Academy Award-winning American actor and film star Humphrey DeForest Bogart was born on December 25, 1899 in New York City. He was educated at Trinity School in New York and was sent to Phillips Academy in Massachusetts. He was expelled from Phillips, which led him to join the U.S. Naval Reserve. Upon his return, he had an office job working for William Brady Sr.’s new company, World Films. He tried screenwriting, directing and production, until he became a stage manager and eventually made his stage debut.
Humphrey Bogart had no formal acting lessons but was persistent in his craft. He appeared in several Broadway plays between 1922 and 1935. He then performed with Bette Davis in The Bad Sister in 1931 but had a minor role. Bogart also starred in the Broadway play Invitation to a Murder in 1934 where he was heard by producer Arthur Hopkins. He was then sent to play escaped killer Duke Mantee in the play The Petrified Forest. This was released on film in 1936, and Bogart was praised for his performance. He was then typecast as a gangster despite his disapproval of it. He also appeared in films like Racket Busters, San Quentin, and got a substantial lead role in 1937’s Dead End. He was gunned down on film repeatedly, like in Angels with Dirty Faces in 1938.
In 1937, he played a good man for a change, in Black Legion. He also played a mad scientist in The Return of Doctor X in 1939. He rose to stardom in 1941, when he played Roy Earle in High Sierra, Bogart’s last major film wherein he plays a gangster. His audiences applauded when he played detective Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon. This was followed by his first romantic lead role in Casablanca in 1943 with Ingrid Bergman. His portrayal earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role, a huge triumph. He has also appeared in other films such as The Big Sleep, based on a Raymond Chandler novel, in 1946 and Key Largo in 1948. Humphrey Bogart was also a founding member of the Rat Pack. He later formed his own production company, Santana Productions, and made The Treasure of Sierra Madre in 1948. He finally won the best actor Academy Award for his performance in The African Queen, also starring Katharine Hepburn. His final roles include Captain Queeg in The Caine Mutiny, Linus Larrabee in Sabrina, Joseph in We’re No Angels, Glenn Griffin in The Desperate Hours and Eddie Willis in The Harder They Fall. His health failing, Humphrey Bogart died in his sleep, following a battle with throat cancer.