The Rise of Paparazzi: How Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton Redefined Celebrity Culture

When Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton met and fell in love on the set of Cleopatra in 1962, despite their marriages and the scandal it caused, their headline-grabbing affair coined a term now familiar in pop culture: paparazzi. Today, it’s hard to imagine a world without the relentless presence of photographers hounding celebrities, but this term wasn’t always a part of the cultural lexicon. Everyone wanted a piece of the Taylor-Burton epic romance and the paparazzi were clamoring to capitalize on the huge financial opportunity to fulfill the insatiable demand for images from media outlets. 

The term paparazzi itself has its origins in Italian cinema, specifically in Federico Fellini’s 1960 film La Dolce Vita. The movie featured a photographer character named Paparazzo, who epitomized the intrusive, boundary-crossing nature of tabloid photography. However, Elizabeth and Richard’s personal encounters with these photographers transformed Paparazzo into paparazzi — a term forever tied to the celebrity experience — and manifested Fellini’s fantasy into a full-fledged fact of life for the movie star couple.

As the Burtons’ fame grew, so did the frenzy. The couple's love affair was glamorized with tabloid-worthy parties and public spats, fueling the demand for more photos and stories. The word paparazzi soon entered mainstream culture, coming to define not just the photographers themselves but also the intense public interest in the personal lives of celebrities.

Out of their undeniable passion and the very human act of falling in love, Elizabeth and Richard established the modern definition of celebrity couple and mastered the delicate balance between fame and privacy, while (like it or not) making paparazzi a fixture of modern fame.