Lauren Bacall looks my way

 500 Weeks #38

Lauren Bacall looks my way, in Toronto. February 1993

As a young man I was obsessed with movies. I was the type who read books on the history of cinema, on influential directors and their films and would then go traipsing all over the city with my equally cinema-focused friends, as we set out to experience the motion pictures we had read about the way they were meant to be seen: on a huge silver screen.

Fortunately, we live in Toronto, which is one of the worlds’ great movie-going cities. So when I got interested in director Howard Hawks, I made sure to read “Hawks on Hawks” – where the director discusses his own work - and was then able to track down screenings of his classics at one of the city’s – then  – many repertory cinemas. Rep cinemas were not the place to see brand new films. Instead, they filled their screens with motion pictures that could be a couple of months old, or from the silent era, or anywhere in between.

When I think of Mrs. Bacall, I always think of her in B&W

Among the samples of Mr. Hawks’ work we saw were those that featured the legendary actress Lauren Bacall, and her equally legendary, deep raspy voice.

 

Mrs. Bacall was in Toronto - if I remember correctly – as a guest of the United Way for some sort of fundraiser taking place at Roy Thompson Hall, which is a round building, with the performance area in the middle, and a lobby that circles the entire place. 

 

I was there with my camera for Eye Weekly and my assignment was to get a photo of her.

 

She was in a small group trying to make their way through the lobby area, and attracting an ever-larger crowd as they moved. I was part of that shuffling mob, trying to take a clear photo of her, without much success. A couple of times, I raised my camera, only to have a guest stand and pose beside Mrs. Bacall, who was gracious and accommodating of these requests. The images were okay, but not exactly what I was after, which was a clean photo of just Mrs. Bacall.

According to my notes, Mrs. Bacall might be standing next to Arlene Zitsow, who "came to see her." Also, it was "a good way too give to the United Way and see a show I really enjoyed". 

Then, somewhere else in the lobby, someone called for quiet over the speaker system and everyone stopped moving. As the announcements began – about how the show was about to begin, and please don’t bring your drinks and snacks into the auditorium – imagine my surprise as everyone fell silent and froze, just in time for me to find myself shoulder to shoulder with the legend herself.
 
It is my observation that many photographers never want to engage with their subject. They just want to hide silently behind their camera and hope life arranges something good for them to capture.

 

If my notes are accurate, this is Lauren Ingersoll, whose mother named her after her favourite movie star. Dad's too, "but Humphry got her, so he had to wait for a daughter" 

That’s not me. Not content to just gawk or snap and hope, I decide to try and chat – which always makes the event more personal – and, once the person on the speaker system had finished, but before the whole crowed started moving and talking again, I looked over at Mrs. Bacall’s and inquired if I can ask her a question. 

 

Mrs. Bacall leaned my way and answered clearly “Yes darling?”

 

I started: “In the book “Hawks on Hawks”, Howard Hawks says that when he met you, you had a high voice, and that he was the one who got you to change it. Is that correct?”

 

Mrs. Bacall rolled her eyes and waved her hand. ”Oh that Howard, always the kidder. I’ve always had this voice, but it wasn’t very loud. What Howard told me to do was to go into the Hollywood Hills and read books out loud and work on my projection.”

 

I thanked her for that insight and asked to take a photo.  She looked right down my lens and I got the image I came to get.

 

Sometime you just have to ask.

Technical stuff: Nikon FM2 camera with either a Nikkor 35mm f/2 or a Nikon E-Series 28mm f/2.8 lens using Fujifilm NHG 400 ISO colour negative film.  Lighting is with a Vivitar 285HV flash mounted on the camera, outfitted with a small softbox.