I had collected these photographs of Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart on board of Bogie’s boat, Santana (his other big passion next to Lauren), with an entirely different, summery theme in mind – that of two people of great style and class who happened to be husband and wife and who enjoyed sailing together. Now, that Lauren has left us too, these images have taken a deeper and more poignant meaning. Bacall’s name has often been tied to Bogart (much to her annoyance), but I believe each burnished the other’s legend. They simply were that good together.
There is a paragraph in the book Bogie: A Celebration of the Life and Films of Humphrey Bogart, with forward by the couple’s son, Stephen, that I’ve always loved and has remained imprinted in my mind: “They accepted each other as they were. He did not attempt to remake her according to some womanly ideal of his own – always a temptation when a man is a quarter of a century older than his wife. She did not object when he had to howl at the moon with his pals. But more and more they were quietly at home together, often in the company of other couples.”
photos: on the board of Santana, 1946, via The Red List
As someone who enjoys sailing, I have always loved these sailing photos of the two of them. Just this morning while enjoying my coffee I was watching an old interview with her on Charlie Rose. She was such a fabulous woman and I just love listening to that husky voice of hers.
She was one of the greats. They both were.
Breathtaking photos! Made for each other!
oh, these photos are just beautiful. and somehow they both look even more stunning in them. thanks so much for sharing these!
My husband looks to Bogie’s style influence and I love Bacall… it must be a perfect match!? I shed a tear the other day when I heard…she was my first cinematic style crush and the first actor/actress’s autobiography I read (I used to read lot of old Hollywood autobiographies). Some things just need to remain the same forever!
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