Why Elizabeth Taylor Once Gifted David Schwimmer’s Mother a Personal Necklace

David Schwimmer’s first “brush” with Hollywood was being the son of Arlene Coleman-Schwimmer, a successful family attorney who worked with some of Hollywood’s elite.

The Friends actor explained during an appearance on the Origins with Cush Jumbo podcast that his mother Arlene was “a big, powerful divorce lawyer” who eventually represented Hollywood starlet Elizabeth Taylor.

Schwimmer, 57, explained to Jumbo, 38, that his mother’s “practice became very successful,” and she represented studio heads and their wives. Although one case was a “big, big deal” to his mother, Schwimmer said it was “not her origin story.” Schwimmer said his mother “grew up as a little girl — or a young woman — wanting to be Elizabeth Taylor.”

“She wanted to be an actress, but her father kind of forbid it because of all the promiscuity and things. So she became a lawyer and then she ended up…,” Schwimmer said before Jumbo interrupted.

“No, you’re not going to say what I think you’re going to say,” Jumbo said.

“Yeah. She ended up representing Elizabeth Taylor, her childhood idol Elizabeth Taylor,” Schwimmer said. “Because she did such a good job for [her], Elizabeth gave her one of her own personal necklaces as a kind of bonus gift to my mom.”

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Taylor, who died in 2011 of heart failure, was married eight times to seven different men. The Cleopatra star married Conrad “Nicky” Hilton Jr. in 1950, Michael Wilding in 1952, Mike Todd in 1957, Eddie Fisher in 1959, Richard Burton in 1964 and 1975, Senator John Warner in 1976, and Larry Fortensky in 1991. All of her marriages ended in divorce, except her marriage to Todd, who died in a plane crash in 1958.

Schwimmer didn’t clarify when his mother represented Taylor.

The People v. O. J. Simpson actor also shed some light on his mother and her career, remarking that “you don’t want to f—” with her. 

“She is one of the most brilliant and can be quite intimidating,” he explained. “They did a cover story on the Los Angeles Times magazine of her and she was called like ‘The Pit bull.’ ” (The article he referred to was published in 1988 and described the attorney as “a street fighter with the tenacity of a pit bull.”)

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“I mean, you don’t mess with her,” Schwimmer said, before adding, “On the other hand, she’s like the warmest, most loving, generous, joyful, she’s the glue of the whole family.” 

“She never forgets anyone’s birthday or occasion; she’s that kind of person,” he explained. “So she’s a really warm, joyful, joyous person. Love of the arts, all the arts.”

Cush asked if Schwimmer has any of those same attributes as his mother, and he confirmed, “Yeah, I’m very much that way, people don’t see that side of me.”