Interesting facts about the making of 1963's "Cleopatra."
1. "Cleopatra" is infamous for marking the beginning of the heated love affair between Burton and Taylor, which lasted until his death in 1984. However, Liz and Dick had met long before the Queen of Egypt and Marc Antony arrived on set. It is said that Taylor previously found Burton to be brutish and boorish. Yet when Burton showed up to shoot the film on his first day with such a severe hangover that Taylor had to help him drink a cup of coffee, she apparently found him to be very endearing.
2. Early on in production, Taylor became ill with what has been called both "Asian Flu" and "Malta Fever." She was rushed to the hospital in London and soon fell into a coma. Eventually, Taylor underwent an emergency tracheotomy that saved her life. The scar from the procedure can be seen in various shots in the film.
3. Due to Taylor's illness, production had to be shut down for six months and eventually relocated from London to Rome because the English weather was so detrimental to Taylor's health.
4. The film is known as one of the most expensive movies ever made and nearly caused 20th Century Fox to go bankrupt. Its budget of $44 million is equivalent to $334 million in 2013 dollars.
5. While the epic had an original budget of $2 million, costs increased to $44 million mainly because the original elaborate sets and costumes that were used in London had to be completely reconstructed in Rome.
6. The sets that were abandoned at the Pinewood Studios in London were used for the 1964 comedy film "Carry On Cleo."
7. Another reason for the increase in production costs was the loss of actors Stephen Boyd and Peter Finch, who left the film due to the elongated delays and their commitment to other projects. They were replaced by Richard Burton and Rex Harrison in the roles of Marc Antony and Julius Caesar.
8. When filming began in 1960 in London, Rouben Mamoulian was attached as the director. However, he ended up leaving the project in 1961. Since Taylor's contract gave her director approval, she only gave the studio two choices for Mamoulian's replacement: George Stevens and "All About Eve" director Joseph L. Mankiewicz. At the time, Stevens was busy filming "The Greatest Story Ever Told" so Mankiewicz was hired as director.
9. In fact, Mankiewicz was fired during post-production. Since there was no actual shooting script because there was no time for a rewrite, Mankiewicz wrote as he shot. However, 20th Century Fox realized that only Mankiewicz could properly edit the film, so they rehired him to complete it.
10. Joan Collins, Audrey Hepburn, and Susan Hayward were at first considered to play Cleopatra. After various issues, producer Walter Wanger called Taylor on the set of her latest film, "Suddenly, Last Summer" to offer her the role through her then husband Eddie Fisher. Joking, Taylor replied "Sure, tell him I'll do it for a million dollars." While such an offer was unheard of at the time, it was accepted, and in 1959 Taylor became the first Hollywood actor to receive $1 million for a single movie.
