Liberace

Wladziu Valentino Liberace (May 16, 1919 – February 4, 1987), better known by the stage name Liberace (and known to his friends as Lee), was a charismatic American entertainer.

Lawsuits

His fame in the US was paralled for a time in the UK. In 1957 an article in The Daily Mirror by veteran columnist "Cassandra" (William Connor) mentioned that Liberace was "...the summit of sex - the pinnacle of masculine, feminine, and neuter. Everything that he, she and it can ever want... a deadly, winking, sniggering, snuggling, chromium-plated, scent-impregnated, luminous, quivering, giggling, fruit-flavored, mincing, ice-covered heap of mother love," a description which did everything it could to imply he was homosexual without saying so. Liberace sued for libel, testified in a London court that he was not a homosexual, had never taken part in homosexual acts, and won.

Related Topics:
UK - The Daily Mirror - William Connor - Libel

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For years Liberace had joked "I don't mind the bad reviews, but George cries all the way to the bank." The £8,000 ($15,145) damages he received from The Daily Mirror led Liberace to alter this catchphrase to "I cried all the way to the bank!" http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-cry1.htm

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In 1982, Liberace's live-in boyfriend of some five years, Scott Thorson, sued the pianist for $113 million in palimony after an acrimonious split up. Liberace continued to deny he was homosexual. In 1984 most of Thorson's claim was dismissed although he received a $95,000 settlement.

Related Topics:
1982 - Palimony - 1984

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http://www.bobsliberace.com/decades/1980s/1980s.html

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