Elizabeth Taylor ‘Rose from the Ashes’ and Created Her Famous Fragrance White Diamonds, Says Longtime Executive Assistant (Exclusive)

Tim Mendelson speaks to PEOPLE about Taylor’s legacy and the new White Diamonds Icon fragrance

NEED TO KNOW

• In 1991, when Elizabeth Taylor created White Diamonds, she was in love with Larry Fortensky, who became her 7th husband
• In the previous few years, she’d returned to rehab (where she met Fortensky) and had a health scare that might have killed her — but then recovered and, at 59, was “in full bloom”
• To mark the 35th anniversary of White Diamonds, a new fresh interpretation White Diamond Icon makes its debut July 20

In 1991, the year Elizabeth Taylor created her blockbuster fragrance White Diamonds, the star “rose from the ashes,” says Tim Mendelson, her longtime executive assistant, friend and co-trustee of her estate.

Three years earlier, she had returned to rehab for a second time. Says Mendelson, “She meets Larry Fortensky and falls in love. Not what you’re supposed to do in rehab, but Elizabeth was always a rule breaker. Then in 1990, she almost died. She was at St. John’s Hospital [in Los Angeles], and it was the fourth time that she almost died and they did not think she was going to make it. They told her kids and Larry that they needed to say goodbye.” 

The star recovered — once again — and in 1991, she was approached about creating a new fragrance, White Diamonds, as a follow-up to her first, the bestselling scent, Passion. 

Initially, she wasn’t interested. “She really didn’t want to do another because in her mind, Passion was her fragrance,” Mendelson tells PEOPLE. Then a beauty executive, Joe Spellman, paid her a visit, bringing her a presentation for White Diamonds (already in development) in a package wrapped in brown paper. 

As Mendelson recalls, “He put the box on the coffee table, and she asked what it was. He said, ‘Oh, it’s not for you. You’re not interested in a second fragrance.’ And she says, ‘Joe, cut the bulls—. Open up the box.’ And once she sees it, she says, ‘No one else is getting this fragrance. This is my fragrance.” 

The rest is history. White Diamonds cemented Taylor as the biggest name in celebrity perfume. Now, to mark its 35th anniversary, a new iteration, White Diamonds Icon, makes its debut for a new generation — a fresh new reimagining of the scent that became synonymous with Taylor’s one-of-a-kind glamour.

After all, who else could call a scent “White Diamonds” and have the jewelry box to back it up?

“The scent was based on her history,” says Mendelson. “The two great loves of her life were Mike Todd [her third husband] and Richard Burton [her fifth- and sixth husband], and those two men gave her three great diamonds. Mike Todd gave her the 29-carat diamond, which she called her ice skating rink. Then Richard gives her the 33-carat, what’s now called the Elizabeth Taylor diamond. Then there’s the 69-carat diamond [known as the Taylor-Burton diamond]. These diamonds, they’re epic, and so there’s this great legacy with white diamonds.” 

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The press tour for the fragrance at the biggest department stores was epic as well. “It was at least 12 suitcases,” recalls Mendelson, who traveled with Taylor. “There were thousands of people to see her. She was 59 years old and in full bloom. She’d found a purpose for her fame and for her life — to take on the cause of AIDS — and she was in love.”

Back then, he says, celebrity fragrances were a new thing. “It wasn’t a category like it is today, and it was considered tacky,” explains Mendelson. But the star changed all that — and built an empire. It wasn’t in name only, either. “When she developed her fragrances, they were really for her,” he says. “And that is all she wore. White Diamonds always went with her when she traveled.”

The new White Diamonds Icon campaign uses the gorgeous image of the star in a white bustier on the set of the 1956 film Giant. Says Mendelson, “White Diamonds Icon is a different time in her life. Here, she’s 23 years old, and she was finding herself. She had to fight for that role. They initially wanted Grace Kelly, but it’s a point in her life when she’s finding her own voice, becoming a mother [she eventually had four children] and having a family, and so the two White Diamonds bookend these two critical times in her life.”

Master perfumer Carlos Benaïm, who worked with Taylor on the original fragrance, says, “Elizabeth adored narcissus, a signature note in White Diamond. So this time we chose precious ‘jonquille absolute.’” The result “has a new freshness,” notes Mendelson,

Fifteen years after her death from heart failure at age 79, as a new generation, including Taylor Swift, celebrates her bold big life, her legacy lives on.

“She was an extraordinary and loving matriarch within our family, and that warmth comes through in her legacy,” says her grandson Quinn Tivey, 39, a co-trustee of the estate and an officer of the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation. “And as someone who recognized the power of her own celebrity and the importance of standing up for what you believe in, Elizabeth herself directed that a portion of the proceeds of any of her branded products support The Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation.” 

“Her character and the way that she lived her life, the values that she carried, they still resonate today in really meaningful ways,” he adds. “It’s compelling when somebody’s true to themselves and acts accordingly.”

(A portion of the proceeds from every House of Taylor product benefits the Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation, which provides care and support to people living with HIV and AIDS.)

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation.