Celebrity Name : Lauren Bacall

Celebrity Real Name : Betty Joan Perske

Date of Birth : September 16, 1924

Birth Location : New York City

Biography of Betty Joan Perske :
Lauren Bacall (born Betty Joan Perske on September 16, 1924) is an American film and stage actress. Known for her husky voice and sultry looks, she has become a fashion icon and role model for modern-day women. Today, she is considered a legendary actress, partly due to the longevity of her career.
She is best known for being a film noir leading lady in films such as The Big Sleep (1946) and Dark Passage (1947), as well as a sassy comedienne, as seen in 1953’s How to Marry a Millionaire. She also made a name for herself as a Broadway musical star thanks to her two major vehicles, Applause and Woman of the Year.

Early Stages :
Born in New York City as Betty Joan Perske, Bacall was the only child of Jewish immigrants, William Perske (a relative of former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres) and Natalie Weinstein-Bacal.[1] Her father was a salesman and her mother was a secretary and they divorced when she was only six years old. As a result, Bacall no longer saw her father, and she formed a strong bond with her mother whom she took with her to California once she had become a movie star.
Bacall studied dancing for 13 years. She then took acting lessons at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. During this time, she became a theater usher and worked as a fashion model. As Betty Bacall, she made her acting debut on Broadway in 1942, in Johnny Two by Four. At that time her idol was Bette Davis. According to her autobiography, she got the chance to meet Davis at her hotel. Years later, Davis would visit Bacall backstage to congratulate her on her performance of Margo Channing in Applause, a musical based on Davis’s turn in All About Eve.
Bacall began fashion modeling part-time. This was when she experienced anti-Semitism for the first time. This made her nervous of revealing her identity and she did not let Hawks know that she was Jewish. Bacall had envisaged a career on stage for herself, but by chance, she entered the world of movies. Howard Hawks’ wife Slim spotted Bacall on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar, showed the photo to her husband, and he then made a phone call to New York to bring her to Hollywood for a screen test. Hawks would use the nickname “Slim” for Bacall’s character in her first movie.

Trivia :
* Contrary to some reports, Bacall does not have a vocal disorder. However, a type of one has been named after her and Humphrey Bogart. Bogart-Bacall Syndrome (or BBS) is a form of muscle tension dysphonia most common in professional voice users (actors, singers, TV/radio presenters, etc) who habitually use a very low speaking pitch. BBS is more common among women than men and has been blamed on the social pressure that professional women feel to compete with men in the business and professional arenas. The syndrome got its name from the low-pitch speaking tones that both actors used in their performances.
* According to her autobiography, she refused to press her hand- and footprints in the cemented forecourt of Grauman’s Chinese Theatre at the Los Angeles premiere of the 1953 film How to Marry a Millionaire.
* 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.”
* Bacall appears in an episode of The Sopranos. After she is introduced to Christopher Moltisanti and Little Carmine Lupertazzi by Sir Ben Kingsley, Christopher punches her and steals a gift basket she has received in exchange for presenting at an awards show.
* Bacall served as the voice-over for the PBS idents from 1996-2002.
* Bacall served as the spokesperson for the Fortunoff chain of retail stores in 1980. Petra Nemcova is the current “Face of Fortunoff”.[wikipedia]