39 Years Ago, This Old Hollywood Star Launched The First Celebrity Perfume Empire

As one of the most sought-after women of her day, it's no surprise that Elizabeth Taylor had certain standards when it came to her appearance. Aside from the old-school beauty tips she never skipped out on, the "Cleopatra" star was extremely particular about her fragrances. And while there were some popular perfumes from the '50s that Hollywood icons adored, Taylor went against the grain and designed her own fragrances, ultimately helping her build the first celebrity perfume empire. Naturally, these fragrances were suited to her tastes, and she wouldn't wear anything else.

"Elizabeth was 100% exclusive to the perfumes that carried her name," Tim Mendelson, close friend and executive assistant to Taylor, exclusively told People (via Elizabeth Taylor). He continued, "She created them as much for herself as for the multitude of women she would share them with, and once in the fragrance business, would never have dreamed of putting one on that was not her own." She came on the scene with a bang with her first-ever fragrance, banding together with Elizabeth Arden in 1987 to produce her iconic perfume, Passion. It was a smashing success, and Taylor followed it up with the launch of Passion for Men in 1989. She continued with another release in 1991 with White Diamonds, which also proved to be hugely popular. However, White Diamonds almost didn't exist.

Elizabeth Taylor's fragrance empire almost ended with her Passion line, as the "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" star wasn't too keen on launching another perfume. "She really didn't want to do another because in her mind, Passion was her fragrance," Mendelson exclusively shared with People. But after reviewing an iteration of a perfume brought in by executive Joe Spellman, Taylor was convinced to get involved. And the name Taylor chose for the fragrance, White Diamonds, was also chock full of personal meaning and history.

Although her love of diamonds served as an inspiration, the fragrance was mainly influenced by the memory of two of her former husbands and what they gifted her. "The two great loves of her life were Mike Todd and Richard Burton, and those two men gave her three great diamonds," Mendelson told the outlet, continuing, "These diamonds, they're epic, and so there's this great legacy with white diamonds." White Diamonds went on to cement Taylor's legacy as a perfume aficionado and mogul, and she continued to expand her perfume range with Gardenia in 2003 and Violet Eyes in 2010. White Diamonds was even honored with a new scent, White Diamonds Icon, on its 35th anniversary in 2026; It's safe to say that Elizabeth Taylor's perfume empire is going strong, even years after her passing.