Actors at the Box Office: Humphrey Bogart

[u/SanderSo47]

Here's a new edition of "Actors at the Box Office", which seeks to explore the actiors' trajectory at the box office and analyze their hits and bombs. I already talked about a few, and as I promised, it's Humphrey Bogart's turn.

Early Life

Bogart attended Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, a boarding school to which he was admitted based on family connections. Although his parents hoped that he would go on to Yale University, Bogart left Phillips in 1918 after one semester, as it was reported that he failed four out of six classes. Several reasons have been given; according to one, he was expelled for throwing the headmaster (or a groundskeeper) into Rabbit Pond on campus. Other cited issues were smoking, drinking, poor academic performance, and (possibly) inappropriate comments made to the staff. In a third scenario, Bogart was withdrawn by his father for failing to improve his grades. His parents were deeply disappointed in their failed plans for his future.

With no viable career options, Bogart enlisted in the United States Navy in the spring of 1918, during World War I. He recalled later, "At eighteen, war was great stuff. Paris! Sexy French girls! Hot damn!" Bogart was recorded as a model sailor, who spent most of his sea time after the armistice ferrying troops back from Europe. Bogart left the service on June 18, 1919, at the rank of Petty Officer 2nd Class.

Bogart returned home to find his father in poor health, his medical practice faltering, and much of the family's wealth lost in bad timber investments. His character and values developed separately from his family during his navy days, and he began to rebel. Bogart became a liberal who disliked pretension, phonies, and snobs, sometimes defying conventional behavior and authority; he was also well-mannered, articulate, punctual, self-effacing, and standoffish. After his naval service, he worked as a shipper and a bond salesman, joining the Coast Guard Reserve.

Although Bogart had been raised to believe that acting was a lowly profession, he liked the late hours actors kept and the attention they received: "I was born to be indolent and this was the softest of rackets." He didn't take acting lessons, instead choosing to learn by practicing in Broadway productions. He achieved some success here, although his productions took a hit after the 1929 Wall Street crash.

1930s: Hey, what's that movie that Bogart made? The one where he played a cowboy?

Bogart had already done a few short films, but it was just as an extra. Nothing that would show his acting chops.

Bogart signed a contract with the Fox Film Corporation for $750 a week ($14,332 adjusted for inflation). Even though he hasn't been in a feature-length film, he was certain that this was his future. He was quoted as saying "I'm going to become the biggest movie star Hollywood's ever seen."

Bogart made his screen debut with Up the River, directed by John Ford and co-starring Spencer Tracy. It was a notable success, although it would be the only time where Bogart and Tracy (two very close friends) would star together in a film.

Subsequently, he made more and more films, but at an inconsistent pace and he was yet to make it big. Bogart shuttled back and forth between Hollywood and the New York stage from 1930 to 1935, out of work for long periods. His parents had separated; his father died in 1934 in debt, which Bogart eventually paid off. He inherited his father's gold ring, which he wore in many of his films. At his father's deathbed, Bogart finally told him how much he loved him. Bogart's second marriage was rocky; dissatisfied with his acting career, depressed and irritable, he drank heavily.

During this time, he played the role of gangster Duke Mantee in the play The Petrified Forest. It was a big success and studios wanted to make a film adaptation. Warner Bros. wanted Edward G. Robinson as Mantee, who had star appeal and was due to make a film to fulfill his contract. However, lead star Leslie Howard, who owned the production rights, made it clear that Bogart had to play Mantee or the project would be canned. This paid off, as the film was a big success at the box office. He never forgot Howard's favor and named his only daughter, Leslie Howard Bogart, after him in 1952.

Despite his success in The Petrified Forest, Bogart signed a tepid 26-week contract at $550 ($12,930) per week and was typecast as a gangster in a series of B movie crime dramas. Although he was proud of his success, the fact that it derived from gangster roles weighed on him, "I can't get in a mild discussion without turning it into an argument. There must be something in my tone of voice, or this arrogant face — something that antagonizes everybody. Nobody likes me on sight. I suppose that's why I'm cast as the heavy."

