(PCM) Hollywood lost another legend this week; the captivating Lauren Bacall, famous for her roles alongside Humphrey Bogart in The Big Sleep, Key Largo, and To Have and Have Not, passed away earlier today, August 12, 2014.
Catching her break in 1944 as Marie ‘Slim’ Browning, the seductive lounge singer in To Have and Have Not, Bacall quickly made a name for herself in Hollywood with her characteristic sultry voice, good looks, and great acting.
The actress passed away in New York at the age of 89 and is mourned by many. The Bogart Estate confirmed the news with a somber tweet:
With deep sorrow, yet with great gratitude for her amazing life, we confirm the passing of Lauren Bacall. pic.twitter.com/B8ZJnZtKhN
— BogartEstate (@HumphreyBogart) August 12, 2014
Born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924 in The Bronx, New York to a Romanian born secretary and New Jersey native salesman, Lauren Bacall had her first role at the age of 17 as a walk-on in the Broadway musical Johnny 2 X 4.
Lauren Bacall married co-star Humphrey Bogart after working on To Have and Have Not and Confidential Man with the actor; Bacall was 20 years old at the time, Bogart was 45. The two remained married until Bogart passed of esophageal cancer in 1957.
Bacall later remarried to actor Jason Robards (Once Upon A Time in the West, All the President’s Men) in 1961. According to her autobiography “By Myself and Then Some,” Bacall ended the marriage in 1969 due Robards’ alcoholism.
More than a screen actress, Lauren Bacall also made a name for herself in theater earning herself two Tony Awards; Best Leading Actress in a Musical for 1970′s Applause and for 1981′s Woman of the Year.
The actress was nominated for an Academy Award in 1997 as Best Actress in a Supporting Role for The Mirror Has Two Faces and received an Academy Honorary Award in 2009 in recognition of her central place in the Golden Age of motion pictures.
Bacall most recently voiced The Grey One in the Oscar nominated Ernest & Celestine, appeared in the 2014 episode of Family Guy “Mom’s the Word”, and is rumored to appear in Tom Konkle’s upcoming film noir Trouble is My Business.
In 2006, Lauren Bacall was awarded the first Katharine Hepburn Medal, an honor that recognizes “women whose lives, work and contributions embody the intelligence, drive and independence of the four-time-Oscar-winning actress”.
Survived by her three children, Bacall leaves behind a legacy of great talent and a wonderful body of work for younger generations to discover for years to come.
The post RIP: Lauren Bacall – 1924-2014 also appeared on PCM Reviews.