Breaking News: Lauren Bacall Has Died

I’m still reeling from Robin Williams’s death, but Hollywood now has another loss to mourn. Screen legend Lauren Bacall has passed away at the age of 89. The Humphrey Bogart Estate announced the news on its Facebook page. RELATED: Tributes are made to the late Robin Williams.

With deep sorrow for the magnitude of our loss, yet with great gratitude for her amazing life, we confirm the passing of Lauren Bacall.

Lauren Bacall was born as Betty Joan Perske; she was the daughter of Jewish immigrants in New York City, according to People. She started her entertainment career as a model with a photo shoot for Harper’s BAZAAR.  Warner Bros. signed her to a contract in 1943, when she was 19 years old. That’s when she adopted the screen name Lauren Bacall.

One of Lauren’s most famous roles (and surely one of her most memorable) was her star turn in the film adaptation of the Hemingway story, ‘To Have and Have Not.’ She delivered the famous line to her co-star, Humphrey Bogart:

You know how to whistle, don’t you, Steve? You just put your lips together and blow.”

Off-screen, Lauren and Humphrey fell in love. Their son, Stephen Bogart, said in an interview:

Everyone could see their love right there on celluloid. He was the great love of her life, and she his.”

Humphrey was married to someone else at the time, but after his divorce from his wife was finalized, he and Lauren were married in 1945. They went on to have two children, Stephen and Leslie. In 1956 Humphrey Bogart was diagnosed with cancer; he died in 1957. Lauren went on to have an affair with Frank Sinatra, of whom she later said:

He behaved like a complete s—.”

She later married Jason Robards and had a son, Sam, with him, but that marriage ended, reportedly due to Jason’s drinking. Lauren left Hollywood in the late 1950s and went on to have a distinguished career on Broadway, winning Tony Awards for her performances in ‘Applesauce’ in 1970 and ‘Woman of the Year’ in 1981. Although Lauren never won an Oscar for a specific movie role, she did receive a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Academy in 2010.

Our thoughts are with her family and friends. Below is a clip from a TCM Tribute that aired last year.