Lauren Bacall is an icon in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Alongside names like Marilyn Monroe and Bettie Grable, she climbed the heights of Hollywood’s most fascinating era. Born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924 in The Bronx, New York, Bacall was born to Jewish parents who divorced when she was five years old. While studying at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, she dated her classmate, Kirk Douglas. She made her debut on Broadway at the age of 17 in 1942. She was also a fashion model and modeled for Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. She took challenging voice lessons to deepen her voice as well, which were straining.

Bacall is perhaps best known for her iconic marriage to fellow actor, Humphrey Bogart. There may never be a more glamorous Hollywood couple than “Bogie and Bacall.” The leading lady met him when he was already 45 and a well known actor, especially for starring in the 1942 classic Casablanca with Ingrid Bergman. Bacall was only 20 years old at the time of their meeting in 1944. They married on May 21, 1945 and stayed married until he died in 1957. They acted in films together and became close collaborators in their work as well – making a total of four films together, such as 1944’s To Have and Have Not.

After Bogart’s death in 1957 from esophageal cancer, she began a relationship with Frank Sinatra that same year, when Bacall was 33 years old. In her memoir, she stated that Sinatra proposed to her, but later ended the relationship because their engagement went to the press and he thought she leaked it, but did not. Sinatra only found out years later that it was not Bacall who had leaked it to the press. Bacall’s life was filled with fascinating facts of a bygone era which is still fascinating so many decades later. It is interesting to note that biographers speculate that Frank Sinatra had a relationship with Marilyn Monroe most likely in the last couple years of her life. Sinatra, an icon himself, was an intriguing recurring character in the lives of Hollywood’s elite, notably also romantically linked to other Hollywood icons such as Ava Gardner and Lana Turner at different points in time. Iconic leading ladies during this time learned to maneuver complex relationship dynamics to say the least.

Undoubtedly, Bacall’s allure stems from her smoldering gaze, which became her signature trademark in Hollywood, in the same way that Marilyn Monroe perfected looking effortlessly aloof. Ironically, Bacall’s signature gaze stemmed from having a deep insecurity during her first time filming with Bogart – she was lighting a cigarette for a film take and trembling quite a bit. She realized that keeping her head cast down helped her nervousness and then she’d look up with her head still cast downward. This become known as “The Look,” something that Bacall would do so often in her film career.

One of Bacall’s most iconic films is 1953’s How To Marry A Millionaire, alongside Marilyn Monroe and Betty Grable. That film grossed $8 million in profits for the time and was the fourth most watched film of 1953. In comparison, Marilyn’s other film, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes was seventh most watched that year. Both films are aesthetically iconic, but Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is most likely the most iconic film of Marilyn’s career. Nonetheless, Lauren Bacall will be remembered as one of the iconic women of Golden Age Hollywood, perhaps best described by her unique and stylish way of conveying her personality on the screen, and all of the work she put into cultivating that persona.