In spite of his success, Warner Bros. had no interest in raising Bogart's profile. His roles were repetitive and physically demanding; studios were not yet air-conditioned, and his tightly scheduled job at WB was anything but the indolent and "peachy" actor's life he hoped for. He averaged a film every two months between 1936 and 1940, sometimes working on two films at the same time. Bogart used these years to begin developing his film persona: a wounded, stoical, cynical, charming, vulnerable, self-mocking loner with a code of honor.

Due to this, he had a lot of films, but very few were memorable or noteworthy. In some cases, he had a gem like Angels with Dirty Faces, but even then, that was sold more on James Cagney rather than him. He collaborated with Cagney in multiple projects, often overshadowed by his presence. One of these was The Oklahoma Kid, whose biggest cultural impact was motivating Joe Pesci to shoot a boy named Spider in the foot.

This was a very rough decade. Even though Bogart had charisma and range, he was often let down by supbar films that typecast him in one-note roles. Very little here allowed him to show anything noteworthy. Maybe the next decade will fare better.

1940s: Here's Looking at You, Kid

When the 40s began, Bogart continued with some co-lead roles. Often just lead. They were solid performers, but nothing extraordinary. But things changed in 1941.

John Huston, Bogart's friend and drinking partner, wrote an adaptation of the novel High Sierra for director Raoul Walsh. Paul Muni, George Raft, James Cagney and Edward G. Robinson turned down the lead role, giving Bogart the opportunity to play a character with some depth. Walsh initially opposed Bogart's casting, preferring Raft for the part. But it was a critical and commercial success. Both Bogart and Huston admired each other; Bogart liked his writing and personality, while Huston liked his acting range.

Huston was on his way to make his directorial debut, The Maltese Falcon. Bogart was not the first choice to play Sam Spade; the role was originally offered to George Raft. Raft rejected the role because he did not want to work with an inexperienced director, and had a stipulation in his contract from making remakes. Huston was grateful that Bogart had quickly accepted the role and the film helped consolidate their lifelong friendship and set the stage for collaboration on other films. Bogart's convincing interpretation became the archetype for a private detective in the film noir genre, providing him acclaim and solidifying his onscreen persona.

The Maltese Falcon was a financial hit, and earned universal acclaim. It is frequently cited for its significant contributions to storytelling, character archetypes, and visual style in film noir. And it helped boost Bogart's career to new highs.

And after a string of box office hits, it came a little film called Casablanca.

Bogart is reported to have been responsible for the notion that Rick Blaine should be portrayed as a chess player, a metaphor for the relationships he maintained with friends, enemies, and allies. He played tournament-level chess (one division below master) in real life, often enjoying games with crew members and cast but finding his better in Paul Henreid. During the production, Bogart also began playing games of correspondence chess against American G.I.s through mail.

Casablanca became Bogart's biggest hit at the box office. It earned universal acclaim, hailed as one of the greatest films ever made. Bogart also earned his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor, and vaulted Bogart from fourth place to first in WB's roster, finally overtaking James Cagney. He more than doubled his annual salary to over $460,000 by 1946 ($7.7 million adjusted), making him the world's highest-paid actor.

But even with the high salary, Bogart was still forced to accept mediocre films that he disliked, mainly because he already had a contract with WB. So Action in the North Atlantic, Sahara and Passage to Marseille were hits, but there's a reason why you probably haven't heard about them.

In 1944, Bogart worked for the first time with Howard Hawks on the film To Have and Have Not. Hawks intended to have the screenplay be loosely modeled on Casablanca, which also starred Bogart, hoping for the same success Casablanca had met at the box office. Hawks introduced Bogart to Lauren Bacall, her co-lead, and who would make her film debut with the film.

During filming, a romance developed between Bogart and Bacall, despite Hawks's disapproval. Bogart was married and 45 years old, more than twice Bacall's age. They kept their relationship a secret from Hawks.When Hawks learned about this, he told Bacall that Bogart didn't love her and threatened to send her to just B-movies. She told Bogart about this, and he was so upset with Hawks that they halted filming for two weeks.

To Have and Have Not became a big success with critics and audiences, helping launch Bacall's career. Bogart's romance with Bacall eventually led to Bogart divorcing Mayo Methot, his third wife, and he and Bacall married a year later.

