Lauren Bacall

(On Larry King on CNN May 6th, 2005) Lauren Bacall: I was Betty Bacall always. And Lauren was Howard Hawks... he felt that Lauren Bacall was better sounding than Betty Bacall. He had a vision of his own. He was a Svengali. He wanted to mold me. He wanted to control me. And he did until Mr. Bogart got involved.

Lauren: (after revealing Nicole Kidman looked unhappy while they filmed Dogville together) Tom had taken off for Penelope Cruz or some goddamn thing - one of his more ridiculous moves. Tom Cruise is a maniac. I can't understand the way he conducts his life.

Lauren: The purity of Jewish upbringing is the restrictions that one carries through life being a "nice Jewish girl" -- what a burden!

Lauren: I don't sit around thinking that I'd like to have another husband; only another man would make me think that way.

Lauren: I'm not a sedentary person. I've always been active.

Lauren: When a woman reaches twenty-six in America, she's on the slide. It's downhill all the way from then on. It doesn't give you a tremendous feeling of confidence and well-being.

Lauren: Stardom isn't a profession, it's an accident.

Lauren: I used to tremble from nerves so badly that the only way I could hold my head steady was to lower my chin practically to my chest and look up at Bogie. That was the beginning of "The Look".

Lauren: I am essentially a loner.

Lauren: Looking at yourself in a mirror isn't exactly a study of life.

Lauren: think your whole life shows in your face, and you should be proud of that.

Lauren: Imagination is the highest kite one can fly

Lauren: You can't start worrying about what's going to happen. You get spastic enough worrying about what's happening now.

Lauren: Find me a man who's interesting enough to have dinner with and I'll be happy.

Lauren: Generally women are better than men -- they have more character. I prefer men for some things, obviously, but women have a greater sense of honor and are more willing to take a chance with their lives.

Lauren: A woman isn't complete without a man. But where do you find a man - a real man - these days?

Lauren: (refusing to be called a legend) If I'm a legend, I'm dead. Do you want me to be dead? Legends are of the past. I have no respect for celebrities and I object to being called one, so don't try it! I'm an actress, not a celebrity.

Lauren: (on Howard Hawks) He was a Svengali. He wanted to mold me. He wanted to control me. And he did until Mr. Bogart got involved.

Lauren: I'm a total Democrat. I'm anti-Republican. And it's only fair that you know it ... I'm liberal. The L word!

Lauren: A legend involves the past. I don't like categories. This one is great and that one is great. The word great stands for something. When you talk about a great actor, you're not talking about Tom Cruise. His whole behavior is so shocking. It's inappropriate and vulgar and absolutely unacceptable to use your private life to sell anything commercially, but, I think it's kind of a sickness.

Lauren: We live in an age of mediocrity. Stars today are not the same stature as Bogie (Humphrey Bogart), James Cagney, Spencer Tracy, Henry Fonda and Jimmy Stewart (James Stewart).

Lauren: Actors today go into TV, which I don't consider has a lot to do with acting. They only think of stardom. If you photograph well, that's enough. I have a terrible time distinguishing one from another. girls wear their hair the same, and are much too anorexic-looking.

Lauren: I would hate now (2005) to be married. It does occur to me on occasion that, if I fall and hit my head, there will be no one to make the phone call. But who wants to think about that disaster, I'd prefer not to.

Lauren: I never believed marriage was a lasting institution... I thought that to be married for five years was to be married forever.

Lauren: I remember my oldest son, Steve, saying to me once, `I don't ever remember seeing you with an apron on.` And I thought, that's right, honey, you did not. That was his concept of what a mother should be.

Lauren: I put my career in second place throughout both my marriages and it suffered. I don't regret it. You make choices. If you want a good marriage, you must pay attention to that. If you want to be independent, go ahead. You can't have it all.

Lauren: I don't think being the only child of a single parent helped. I was a little unsteady in my self-belief. Then there was the Jewish thing. I love being Jewish, I have no problem with it at all. But it did become like a scar, with all these people saying you don't look it.

Lauren: I was this flat-chested, big-footed, lanky thing.

Lauren: I am still working, I've never stopped and, while my health holds out, I won't stop.

Lauren: Hollywood is the only place where an amicable divorce means each person gets 50 percent of the publicity.

Lauren: I wish Frank Sinatra would just shut up and sing.

Lauren: I used to tremble from nerves so badly that the only way I could hold my head steady was to lower my chin practically to my chest and look up at Bogie. That was the beginning of "The Look".