Chameleon and temperamental survivor
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Lauren Bacall
Ebonie123 — 11 years ago(August 14, 2014 09:09 PM)
Verita Thompson remembers Bacall:
When Peterson and Bogart re2000sumed their relationship, much of their time was spent on Bogart's beloved boat, the Santana. She wrote, "It's just my opinion, but Betty [Bacall] always struck me as being too chameleon-like; it seems to me that before marriage she flashed all the colours that Bogart found attractive . . . For example, her interest in the Santana and sailing delighted Bogie, for he spent and wanted to spend every spare moment sailing. But Betty's interest in going to sea with Bogie declined after he slipped a ring on the third finger of her left hand. Her dwindling interest in the Santana left clear sailing for me . . ."
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/verita-thompson-humphrey-bogarts-secret-mistress-808183.html
"Chameleon-like" sounds about right. Through hard work and determination, she ditched her high-pitched nasal New Yawk twang in favor of a deep sultry voice and it saved her career in Hollywood. It's always been a tough town and she had what it took to survive. I wouldn't be surprised if she prided herself on her ability to push other people's buttons, sucking up to the top and looking down on the rest.
One more quote from the article:
Noel Coward never got over his astonishment at seeing Bacall, in an outburst of fury, kick the all-powerful Hollywood gossip columnist Hedda Hopper up the bottie under my very eyes while calling her a lousy bitch.