The 90 kDa heat shock protein (Hsp90) cooperates with its co-chaperone Cdc37 to provide obligatory support to numerous protein kinases involved in the regulation of cellular signal transduction pathways. In this report, crystal structures of protein kinases were used to guide the dissection of two kinases [the Src-family tyrosine kinase, Lck, and the heme-regulated eIF2alpha kinase (HRI)], and the association of Hsp90 and Cdc37 with these constructs was assessed. Hsp90 interacted with both the N-terminal (NL) and C-terminal (CL) lobes of the kinases' catalytic domains. In contrast, Cdc37 interacted only with the NL. The Hsp90 antagonist molybdate was necessary to stabilize the interactions between isolated subdomains and Hsp90 or Cdc37, but the presence of both lobes of the kinases' catalytic domain generated a stable salt-resistant chaperone-client heterocomplex. The Hsp90 co-chaperones FKBP52 and p23 interacted with the catalytic domain and the NL of Lck, whereas protein phosphatase 5 demonstrated unique modes of kinase binding. Cyp40 was a salt labile component of Hsp90 complexes formed with the full-length, catalytic domains, and N-terminal catalytic lobes of Lck and HRI. Additionally, dissections identify a specific kinase motif that triggers Hsp90's conformational switching to a high-affinity client binding state. Results indicate that the Hsp90 machine acts as a versatile chaperone that recognizes multiple regions of non-native proteins, while Cdc37 binds to a more specific kinase segment, and that concomitant recognition of multiple client segments is communicated to generate or stabilize high-affinity chaperone-client heterocomplexes.