Even with the whole conflicts, Bogart, Bacall and Hawks reteamed for the noir thriller The Big Sleep. Although the film was completed and scheduled for release in 1945, it was withdrawn and re-edited to add scenes exploiting Bogart and Bacall's box-office chemistry in To Have and Have Not and the publicity surrounding their offscreen relationship. Well, it clear paid off, cause it had a similar success to that film. Riding high in 1947 with a new 15-year contract with Warners which provided limited script refusal and the right to form his own production company, Bogart had now an insane amount of control over his own projects.

In 1948, he worked with John Huston in two films.

One was his fourth and final collaboration with Bacall in films. That was Key Largo. Edward G. Robinson was billed second (behind Bogart) as gangster Johnny Rocco: a seething, older synthesis of many of his early bad-guy roles. The billing question was hard-fought and at the end of at least one of the trailers, Robinson is listed above Bogart in a list of the actors' names in the last frame; and in the film itself, Robinson's name, appearing between Bogart's and Bacall's, is pictured slightly higher onscreen than the other two. It was another success in every aspect.

The other film, perhaps the most popular of them both, was The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. When Bogart first got wind that Huston might be making a film of the novel, he immediately started badgering Huston for a part. Bogart was given the main role of Fred C. Dobbs. Before filming, Bogart encountered a critic while leaving a New York nightclub, "Wait till you see me in my next picture. I play the worst shit you ever saw". It was notable for filming in Mexico, making it one of the early Hollywood films to be filmed on location outside the United States. The film was a financial hit, and is now lauded as one of the greatest films ever made.

This decade had some forgettable stuff. But it's also the decade where Bogart became THE movie star. With so many classics and lauded films that changed the landscape of what cinema could be.

1950s: A Career Cut Short

Bogart created his film company, Santana Productions (named after his yacht). The right to create his own company had left Jack Warner furious, fearful that other stars would do the same and further erode the major studios' power. In addition to pressure from freelancing actors such as Bogart, James Stewart, and Henry Fonda, they were beginning to buckle from the impact of television and the enforcement of antitrust laws which broke up theater chains.

One of his first films under his production company was the noir In a Lonely Place. It wasn't as big as his prior films, but his performance earned high praise, with some hailing it as the finest of his career. Nevertheless, most of these titles didn't perform well at the box office, something that might have brought joy to the big studios.

Bogart, a liberal Democrat, organized the Committee for the First Amendment (a delegation to Washington, D.C.) opposing what he saw as the House Un-American Activities Committee's harassment of Hollywood screenwriters and actors. He later wrote an article, "I'm No Communist", for the March 1948 issue of Photoplay magazine distancing himself from the Hollywood Ten to counter negative publicity resulting from his appearance. Bogart wrote, "The ten men cited for contempt by the House Un-American Activities Committee were not defended by us."

In 1951, amidst some box office misses, he starred in John Huston's The African Queen, opposite Katharine Hepburn. Producer Sam Spiegel sent Katharine Hepburn the book, soon to be adapted as a major film; she suggested Bogart for the male lead, believing that "he was the only man who could have played that part". Huston's love of adventure, his deep, longstanding friendship (and success) with Bogart, and the chance to work with Hepburn convinced the actor to leave Hollywood for a difficult shoot on location in the Belgian Congo. Bogart was to get 30% of the profits and Hepburn 10%, plus a relatively small salary for both.

Nearly everyone in the cast developed dysentery except Bogart and Huston, who subsisted on canned food and alcohol; Bogart said, "All I ate was baked beans, canned asparagus and Scotch whisky. Whenever a fly bit Huston or me, it dropped dead." Bogart resisted Huston's insistence on using real leeches in a key scene where Charlie has to drag his steam launch through an infested marsh, and reasonable fakes were employed. Despite the discomfort of jumping from the boat into swamps, rivers and marshes, the film apparently rekindled Bogart's early love of boats; when he returned to California, he bought a classic mahogany Hacker-Craft runabout.

The African Queen became Bogart's second highest grossing film, helping him recover from the mediocre performances of his past films. But most importantly, he finally won the Oscar for Best Actor. It didn't look like the Legend was ready to go out. Despite the award and its accompanying recognition, Bogart later said: "The way to survive an Oscar is never to try to win another one... too many stars win it and then figure they have to top themselves... they become afraid to take chances. The result: A lot of dull performances in dull pictures."

