Cleopatra at 60: new book reveals ‘stunning profligacy’ of infamous Hollywood epic

The Observer’s critics saw the ‘ordeal in Rome’ and now a new book reveals why it flopped

Sixty years ago, the Hollywood studio system crumbled under the weight of a failed blockbuster – and the Observer’s coverage did not help.

On this weekend in 1963, the newspaper ran the second of three special features on the most expensive flop ever made – Cleopatra, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Called “The Ordeal in Rome”, the article even had its own logo, featuring mirror images of Cleopatra’s profile.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/YJrB0Vy

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