Betty Joan Perske was born on this day in 1924. She took her mother’s maiden name and became Lauren Bacall, today’s Friday Face.
As the legend goes, she was a fashion model, and was spotted on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar by Nancy Hawks, wife of director Howard Hawks. Nancy urged him to give her a screen test for “To Have and Have Not.” She got the part, and won Humphrey Bogart’s heart as well. She was 19.
At 20, while visiting the National Press Club in DC, the head of WB publicity asked her to sit on a piano, which was being played by then VP Harry Truman. The controversial photo went the equivalent of “viral” in 1945.
She married Bogie that year; he was 45. They would have 2 children and 12 years together, until his death of esophageal cancer.
Bacall made a few films in the 1950s, including a role as a pseudo-lesbian wackjob in “Young Man with a Horn,” the first big budget film about jazz, loosely based on the life of Bix Beiderbecke.
Her big ’50s success came with “How to Marry a Millionaire,” opposite Marilyn Monroe and Betty Grable.
Nice outfit on Grable.
Frank Sinatra wanted to marry Bacall in the late ’50s, but the two had a falling out and he dumped her.
In the ’60s she headed for Broadway and picked up two Tonys for “Applause” and “Woman of the Year.”
She married Jason Robards in 1961, and said in her autobiography that she divorced him in 1969 because he was a drunk. Their son is an actor (he bought a used car from my Aunt Lorraine’s friend in New Jersey).
In 1981 she played the object of obsession of a crazed admirer in “The Fan,” which presaged stalkers. This was 8 years before actress Rebecca Schaeffer would be gunned down in the doorway of her apartment by a sicko fan.
Bacall received her first Oscar nomination in 1997 for her supporting role in “The Mirror Has Two Faces,” for which she nabbed a Golden Globe, but Oscar went to Juliet Binoche for “The English Patient.”
In the ’90s she picked up a Kennedy Center Honor… and became the voice of Fancy Feast cat food and its “gourmet taste.”
In the new century, she made “Dogville” and “Birth,” both with Nicole Kidman, and appeared as herself in an episode of “The Sopranos.”
In a 2005 appearance on “Larry King Live,” Bacall described herself as “anti-Republican… a liberal. The L word,” adding that “being a liberal is the best thing on earth you can be. You are welcoming to everyone when you’re a liberal. You do not have a small mind.”
Seen above with her three children, Bacall was awarded an honorary Oscar in 2009… and became the voice of the “Tuesday Morning” discount chain commercials.
It was a close call this week, what with Bill O’Reilly being such a putz, but he’s ALWAYS a putz, so it’s David Arquette.
If you’re separating from your wife of ten years, who is a mega-millionaire TV star, why go on Howard Stern and talk about your affair(s)? One needs publicists for handling such inquiries. You shouldn’t roll out of bed, take a hit of pot, and go live on Sirius. Bad form, that.
Plus, he further damaged the already tainted name of his floozie, that Jasmine woman (Jasmine should be a catchall name for the “other woman”), by telling people where his privates have been… when that should really be private.
Most pre-nups go bye-bye after 10 years, looks like he’s going to miss that boat.
Hopefully, he and Courteney Cox (annoying name) can stay, um, friends.
Fun Fact: Arquette is the grandson of Cliff Arquette, better known as Charley Weaver, whom Boomers recall from “Hollywood Squares.”
Jew-hatin’ imbecile Jesse James has found his burnt match in reality idiot Kat Von D, and I’d say it’s a match made in a garage somewhere in Orange County.
The moronic Von D tweeted this morning that she was indeed dating the former husband of Sandra Bullock, who kicked his ass to the 405 off ramp after his affair with a Nazi-esque stripper became front-page news.
I hope these two will be happy together — they can spend all their free time getting tattooed, because it looks so pretty on them.
Remember, kids, nothing says I loved you like having to remove a tattoo.
It’s a sad day for lovers! People mag is reporting that Paris Hilton has split with tonguey hunk Doug Reinhardt! But it was all going so well! Oh, love, why must thou always deserteth her?
She’ll just have to spend her nights remembering Benji Madden, Jason Shaw, Nick Carter, Rick Salomon (she has the porn to remind her), Oscar De La Hoya, Greasy Bear, Leo DiCaprio, Colin Farrell, Edward Furlong, Vincent Gallo, Jamie Kennedy, Jared Leto, Robert Mills, Mark Philippoussis, Simon Rex, Jake Sumner, Deryck Whibley, Shelley Winters, Paris Latsis, Tom Sizemore, Krusty, Joe Francis, Stavros Niarchos III, Chexy, etc.
As love comes, so it goes. Dear Ivana Trump Rubicondi, 60, has dumped her husband Rossano 37, after they couldn’t agree on where to live. You’d think they’d have worked that out before saying, “I will.” (Pictured above on their wedding day in April.)
The two apparently separated a few months ago, but Ivana didn’t announce it because Rossano is competing on the Italian version of “Survivor” and she didn’t want to screw up his chances.
Hell, he’s survived Ivana, he should win something.
Yahoo Co-Founder Jerry Yang, worth nearly 3 billion, has decided to leave Yahoo, after returning to the company to replace Terry Semel. Yang declined Microsoft’s $43B offer to buy the company, leaving many shareholders cranky.
Yahoo had 141 million unique visitors in the U.S. alone in August. Only Google had more. Approximately 10% of Yahoo’s staff of 15,000 will be let go, they dumped 1,000 workers in January.
MyYahoo is one of the best features on Yahoo, and a great way to have all your bookmarks at any computer you sit down to use. Yahoo Messenger is technically superior to AIM, but not as popular.
Jerry took a salary of only $1.00 during his recent tenure.
It’s another blow against love, as the gorgeous Star Jones filed for divorce from her clearly adoring husband, Al Reynolds, seen here standing behind his former ladylove at her birthday party last year.Some lovers just can’t work it out, but one can understand why it’s been difficult for Al.