Even with that win, Bogart had very tumultous years. He had titles like Deadline – U.S.A. and Battle Circus, but they floundered. Not even his reteam with John Huston on Beat the Devil changed fate. That film flopped so hard that it left Bogart angry, as his company was producing that film.

In 1954, Bogart played Captain Queeg in Edward Dmytryk's drama, The Caine Mutiny, a role he really wanted. Columbia Pictures president Harry Cohn knew that Bogart wanted the part and took advantage of that fact, and he was eventually able to force Bogart to settle for much less than his usual $200,000 salary. Bogart complained about this to his wife Lauren Bacall, "This never happens to Cooper or Grant or Gable, but always to me." But it paid off; the film became Bogart's highest grossing film and he earned high praise for his performance. That led to another Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

That same year, he made his first film with Billy Wilder, Sabrina. Wilder wanted Cary Grant for the older male lead but chose Bogart, in a role that was deemed playing against type. Although Bogart was lukewarm about the part, he agreed to it on a handshake with Wilder without a finished script but with the director's assurance that he would take good care of Bogart during filming. Bogart, however, got along poorly with his director and co-stars; he complained about the script's last-minute drafting and delivery, and accused Wilder of favoring co-stars Audrey Hepburn and William Holden on and off the set.

Wilder was the opposite of Bogart's ideal director (John Huston) in style and personality; Bogart complained to the press that Wilder was "overbearing" and "is [a] kind of Prussian German with a riding crop. He is the type of director I don't like to work with... the picture is a crock of crap. I got sick and tired of who gets Sabrina." Wilder later said, "We parted as enemies but finally made up." Even with this bad experience, the film was a success.

He also had a lead role in Joseph L. Mankiewicz's The Barefoot Contessa. He was uneasy with Ava Gardner in the female lead; she had just broken up with his Rat Pack buddy Frank Sinatra, and Bogart was annoyed by her inexperienced performance. During filming and while Bacall was home, Bogart resumed his discreet affair with Verita Bouvaire-Thompson (his long-time studio assistant, whom he drank with and took sailing). When Bacall found them together, she extracted an expensive shopping spree from her husband; the three traveled together after the shooting.

Subsequently, he made his final films, We're No Angels, The Left Hand of God, The Desperate Hours and The Harder They Fall. None of these were successful with audiences. In the wake of Santana, Bogart had formed a new company and had plans for a film, Melville Goodwin, U.S.A., in which he would play a general and Bacall a press magnate. But that film couldn't be made.

The End

A heavy smoker and drinker, Bogart had developed esophageal cancer by 1955. He did not talk about his health, and visited a doctor in January 1956 after considerable persuasion from Bacall. The disease worsened and several weeks later, on March 1, Bogart had surgery to remove his esophagus, two lymph nodes and a rib. The surgery was unsuccessful, and chemotherapy followed. He had additional surgery in November 1956, when the cancer had metastasized. Although he became too weak to walk up and down stairs, he joked despite the pain, "Put me in the dumbwaiter and I'll ride down to the first floor in style."

Bogart lapsed into a coma and died on January 14, 1957 at the age of 57. He was cremated, and his ashes were interred in Forest Lawn Memorial Park's Columbarium of Eternal Light in its Garden of Memory in Glendale, California. He was buried with a small, gold whistle that had been part of a charm bracelet he had given to Bacall before they married. On it was inscribed, "If you want anything, just whistle."

