Alderfer Auction to Offer Lauren Bacall Collection with Louis Vuitton Jewelry Case

Alderfer Auction to Offer Lauren Bacall Collection with Louis Vuitton Jewelry Case

Press Release, Alderfer Auction

Louis Vuitton, Tiffany and Cartier are brands that are synonymous with quality, wealth and status.  The great actress Lauren Bacall is ranked as one of the greatest 20th century stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood.  On June 11, 2026, these two entities will be brought together when Alderfer Auction offers a collection of items, ephemera and photographs that once belonged to the screen legend Lauren Bacall.

Lauren Bacall (1924-2014) was born Betty Joan Perske in the Bronx in New York.    She started her career as a model and quickly transitioned to the big screen starring in over 50 various from 1944 thru 2013 as well as numerous television and stage appearances. Her famous films included “To Have and Have Not” (1944), “The Big Sleep” (1946), “Dark Passage” (1947), and “Key Largo” (1948) all of which she costarred with Humphrey Bogart.  Bacall was an actress from the Golden Age of Hollywood who was able to transition into later movies, television and the stage.  She garnered many awards including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Critics' Choice Movie Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Tony Award, and numerous other acting awards.  

The premier item in this collection is a Louis Vuitton Boite Bijoux jewelry case that displays the initials “L.B.” on the front.  When consigned in a lower compartment of the case were two hardbound copies of the eulogy speech that famed director John Huston made on January 17, 1957 at Bacall’s husband Humphrey Bogart’s memorial service.  Bacall married Bogart in 1945 and remained married to him until his death in 1957.  The Hollywood fairytale marriage of the two silver screen superstars parented two children. 

The collection also includes a Tiffany silver covered miniature dictionary presented to Bacall by actor and friend Walter Matthau and his wife Carol. Other items include a Cartier clock and an Yves Saint Laurent compact.

This collection is enhanced by a group of photographs, photographic slides and several letters that give a window into the life of Bacall, her marriage to Bogart, her children, her friends and her travels.  Of significance is an unpublished letter written to Lauren Bacall (Mrs. Humphrey Bogart) by author Nathaniel Benchley in 1959.  In the beginning part of the letter Benchley informs Bacall that the stories contained within the letter are being communicated to her so that they can be remembered.   The letter details stories of experiences that Benchley had with Bogart during their long friendship.  Benchley would go on to author a biography of Bogart in 1975.   

This is an opportunity for a successful bidder to obtain a collection associated with a famed Queen of Hollywood.  For additional information please contact Alderfer Auction at 215.393.3000 or conditionreport@alderferauction.com