Lauren Bacall screen test for "To Have and Have Not". Hawks asked his secretary to find out more about her, but the secretary misunderstood and sent Bacall a ticket to come to Hollywood for the audition. After meeting Bacall in Hollywood, Hawks immediately signed her to a seven-year contract, with a weekly salary of $100, and personally began to manage her career. He changed her first name to Lauren, and she chose "Bacall" (a variant of her mother's maiden name) as her screen surname. Slim Hawks also took Bacall under her wing, dressing Bacall stylishly and guiding her in matters of elegance,
Lauren Bacall the 1955 performance to The Museum Of Television & Radio (now the Paley Center for Media), where it remains archived for viewing in New York City and Los Angeles. In 1955, Bacall starred in two feature films, "The Cobweb" and "Blood Alley". Directed by Vincente Minnelli, "The Cobweb" takes place at a mental institution in which Bacall's character works as a therapist. It was her second collaboration with Charles Boyer and also starred Richard Widmark and Lillian Gish. "In the only two really sympathetic roles, Mr. Widmark is excellent and Miss Bacall shrewdly underplays", wrote "The New York Times". Many