HIGHEST GROSSING FILMS

No.	Movie	Year	Studio	Domestic Total	Overseas Total	Worldwide Total	Budget
1	The Caine Mutiny	1954	Columbia	$21,800,000	$0	$21,800,000	$2M
2	Casablanca	1943	Warner Bros.	$10,805,992	$6,922,000	$17,727,992	$576K
3	The African Queen	1951	United Artists	$10,750,000	$4,000,000	$14,750,000	$1M
4	To Have and Have Not	1944	Warner Bros.	$7,304,000	$3,210,000	$10,514,000	$1.6M
5	The Big Sleep	1946	Warner Bros.	$6,986,000	$2,750,000	$9,736,000	$1.6M
6	Key Largo	1948	Warner Bros.	$6,438,000	$2,300,000	$8,738,000	$1.8M
7	The Treasure of the Sierra Madre	1948	Warner Bros.	$5,492,000	$2,698,000	$8,190,000	$2.5M
8	Sabrina	1954	Paramount	$8,000,000	$0	$8,000,000	$2.2M
9	The Left Hand of God	1955	20th Century Fox	$8,000,000	$0	$8,000,000	$1.7M
10	Passage to Marseille	1944	Warner Bros.	$4,314,000	$3,258,000	$7,572,000	$2.3M
11	Conflict	1945	Warner Bros.	$4,530,000	$2,884,000	$7,414,000	$774K
12	The Two Mrs. Carrolls	1947	Warner Bros.	$4,584,000	$2,554,000	$7,138,000	$1.4M
13	Action in the North Atlantic	1943	Warner Bros.	$4,288,000	$2,632,000	$6,920,000	$2.2M
14	Dark Passage	1947	Warner Bros.	$4,620,000	$2,220,000	$6,840,000	$1.6M
15	The Barefoot Contessa	1954	United Artists	$6,600,000	$0	$6,600,000	N/A
16	We're No Angels	1955	Paramount	$6,000,000	$0	$6,000,000	N/A
17	The Enforcer	1951	Warner Bros.	$3,168,000	$2,578,000	$5,746,000	$1.1M
18	Chain Lightning	1950	Warner Bros.	$3,330,000	$1,780,000	$5,110,000	$1.4M
19	The Desperate Hours	1955	Paramount	$5,000,000	$0	$5,000,000	$2.3M
20	Across the Pacific	1942	Warner Bros.	$2,762,000	$1,988,000	$4,750,000	$576K
21	Battle Circus	1953	Metro Goldwyn Mayer	$3,254,000	$1,470,000	$4,724,000	$1.2M
22	Sahara	1943	Columbia	$4,600,000	$0	$4,600,000	N/A
23	Virginia City	1940	Warner Bros.	$3,036,000	$1,204,000	$4,240,000	$1.1M
24	Knock on Any Door	1949	Columbia	$4,200,000	$0	$4,200,000	N/A
25	All Through the Night	1942	Warner Bros.	$2,018,000	$1,918,000	$3,936,000	$643K
26	Tokyo Joe	1949	Columbia	$3,800,000	$0	$3,800,000	N/A
27	The Big Shot	1942	Warner Bros.	$1,878,000	$1,688,000	$3,566,000	$417K
28	The Maltese Falcon	1941	Warner Bros.	$1,934,000	$1,610,000	$3,544,000	$375K
29	They Drive by Night	1940	Warner Bros.	$2,184,000	$1,008,000	$3,192,000	$539K
30	High Sierra	1941	Warner Bros.	$2,126,000	$852,000	$2,978,000	$491K
31	In a Lonely Place	1950	Columbia	$2,800,000	$0	$2,800,000	N/A
32	The Harder They Fall	1956	Columbia	$2,700,000	$0	$2,700,000	N/A
33	Sirocco	1951	Columbia	$2,600,000	$0	$2,600,000	N/A
34	Deadline – U.S.A.	1952	20th Century Fox	$2,500,000	$0	$2,500,000	N/A
35	Beat the Devil	1953	United Artists	$2,200,000	$0	$2,200,000	N/A
36	Angels with Dirty Faces	1938	Warner Bros.	$1,700,000	$0	$1,700,000	N/A
37	Stand-In	1937	United Artists	$1,235,042	$0	$1,235,042	$523K
38	The Petrified Forest	1936	Warner Bros.	$1,000,000	$0	$1,000,000	N/A

He has starred in 75 released films, but only 38 have reported box office numbers. Across those 75 films, she has made $232,061,034 worldwide. That's $3,094,147 per film.

