Kim Kardashian: Elizabeth Taylor inspired me - let her legacy continue

"I was ever drawn to Elizabeth Taylor," says Kim Kardashian.

The media property was the past idiosyncratic to person a published interrogation with Taylor earlier she died successful 2011. The interrogation - for Harper's Bazaar mag - featured a photoshoot inspired by the star's celebrated relation successful the 1963 movie Cleopatra.

"We were really expected to conscionable up for beverage astatine her house, and past she fell ill," Kardashian says.

Instead, the brace arranged to talk implicit the phone. What struck her, she remembers, was Taylor's attack to life.

"We were talking astir warring for people," Kardashian says. "She understood her powerfulness and her beauty."

Taylor's beingness - from her Oscar wins to her 7 husbands - is explored successful caller BBC documentary bid Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar.

Kardashian - who has much than 360 cardinal followers connected Instagram aft archetypal rising to fame connected world TV bid Keeping Up With the Kardashians - serves arsenic an enforcement shaper connected the bid and explains however the movie prima inspired her.

"There's truthful galore young radical I privation to punctual oregon adjacent thatch them astir who she is," she says.

Kardashian wants to "ensure" Taylor's bequest continues.

Taylor, calved successful 1932, was successful the nationalist oculus for astir of her life. She moved from England to Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, erstwhile she was 7 - and had her archetypal deed movie with National Velvet astatine the property of 12.

She went connected to beryllium the archetypal histrion to motion a cardinal dollar declaration for a azygous film, for Cleopatra, and her romanticist narration with co-star Richard Burton sparked a paparazzi frenzy.

"She was precise honorable astir her emotion beingness and she would evidently autumn successful and retired of love," Kardashian says, adding "she loved love".

Taylor's 8 marriages - she joined Welsh histrion Burton doubly - were heavy publicised.

And successful the 1980s, the prima would spell connected to usage her spotlight to run for Aids patients.

"What truly moved maine [is] however she would combat for radical that were voiceless, and however she was truthful passionate astir it," Kardashian says.

In 1985, Taylor helped recovered the American Foundation for Aids Research (amfAR), a period earlier her adjacent person Rock Hudson died from an Aids-related illness.

She was instrumental successful getting US president Ronald Reagan to talk astatine a meal for the organisation aft years of mostly avoiding the taxable - and she sold the exclusive photos from her eighth wedding to commencement the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation successful 1991.

Kardashian says Taylor's engagement successful Aids activism, astatine a clip erstwhile fewer celebrities spoke up, is "completely inspiring".

"The main happening is that she conscionable did not care," Kardashian says, "the scrutiny was worthy the assistance that she was capable to accomplish."

She adds that Taylor is idiosyncratic she would "look to" erstwhile approaching her situation betterment advocacy. In 2018, she met with Donald Trump to sermon the taxable and lobbied the White House for the merchandise of Alice Johnson, a great-grandmother jailed for 2 decades. And successful April, she met Kamala Harris to sermon pardons issued by President Joe Biden.

"I cognize that erstwhile I bash situation betterment enactment and radical deliberation it's too, maybe, brainsick of a taxable to truly get progressive in, you conscionable deliberation of her."

Kardashian had different connections to the Hollywood star, too.

"I would ever perceive a batch astir Elizabeth Taylor," Kardashian says, explaining she erstwhile dated a nephew of Michael Jackson and recalls seeing "beautiful paintings" of Taylor successful the singer's location (Jackson and Taylor were adjacent friends).

Kardashian besides remembers Taylor gifting her a vessel of her signature White Diamonds perfume. "I volition cherish that forever," she says, adding her famous jewellery collection inspired her too.

Some of the items successful her postulation were named aft her relationships, similar the Mike Todd tiara and the Taylor-Burton diamond.

"I conscionable thought that was truthful amusive and inspiring," Kardashian says. "There was a clip erstwhile I stopped wearing jewellery for a portion and past I deliberation of her, she was truthful unapologetically herself, and I conscionable emotion that."

She says she is excited for radical to spot the documentary series.

"My sisters privation to ticker it, my ma and my grandma. So that makes maine truly proud. When each procreation wants to spot it.

"I conscionable truly privation radical to recognize that she was everything: she could beryllium the glamorous actress, she could beryllium having a hard clip and going done wellness issues and past she tin besides beryllium the strongest activist."

You tin ticker Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar connected BBC iPlayer.