Fact Check: Did Mike Todd Die in a Plane Crash, and Who Narrowly Escaped?
By Robert Thorne
While Taylor’s absence came down to physical illness, Kirk Douglas stayed on the ground because of a bitter domestic confrontation. Todd had crossed paths with Douglas in Beverly Hills days before the trip, insisting the actor join him on The Lucky Liz so they could spend hours discussing upcoming independent film projects before the Friars Club dinner.
Douglas agreed and went home to pack. His wife, Anne Buydens, had long harbored a deep distrust of private executive aircraft. When Douglas announced he was flying overnight to New York on Todd’s twin-engine Lockheed, Buydens flatly refused to give her blessing. She had a visceral, terrible premonition and demanded he take a scheduled commercial airliner instead.
The couple engaged in a fierce argument inside their home. Douglas called her controlling; Buydens refused to budge, stating that if he stepped onto that plane, their marriage would suffer severe consequences. Furious and frustrated, Douglas telephoned Todd and backed out of the flight. Hours later, while driving to the set of an upcoming production, Douglas turned on the radio and heard the flash bulletin announcing that Todd’s plane had gone down with no survivors. Douglas pulled off the road in silence, later calling that explosive fight the single moment that preserved his life.
Robert Thorne covers electric vehicle innovations, autonomous driving systems, global mobility trends, and automotive engineering developments.