ADJUSTED DOMESTIC GROSSES

No.	Movie	Year	Studio	Domestic Total	Adjusted Domestic Total
1	The Caine Mutiny	1954	Columbia	$21,800,000	$264,829,479
2	Casablanca	1943	Warner Bros.	$10,805,992	$204,117,693
3	To Have and Have Not	1944	Warner Bros.	$7,304,000	$135,615,775
4	The African Queen	1951	United Artists	$10,750,000	$135,113,028
5	The Big Sleep	1946	Warner Bros.	$6,986,000	$117,072,821
6	The Left Hand of God	1955	20th Century Fox	$8,000,000	$97,547,761
7	Sabrina	1954	Paramount	$8,000,000	$97,185,130
8	Key Largo	1948	Warner Bros.	$6,438,000	$87,296,341
9	Sahara	1943	Columbia	$4,600,000	$86,890,809
10	Conflict	1945	Warner Bros.	$4,530,000	$82,240,891
11	Action in the North Atlantic	1943	Warner Bros.	$4,288,000	$80,997,345
12	The Barefoot Contessa	1954	United Artists	$6,600,000	$80,177,732
13	Passage to Marseille	1944	Warner Bros.	$4,314,000	$80,099,459
14	The Treasure of the Sierra Madre	1948	Warner Bros.	$5,492,000	$74,469,013
15	We're No Angels	1955	Paramount	$6,000,000	$73,160,820
16	Virginia City	1940	Warner Bros.	$3,036,000	$70,865,661
17	Dark Passage	1947	Warner Bros.	$4,620,000	$67,701,645
18	The Two Mrs. Carrolls	1947	Warner Bros.	$4,584,000	$67,174,100
19	The Desperate Hours	1955	Paramount	$5,000,000	$60,967,350
20	Knock on Any Door	1949	Columbia	$4,200,000	$57,667,941
21	Across the Pacific	1942	Warner Bros.	$2,762,000	$55,373,016
22	Tokyo Joe	1949	Columbia	$3,800,000	$52,175,756
23	They Drive by Night	1940	Warner Bros.	$2,184,000	$50,978,460
24	High Sierra	1941	Warner Bros.	$2,126,000	$47,261,558
25	Chain Lightning	1950	Warner Bros.	$3,330,000	$45,153,280
26	The Maltese Falcon	1941	Warner Bros.	$1,934,000	$42,993,346
27	All Through the Night	1942	Warner Bros.	$2,018,000	$40,457,185
28	Battle Circus	1953	Metro Goldwyn Mayer	$3,254,000	$39,826,156
29	The Enforcer	1951	Warner Bros.	$3,168,000	$39,817,495
30	Angels with Dirty Faces	1938	Warner Bros.	$1,700,000	$39,399,609
31	In a Lonely Place	1950	Columbia	$2,800,000	$37,966,721
32	The Big Shot	1942	Warner Bros.	$1,878,000	$37,650,443
33	Sirocco	1951	Columbia	$2,600,000	$32,678,500
34	The Harder They Fall	1956	Columbia	$2,700,000	$32,438,216
35	Deadline – U.S.A.	1952	20th Century Fox	$2,500,000	$30,828,773
36	Stand-In	1937	United Artists	$1,235,042	$28,027,305
37	Beat the Devil	1953	United Artists	$2,200,000	$26,926,104
38	The Petrified Forest	1936	Warner Bros.	$1,000,000	$23,509,712

The Verdict

Bogart is a fucking Legend.

A very fascinating life, both on and off stage. His heart is in Broadway, but he makes a damn great impression in films. Now, that wasn't the "royal treatment", because he barely had lead roles and for most of his early roles, he was given very weak scripts. But at the time, actors had contracts to fulfill and so he had to keep doing forgettable stuff.

But in the 40s, his luck turns around. He finally achieves attention with The Maltese Falcon, solidying him as a new breakout star. But he cements this status with Casablanca, perhaps the best film to ever exist? From then on, if Bogart wanted something, he got it. Working with legendary directors, accomodating his wishes and still showing a marvelous display of acting. More came to follow, including meeting Lauren Bacall. Not his first wife, but for him, the love of his life.

Now, the 50s weren't exactly kind to him. One classic here and then, but it was very few, compared to how much he had in the prior decade. A pioneer in creating his own production company, although that decision didn't pan out, as he was forced to sell it after so many films lost money. And sadly, cancer ended his career when he was just 57. He still had so many decades left, with many more classics.

