A road trip across America stopping at every Kentucky Fried Chicken diner along the way does not sound like an A-list event.
But this particular car was carrying Marlon Brando, Dame Elizabeth Taylor and Michael Jackson.
The unlikely threesome began driving across America in a rental car after planes were grounded in the aftermath of the terror attacks on New York on September 11, 2001, according to Vanity Fair.
Brando, whose weight by this stage in his life had ballooned, was said to have irritated the other two by stopping at almost every Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger King restaurant en route.
Vanity Fair reporter Sam Kashner writes: “Brando allegedly annoyed his travelling companions by insisting on stopping at nearly every KFC and Burger King they passed along the highway.
“One can only imagine the shock their appearance caused at gas stations and rest stops across America.”
According to a former member of Jackson’s staff, the three friends travelled a total of 535 miles. “They actually got as far as Ohio - all three of them, in a car they drove themselves,” he said.
None of the three, of course, is around to substantiate or dispute the bizarre story. Brando died aged 80 in July 2004, Jackson in June 2009, aged 50, and Dame Elizabeth in March this year, aged 79. One of Dame Elizabeth’s friends, however, disputed that she actually went on the trip. At the time, The God-father star Brando was 77, Dame Elizabeth 69 and Jackson 43.
The trip is said to have come about after Jackson invited the other two to New York for his concerts on September 7 and September 10 at Madison Square Gardens.
However, in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist atrocity in which Al Qaeda flew two planes into the World Trade Center, flights in the U.S. were grounded, so the trio resorted to the road for their return to the west coast.
In the Vanity Fair piece the actress’s former personal assistant Tim Mendelson, who worked for her for 25 years, told how the star would spend days in bed watching television. Mr Mendelson said: “She had a genius for creating chaos around her. A typical day was whatever occupied her attention at the moment. That’s what was so great about working for her.
“One day it might be something having to do with the dog, or a friend who needed help.
“Or she might just decide to spend a few days in bed watching television.”
According to the magazine report, at one point Dame Elizabeth also “put her foot down” with Jackson when it came to his habit of asking youngsters to share his bed.
One close friend said: “The only time I ever saw her put her foot down about Michael was when Marlon Brando’s son Miko, who was working as one of Michael’s bodyguards, was rounding up kids for Michael’s sleepovers.
“Elizabeth got wind of it, and she really came down hard. She knew it wasn’t right - she had grandchildren of her own - and that, even if they were the innocent little sleepovers Michael claimed, he was still on dangerous ground.” - Daily Mail
