21. Welcome to Dubrovnik - Turistička zajednica grada Dubrovnika

Screen LegendBy MARIJA BIKIĆElzabeth Taylor &Richard Burton in DubrovnikElizabeth Taylor and RichardBurton are certainly consideredto be one of the most famouslove couples in the history, and theirturbulent relationship and even twomarriages were rarely out of the news.In the 1970s, the famous couple residedfor one month in Dubrovnik’s orientalstyleVilla Scheherazade, an extension ofthe Argentina Hotel, while Richard wasshooting the film Sutjeska.- Elizabeth Taylor was a true lady anda film star. Although rather short, shewas famous for her exquisite beauty anddistinctive violet eyes. Her outstandingpersonality was of the kind you seldomfind in the film world nowadays, whichis the reason why the fame of themajority of present-day starlets andactresses is brief and quickly forgotten.«Liz was a very kind person, whileBurton had a difficult Welsh character»,says Nikša Baničević, the Grand VillaArgentina front office manager, recallingafter four decades his encounter withone of the last great Hollywood stars,the legendary Elizabeth Taylor, whorecently died at the age of 79.Aged forty at the time, Elizabeth vasa very relaxed person, which can beconcluded from a story which tookplace shortly before her departure forthe Brijuni Islands in order to meetwith Josip Broz Tito.While the aeroplanewas waiting forher to leave for theBrijuni Islands, theHollywood star -already runningbehind schedule - wasrelaxedly havingher coffee at theDubrovnik Orientalvilla. When her hostsdiscretely remindedher that she shouldhave been on theBrijuni Archipelagoin Tito’s company bythen, she leisurelyreplied with the most enchanting smile:«Tito is a gentleman, he will wait.»Elizabeth was not arrogant at all. Onthe contrary, she occasionally askedthe young Nikša to keep her companywhile her beloved Richard was on thefilm set. However, even when they weretogether, the famous couple at timesslept in separate rooms at the VillaScheherazade.As a true lady, Elizabeth respected theVilla Argentina personnel. The daybefore she left, she invited them to adinner at the nearby Rustica Tavern atthe Excelsior Hotel. Having savouredmussels, they were throwing the emptyshells into the sea, explaining thattheir gesture had ecological motives.In addition to mussels, Elizabethenjoyed other specialities, particularlythe combination of melon and localsmoked ham, from which the thenVilla Argentina’s chef, Antun Kramer,considerately removed all the fat.During her Dubrovnik stay, Elizabethremained faithful to her favourite drinkJack Daniels with freshly squeezedorange juice.As one would expect from a greatfilm star, Elizabeth had some specialrequests. For her black cat Clay thehotel kitchen specially prepared thefinely chopped beef, like for steak tartarebut without spices.She, of course, travelled with glamorousclothes worthy of a diva. The hotelmaids were astonished by Elisabeth’s150 pairs of shoes – which at the timewas a lot indeed, hats, hair extensions– the then latest fashion, and many,many different clothes, the storage ofwhich required two rooms at the VillaScheherazade. Not to mention thejewellery! She brought such a hugecollection that the hotel safe wasn’tlarge enough. Instead, she kept it in aspecial bag at her bedside. Some of theitems included the world’s most famousjewels.Before leaving the hotel, Elizabeth like atrue lady gave her small hotel attendantteam a tip which at the time equalledtheir two or three monthly salaries.30 DOBRODOŠLI U DUBROVNIK LJETO 2011.