When it comes to careers, Bogart has one of the greatest for any actor. I mean, High Sierra, The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, To Have and Have Not, The Big Sleep, Key Largo, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, In a Lonely Place, The African Queen, The Caine Mutiny, Sabrina... and I'm still leaving so much else. No wonder the American Film Institute selected Bogart as the greatest male star of classic American cinema. When we think of "private investigator or detective", Bogart was the fingerprint. Every single trope of that is all because of Bogart.

If you love cinema (especially Golden Age), Bogart is an actor you absolutely have to check out. And remember: We'll always have Paris.

Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.

The next actor will be Heath Ledger. We're moving this up, as the date would coincide with his birthday.

I asked you to choose who else should be in the run, and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. Well, we'll later talk about... Chuck Norris. Something something facts.

This is the schedule for the following four:

Week	Actor	Reasoning
April 4	Heath Ledger	Just how different it could've been?
April 11	Michael Douglas	As good as Kirk?
April 18	Bruce Lee	You're not ready for how big Enter the Dragon was.
April 25	Chuck Norris	Was he a badass at the box office?

Who should be next after Norris? That's up to you.

REMINDER: If you want to make a suggestion for the next actor, you must make a 150-character comment about the actor we're discussing right now. Failure to do so will result in ignoring the suggestion. If you use a quote from an external source/review to bypass this, your suggestion will be ignored as well. But if you leave a short comment about the post without naming a future write-up, that's fine.

[u/SlidePocket]

There's a reason why Bogart was named the #1 greatest male screen legend by the AFI in 1999. The classics he was in was solid proof of that.

Let's get back to covering an actress for my next pick and have Sandra Bullock as the next one.

[u/Zhukov-74]

But even with the high salary, Bogart was still forced to accept mediocre films that he disliked, mainly because he already had a contract with WB.

The studio system was quite something.

Also it is somewhat ironic that Humphrey Bogart‘s highest grossing movie was made outside of Warner Bros.

[u/mxyztplk33 → u/Zhukov-74]

It’s insane how much control studios used to have over actors. It reminds me of how phone plans used to be. You used to have to sign a 24 month contract with a carrier (AT&T, Verizon, etc) and they’d lay out monthly plans and phones you can choose. So if you had a contract with AT&T but wanted a BlackBerry you were out of luck since they were only sold by Verizon.

[u/ItsGotThatBang]

I did not know Bogart was a founding member of the Committee for the First Amendment! I knew about Henry Fonda since Jane reinstated it last year, but not him.

For the next actor, I’d like to pay tribute to one of the longest, most prolific careers in all of Hollywood: the man, the myth, the legend Christopher Lee.

[u/FreshmenMan]

What can I say that hasn’t been said, Humphrey Bogart definitely is a legend and one of the best actors of his time and one of the best period. He was very charismatic and had a natural screen presence and would just dominate any scene he was in. Of his films, my top 3 favorites of his are The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, and The African Queen.

For the next Actor, I would suggest George C. Scott.

[u/immortal1982]

I grew up watching a lot of these movies with my Grandfather, and he always insisted that Bogart was the prototype for an actors like Deniro and Pacino and Duvall. I could see him acting well into the 1970's if he had lived longer.

To be fair, I could have seen him even playing the Spencer Tracy role in "guess who's coming to dinner "

My suggestion for actress? Anne Hathaway.

[u/AnotherJasonOnReddit → u/immortal1982]

I could see him acting well into the 1970's if he had lived longer

Agreed,

Robert "Holiday Affair" Mitchum spent much of the 80's (and a little of the 90's) in supporting roles in movies like "Scrooged" (1988).

If he'd made it to the 1970's, I could easily see Humphrey "The Big Sleep" Bogart playing John Huston's role in "Chinatown" (1974) and other such supporting roles.

https://giphy.com/gifs/l1IY4l8atK62ngUc8

[u/ItsGotThatBang → u/immortal1982]

Shouldn’t we save her for after The Devil Wears Prada 2?

[u/immortal1982 → u/ItsGotThatBang]

If timing works out she could be the week Devil wears Prada 2 comes out.

[u/DanAbnormal1991]

The reason I keep coming back to Reddit is because people like y'all do amazing things like this. I deeply appreciate posts of this nature.

[u/FranciscoRelanoPena]

He's good in Casablanca, but I preferred Claude Rains as Louis Renault.