Lauren Bacall

Layla90 · July 21, 2008

Date of Birth

16 September 1924, New York, New York, USA

Birth Name

Betty Joan Perske

Nickname

The Look

Betty

Height

5' 8½" (1.74 m)

Spouse

Jason Robards (4 July 1961 - 10 September 1969) (divorced) 1 child

Humphrey Bogart (21 May 1945 - 14 January 1957) (his death) 2 children

Trade Mark

Her deep, sexy voice

Trivia

Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#6). [1995]

Ranked #20 in the AFI's top 25 Actress Legends.

Ranked #11 in Empire (UK) magazine's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" list. [October 1997]

Mother of actor Sam Robards.

Chosen by "People" magazine as one of the 50 Most Beautiful People in the World. [1997]

Bacall was staying in the same New York apartment building (The Dakota) as Beatle John Lennon when he was shot and later died on 8th December 1980. When interviewed on the subject in a recent UK TV program hosted by former model Twiggy, Bacall said she had heard the gunshot but assumed that it was a car tire bursting or a vehicle backfiring.

Was crowned "Miss Greenwich Village" in 1942.

Used her mother's maiden name of Bacal, but added an extra "L" when she entered the cinema.

Shortly after Humphrey Bogart's death, she announced her engagement to Frank Sinatra to the press. Sinatra promptly backed out.

She and former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres (as of 2007, the President of Israel) are cousins. Both have the same original last name -- Perske.

An only child.

One of the initial "Rat Pack" with Humphrey Bogart, Frank Sinatra, Irving Paul Lazar (aka "Swifty" Lazar) and their close friends.

Her autobiography, "By Myself", won a National Book Award in 1980

Actress Kathleen Turner has often been compared to Bacall. When Turner and Bacall met, Turner reportedly introduced herself to Bacall by saying "Hi, I'm the young you."

Katharine Hepburn, her long-time friend, is the godmother of her son, Sam Robards.

As of 2008 she is the only surviving legend mentioned in a popular phrase from Madonna's 1990 #1 hit song "Vogue". Other legends mentioned: Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Grace Kelly, Jean Harlow, Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth and Bette Davis, who all died before the release of the song. Greta Garbo, Marlene Dietrich, Joe DiMaggio, Marlon Brando, Gene Kelly, Ginger Rogers, Katharine Hepburn and Lana Turner all died in following years.

Is mentioned along with late husband Humphrey Bogart in the 1980s song "Key Largo" ("We had it all, just like Bogie and Bacall").

Her appearance on a cover of Harper's Bazaar magazine at 18 years of age led to her first film role; she was spotted by the wife of director Howard Hawks, who gave her a screen test and cast her in To Have and Have Not (1944).

A well respected actress for the past sixty years, she has only been nominated once for an Academy Award. She was 73 when nominated for The Mirror Has Two Faces (1996).

Is half Romanian

She was 17 when she met and became a close friend of Gregory Peck. She was an usherette at the time. They remained close until his death.

At the funeral for her husband, Humphrey Bogart, she put a whistle in his coffin. It was a reference to the famous line she says to him in their first film together "To Have And Have Not": "You know how to whistle, don't you? You just put your lips together and blow.".

I know it's too many info for most of you I guess, but these seemed to be interesting to me.

I promise I will post pics in the morning!!

66Lucy · July 21, 2008

Thank you Layla, she surely deserves her thread :wave:

Wow I didn't know that she was Sam Robards mum :shock:

Layla90 · July 21, 2008

Some of Lauren's quotations:

"Let's face it: I want it all-- just like you and everybody else. It may not be in the cards, but the prospect is so dazzling that I have to try."

"What happens within a family is sacrosanct, must be protected and remain unknown to all outsiders."

"We all arrive at adulthood carrying baggage; the aim is not to carry too much."

"When a man speaks his mind it is accepted as charming, interesting, sexy, but when a woman speaks hers she is aggressive, unattractive, pushy-- some might even say a bitch."

"New York was real and California was not. 'Twas ever thus."

"Imagination is the highest kite that one can fly."

"A woman isn't complete without a man. But where do you find a man - a real man - these days?"

"I think your whole life shows in your face and you should be proud of that."

"A legend involves the past. I don't like categories. This one is great and that one is great. The word "great" stands for something. When you talk about a great actor, you're not talking about Tom Cruise. His whole behavior is so shocking. It's inappropriate and vulgar and absolutely unacceptable to use your private life to sell anything commercially, but I think it's kind of a sickness."

"I would hate now [2005] to be married. It does occur to me on occasion that, if I fall and hit my head, there will be no one to make the phone call. But who wants to think about that disaster? I'd prefer not to."

"I am still working, I've never stopped and, while my health holds out, I won't stop."

"I put my career in second place throughout both my marriages and it suffered. I don't regret it. You make choices. If you want a good marriage, you must pay attention to that. If you want to be independent, go ahead. You can't have it all."

"Actors today go into TV, which I don't consider has a lot to do with acting. They only think of stardom. If you photograph well, that's enough. I have a terrible time distinguishing one from another. Girls wear their hair the same, and are much too anorexic-looking."

Layla90 · July 22, 2008

Hey kukim, I did not notice your post!

She definitely deserved to be called "The Look"