The Girl Who Later Became a Famous Actress Married Her Eighth Husband on This Day 34 Years Ago

Exactly 34 years ago, a construction worker and a global actress exchanged vows in a star-studded wedding that stunned the entertainment world.

On October 6, 1991, this legendary actress married blue-collar groom Larry Fortensky at Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch, marking her eighth and final trip down the aisle. Their unlikely romance became the stuff of tabloid fascination, and though the marriage didn't last, it ended not in scandal, but in enduring affection.

Sparks Fly Behind Clinic Walls

It was behind the guarded doors of the Betty Ford Clinic in 1988, where fate intervened. The global icon, returning for her second time, was 56 years old.

He was 36, a sun-baked construction worker with a troubled past. Arrested more than once for driving under the influence, he had crashed a truck before checking into the clinic. The Teamsters Union Insurance picked up the tab for his stay.

She would later call him "Larry the Lion." In a 2011 interview with The Daily Mail, Larry said, "I knew who she was, of course, but I can't tell you that I remember watching any of her films."

As the weeks passed, their connection turned unmistakable. He became deeply protective, bristling at how the clinic's rigorous rehab methods pushed her to the brink. Still, both were enrolled for six weeks, and during that time, their emotional bond grew into something neither had expected.

He confessed that she was beautiful and admitted he wasn't "bad-looking" either. Additionally, he commented that the person he met "was the real woman with none of that stuff that normally goes on around a movie star. We bonded fast."

She was drawn to his simplicity, utterly captivated by a man untouched by the trappings of fame. Back then, he was a twice-divorced high school dropout from Stanton, California, raised in a working-class family, and living a life so ordinary that he had never once flown on an airplane.

A Hidden Love and a Limo in the Mud

According to Larry, their romance didn't begin until after they left Betty Ford. But not everyone bought that story, not even his own sister, Donna.

Either way, the spark had caught, and it flared during a time when Larry was still recovering from the crash that had landed him in rehab and left him without a car.

So the Hollywood starlet would send a limo driver to pick him up from his home. But Larry's place was so remote that the limo would often end up stuck in the mud. And while this discreet romance unfolded, his own family had no clue he was even seeing her.

Donna recalled one visit when she overheard Larry call someone "honey." Sensing something, she directly asked if he was dating the superstar, but Larry, ever guarded, told her to mind her own business.

Then came Christmas 1988, when the actress invited Larry into her house, the kind of property he had only ever seen from the outside, usually while working on construction sites. "I went for a few days and never left," he revealed.

A real Van Gogh was hanging on the wall, a full household staff, and elite security guarding every corner. It was another universe, and Larry had been welcomed inside it.

Helicopters, Paparazzi, and a Parachute Intruder

Exactly 34 years ago today, the wedding of the decade unfolded in true Hollywood extravagance. It was everything the public expected from a global icon.

More than 200 celebrity guests gathered to watch the couple say "I do" beneath a white gazebo nestled on the King of Pop's Neverland Ranch in California's lush Santa Ynez Valley.

The bride's close friend, Carole Bayer Sager, stood beside her as maid of honor, while celebrity hairstylist Jose Eber served as Larry's best man. But even amidst the pageantry, chaos reigned from above.

Larry said he could barely remember their vows over the helicopter paparazzi flying over the estate. Security had its hands full. One photographer even parachuted onto the property, only to be caught before snapping a single shot.

Inside the reception, things were no less surreal. "Michael Jackson spent the night on the dance floor with a small black kid under his arm," Larry recalled. "She loved Michael. She never believed any of the child-abuse rumours [sic]. I wasn't so sure."

The guest list read like the who's who of Hollywood royalty: Liza Minnelli, Eddie Murphy, Gregory Peck, Nancy Reagan, and more.

While the actress, Elizabeth Taylor, surrounded herself with luminaries, Larry kept it humble, inviting only his siblings to witness the spectacle that would go down in tabloid history.

Snow Angels, Secret Burgers, and A Cheeky Bird

During his interview with the Daily Mail, Larry opened a private treasure trove of memories. Among the keepsakes was a snapshot from Switzerland in 1992, where Elizabeth is seen lying in the snow.

He remembered the moment vividly. They had still been in bed when she suddenly decided she wanted to play outside. Without hesitation, she threw on a coat, stepped into the cold, collapsed into the snow, and burst into laughter as she waved her arms to make a snow angel.

