Happy 81st Birthday to the Late Elizabeth Taylor! What’s Her Most Underrated Moment?

Elizabeth Taylor in Giant, achieving the impossible task of being the
gayest thing in this picture. (With Rock Hudson and James Dean.)

What are you supposed to do, not celebrate Elizabeth Taylor‘s birthday? The venerable violet-eyed legend (not to be confused with Violet Venable — that’s Katharine Hepburn‘s role in Suddenly, Last Summer, not Elizabeth’s) would’ve been 81 years old today, and I thought we’d commemorate the occasion with a simple question: What’s Liz’s most underrated moment?

I could bore you with familiar references to Reflections in a Golden Eye or her long, lovely scenes of pure dialogue in Giant (Is it just me or does nobody ever talk about her work in that movie?), but I’ll hit you with this televised stunner: In 1954, Liz appeared on What’s My Line? and blew away the panelists, audience, and host John Daly with a comical Southern Belle voice and awesome improvisational skills. Seriously, she’s shucking out quips left and right here! One of the all-time great What’s My Line appearances, up there with Debbie Reynolds, Esther Williams, Salvador Dali, and Rosalind Russell. Fine detective work as usual by Dorothy Kilgallen.

And for the hell of it, here are five priceless Liz Taylor GIFs highlighting her best qualities:

1. Passion

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2. Comely rage

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3. Rancor

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4. Joy

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5. Adored by gay men

(Source)

Your turn. What’s her underrated triumph?