How Kirk Douglas Cheated Death on Mike Todd's Tragic Final Flight
By the spring of 1958, Mike Todd operated at the absolute summit of American entertainment. The triumph of Around the World in 80 Days had validated his high-risk, high-reward production ethos. Todd lived at full throttle. He chartered planes, hosted legendary blowouts at Madison Square Garden, and shower-gifted Elizabeth Taylor with diamonds that dominated the international press. When the Friars Club selected him as their 1958 "Showman of the Year," Todd treated the Manhattan banquet as a coronation.
Commercial airlines did not suit Todd's pace. He traveled aboard a customized 12-passenger Lockheed Lodestar, named *The Lucky Liz* in honor of Taylor. Todd liked to fill empty seats with friends, writers, and collaborators. Kirk Douglas, then one of the biggest box-office draws in the world following *Lust for Life* and *Paths of Glory*, was playing gin rummy with Todd at the producer's Los Angeles estate when the invitation came.
"Come with me to New York," Todd insisted. "We'll have a ball. You can present an award or just drink champagne." Douglas saw no reason to refuse. He had business on the East Coast and relished Todd's magnetic company. He told Todd he would pack a bag and head directly to Burbank's Lockheed Air Terminal.