"That is my favourite picture. I keep it by my bed," he continued. "That's how I remember Elizabeth. She had a childishness about her. She was 20 years older than me but I never felt she was old."

More memories came pouring out. One of his favorites was riding a Harley together along the Pacific Coast Highway, a bike she had given him for their second Christmas together.

To stay incognito, Elizabeth would wear a helmet, and together they would stop at biker bars for burgers, blending in with the crowd.

"People would pretend not to know who she was. Elizabeth loved that. She loved a burger and a beer. She was down-to-earth, or at least as much as she could be for someone who'd been a star since she was a kid," Larry recalled.

She also had a pet parrot named Alvin. She trained the bird to call out, "Larry, Larry." Larry wasn't amused. "That [expletive] bird had the same voice as her. I'd be running all over the house," he also admitted.

When it came to gift-giving, Larry never tried to outdo her. He knew better. She once gave him a BMW for his birthday. He, in turn, gave her chocolate-covered roses one Christmas and even gifted her a dog. "When we went to England for her birthday I bought her a Shih-tzu called Sugar. She loved that dog," Larry shared.

From the outside, it may have seemed like a fantasy. But Larry insisted he never wanted to be a kept man. Even while married to one of the world's most famous women, he continued to work, refusing to rely on her wealth.

He got up early like everyone else and headed to his job. But she got up with him to eat breakfast. "Don't be crazy," he scoffed when asked if the actress made their food. "Elizabeth never cooked. She'd go back to bed after I left."

Still, she made sure he was taken care of. A private chef prepared and had someone deliver his lunch to the work site, something his coworkers teased him about.

After his shift, Larry came home to eat dinner with her. Later, the two of them would settle in to watch movies, though never one of hers.

Cracks Behind the Glamor

The bliss that Larry and Elizabeth had shared for a few golden years slowly began to fracture under the weight of their differences.

At her insistence, Larry gave up his construction job and began accompanying her on trips. But for a man who took pride in his work and identity, it left him feeling lost and stifled.

As Elizabeth's health declined, their intimacy waned. Larry moved out of their shared bedroom. His sister Donna later said it was "the beginning of the end."

It wasn't just the change in routine. Larry had also grown weary of the constant, suffocating attention that followed them constantly.

"Everywhere we went there were cameras. Elizabeth would put lipstick on constantly because she said she never knew when she was being photographed. I found it hard," he confessed. "It wasn't my cup of tea, those cameras everywhere. Elizabeth was used to it. I never got used to it."

A Million Dollars and a Letter of Love

In 1996, the end finally came. Elizabeth asked for a divorce, admitting that they were both miserable, and she didn't want to see the relationship crumble into something ugly.

Once separated, Larry returned to his ordinary life, only now with over a million dollars in his name. But peace was short-lived.

In 1999, Larry suffered a devastating accident that left him unable to work. Medical bills piled up into the thousands, and a series of poor real estate investments chipped away at the rest of his savings.

Despite everything, he and Elizabeth remained in touch, speaking several times a month. After learning about his accident, she wrote him a letter filled with concern for his well-being and bank account. She promised to send him money every month, either until she passed away or until her money ran out.

Larry accepted the help, but only reluctantly. Later, when Donna told Elizabeth he was on the verge of losing his home, she sent more. But it still wasn't enough. The house was later repossessed.

Tragically, money became poison in Larry's relationships. Fights over finances erupted with his own siblings. In time, he cut off his sister, Linda, for talking to the National Enquirer and even severed ties with his daughter, Julie, who tried to get money after his accident.

The Final Goodbye

Though their marriage had ended, Elizabeth and Larry still cared deeply for one another, which made their last conversation all the more bittersweet and haunting.

Their final phone call took place the day before Elizabeth went to the hospital. Her voice sounded off because of the fluid in her lungs caused by her long battle with heart disease. Despite her condition, she told him everything would be alright.

Larry would not speak to her again. She died on March 23, 2011. He learned about it days later, not from a call, but while watching television. She was 79 years old.

"I was so shocked. I was so sure she would get to go home and I would talk to her once again," he said.

Some time later, papers arrived from her lawyers. Inside was a final gesture of affection. Elizabeth Taylor had left him a large sum of money in her will. Still, the bulk of her fortune went to her children, as expected.

"I love her, I always will. And I know she loved me, too," he told the Daily Mail. Larry died in 2016 at the age of 64, closing the chapter on one of Hollywood's most unlikely and heartwarming love stories.