVER READ. I KNOW WHAT HAPPENED BETWEEN AVA AND SCHENCK* BUT IF METRO HAS NOTHING IMPORTANT FOR ME, PLEASE HELP ME WITH THIS BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW IT WOULD DO ME MORE GOOD PERHAPS THAN ANYTHING I HAVE EVER DONE. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE BENNY AND LET ME KNOW AS SOON AS POSSIBLE DORCHESTER. FONDEST LOVE, ELIZABETH 

[*Ava Gardner had an affair with movie mogul Joseph Schenck.] 

source: Elizabeth Taylor: The Last Star 

JOE MANKIEWICZ

GRAND HOTEL ROME

DEAR JOE  RECEIVED A SOMEWHAT EMBARRASING [sic] ANSWER FROM BENNY SAYING I WAS MENTIONED BY NOBODY INCLUDING EVIDENTLY BERT OR YOU FOR THE PART AND INFORMING ME THAT AVA WAS ALREADY SET STOP DO WISH THAT YOU COULD HAVE LET ME KNOW STOP BUT THE BEST OF LUCK TO YOU AND THE FILM  I AM SURE IT WILL BE WONDERFUL  LOVE ELIZABETH

source: Bonhams

Above: Joseph Mankiewicz and Elizabeth Taylor during production of Suddenly, Last Summer (1959). While Mankiewicz didn't think Elizabeth was right for The Barefoot Contessa, he would direct her in two films, Suddenly, Last Summer and Cleopatra (1963) // Below: Ava Gardner was chosen to play Maria Vargas in The Barefoot Contessa; here she is in a scene from the film with leading man Humphrey Bogart.

The art of faking letters

The practice of faking letters and documents has existed ever since men started putting pen to paper. While the earliest forgery dates back to the 8th Century and was about gaining political power, now the forger's aim usually is profit. I only recently read about Lee Israel who was a master literary forger in the 1990s. A biographer and editor, Israel had a hard time finding work in the early 1990s and for more than a year, while broke and addicted to alcohol, she made a living manufacturing and selling numerous letters that she said had been written by famous (dead) people. Israel meticulously researched her subjects, bought several period typewriters and stole vintage paper from the library to make her letters appear authentic. (Two of Noël Coward's letters that she forged even ended up in The Letters of Noël Coward, published by Alfred A. Knopf in 2007.) Later Israel even stole original letters from libraries which she would replace with her forgeries, and the originals she then sold. In June 1993, after having been arrested by the FBI, Israel pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six months house arrest and five years probation. Israel's memoir Can You Ever Forgive Me?: Memoirs of a Literary Forger was published in 2008.

The only names of Hollywood actors I found in connection with Israel are Humphrey Bogart and Louise Brooks. Of Bogart Israel did a one-off letter, but Brooks was a subject she used more often. The following Brooks letter is one of Israel's forgeries.

source: vice

Here are three more letters which are not by Israel but which I believe are fake as well. 

Allegedly written by Barbara Stanwyck, the first letter has Barbara call Vivien Leigh a "whore". Seeing that Barbara was such a professional and was even shocked by Joan Crawford's language in this letter, I believe she would never have called Vivien that. But more importantly (as others have pointed out before me), the letter seems to have been written on a computer instead of a typewriter. (Incidentally, I saw the letter being offered on several auction sites, so someone did try to sell it as an authentic Barbara Stanwyck letter.)

via: via margutta 51

The second letter is a letter Bette Davis allegedly wrote to Joan Crawford on the occasion of her birthday and was reportedly found in Bette's desk drawer. I have serious doubts about the stationery used here, it's very unlike the type of stationery I've seen of Bette. And would she really have written this to Joan, calling her "sluttiest MGM star" and "most psychotic" (not to mention the rest of the letter)? But then again, Bette was reported to have said some nasty things about Joan, like when Joan died: "You should never say bad things about the dead, you should only say good... Joan Crawford is dead. Good." Ouch. 

At any rate, I very much doubt this letter is authentic. Makes for fun reading, though.

via: the frisky

And then there's the following note. It was supposedly written by Marlene Dietrich to Elizabeth Taylor, two women who also hated each other. I don't believe this note is genuine either. It looks like someone was trying hard to copy Marlene's handwriting. (For comparison, see this letter where Marlene writes both in small letters and capitals.) As for the content —even though she hated Elizabeth, would Marlene really have written this?

via: opera queen

During a visit to the set of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966), Marlene Dietrich reportedly said to Elizabeth Taylor: “Darling, everyone is so fantastic! You have a lot of guts to perform with real actors."

There is one thing I am a bit worried about...

When Elizabeth Taylor was thirteen years old, she maintained a correspondence with a fan named Jean Grey. I have already posted a letter from Liz to Jean (here) in which she advised Jean to write a story in order to deal with the death of her pet bird. Here are two more letters from Liz: the first one is really sweet and concerns a friendship ring; the second one tells us that Jean had followed Liz's advice and taken up writing. Incidentally, Nibbles and Me (mentioned by Liz in her letters) was a book written and illustrated by Liz about her real life adventures with her pet chipmunk Nibbles. The publisher paid her $1,000 for the story which was originally a school assignment.

Elizabeth Taylor sorting her fan mail

Image: heritage auctions/ reproduced with permission.

Transcript:

February 20th, 1946

Dear Jean,

I must thank you for your two letters, and your cute birthday card and the valentine, which was one of the most beautiful I had, I hope you had lots of valentines too.

There is one thing I am a bit worried about and that is that dear little friendship ring, you see your daddy sent it especially to you from the Pacific, and I'm not sure he would be very happy about you giving it away to anyone, I didn't like to send it right back as it might look as though I didn't want it, but I really think you should take it back, let me know what you think about it, and anyhow I do appreciate the nice thought very much.

So glad you had such a nice birthday. "Nibbles and Me" will be published in April I hope.

All best wishes.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Taylor (signed)

Image: heritage auctions/ reproduced with permission.

Transcript:

March 26th, 1946

Dear Jean,

Yes of course I'll keep the ring, now I know you are sure your father wouldn't mind.

I think your little story about the colt was beautifully written, and I think you should go on writing, there may be a future for you in it, and if not it will always be a tremendous interest, thank you so much for sending me the story. 

My book "Nibbles and Me" is coming out in May, if you read it tell me what you think about it. 

All best wishes.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Taylor (signed)

I liked the little snap you sent me.    

Young Liz's advice to a fan

In January 1946, Elizabeth Taylor was thirteen years old and one of Hollywood's most successful child stars. Her role in National Velvet two years earlier had made her a star, and with her new stardom came the fans and fan mail. After receiving a letter from a distressed young fan, Liz sent her this very charming reply; the girl's pet bird "Chips" had just died, so the young actress tried to offer some words of comfort and advice.

Via: letters of note

Transcript:

January 24th, 1946

Dear Jean,

I was so sorry to hear about your bird dying, Why dont you write a story about Chips? Just as if you were writing to me, and tell all about it right from the beginning, and all the cute things she did. That's what makes stories interesting, to have all the little details just as if you were telling a friend, and soon you'll find how easy it is to write.

Do you want me to tell you when my book comes out? Lots of luck.

Sincerely,

Elizabeth Taylor (signed)

"I might of course have married Olivia de Havilland!"

Richard Burton's Hollywood career was launched in 1952 with the lead role in My cousin Rachel. The man responsible for his American debut was George Cukor, who had seen Burton perform in the play Montserrat and wanted him to star in his new film My cousin Rachel. Cukor himself eventually withdrew from the project (being unhappy with the script), but Burton continued under Henry Koster's direction, earning himself his first Oscar nomination. 

The following note from Richard Burton to George Cukor is undated, but must have been written after 1964 when Burton married Elizabeth Taylor for the first time. In the note, Burton jokes about marrying Olivia de Havilland instead of Elizabeth. De Havilland was Burton's co-star in My cousin Rachel and one of the leading ladies he presumably slept with. (It is reported that Julie Andrews, Burton's co-star in Camelot on Broadway, was his only leading lady he hadn't slept with.) In any case, here is Burton's note to George Cukor, whom he thought was "an infinitely wicked and lovable man as well as being, at his best, one of the very fine directors" (according to Melvyn Bragg's 1988 biography on Richard Burton).

Source: bonhams/ image reproduced with permission

Transcript: 

Dear George,

Do you realize that if you hadn't come to see "Montserrat" I would never have met and married Elizabeth? Do you think that is a good or bad thing? I might of course have married Olivia de Havilland!

Love

Richard.  

The ring is fab!

Elizabeth Taylor was known for her passion for jewelry. At the time of her death (in 2011), she had about $150 million worth of jewels, many of which were gifts from her fifth husband Richard Burton. One of the jewels Burton gave her was a ring known as the Krupp Diamond. On 16 May 1968, Burton acquired the ring at an auction at Sotheby's for $305,000. After Liz's death, the ring became known as the Elizabeth Taylor Diamond and sold for $8.8 million at Christie's. The ring was said to have been Liz's favourite piece of jewelry.

In May 1968, Elizabeth Taylor was staying in Noordwijk, The Netherlands, for production of the film "Secret Ceremony" (1968). A few years earlier, Liz and Richard Burton had been in Noordwijk for Burton's film "The Spy Who Came In From The Cold" (1965), and Liz had such fond memories of the place she wanted the beach scenes of "Secret Ceremony" to be shot there. It was from Noordwijk that Liz sent the following postcard (postmarked 29 May 1968) to her parents. 

Via: gold art

Transcript:

Dear Mom + Dad,

Did you read about my ring?
[drawing] -it's fab!
Love you both
Wish you were here!
Elizabeth
Richard

AIRMAIL
Mr. & Mrs. Francis TAYLOR
2318 Donella Circle
Los Angeles, California 90024
U.S.A.
AIRMAIL

Elizabeth Taylor with her father Francis and mother Sara