How Humphrey Bogart Became a Star

From tough-guy gangster to hard-boiled detective to world-weary romantic and everything in between, Bogie could do it all. But this classic actor’s journey to icon status wasn’t an easy road to travel. In this TCM original production, we sit with film professor and writer Eddy Von Mueller to dissect what gave this odd man out his discernible star power.
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[@albertwinkler5379]

Eddy, I remember you in my classes at the Y. You were highly articulate, very clever, and had a great sense of humor. I'm glad you've done well, and I'm proud to have know youn. Albert Winkler

[@glendaconnolly6978]

Was mesmerized with Bogie in early '70s with a Friday nite marathon on our local channel & have been in love ever since.So intriguing how you break down his evolution...his layered characters with gestures,his facial expressions..

[@FIREBRAND38]

So glad you chose to post this. I watched it on TCM for the first time the other night and then immediately ordered the Warner Archives DVD of Black Legion.

[@jamesbondfanful]

Great job. Also please start a series like this..talking about other golden age stars as well ❤

[@salinasramiro2440]

Enjoyed your history on Bogart. VERY well described . Excellent job

[@Erich_Von_Erich]

My favorite actor, I watched To Have and Have Not 6 times this week.

[@lawrenceclemens8494]

Terrific documentary, and Eddie is the perfect narrator/host.

[@OffRampTourist]

I have two notable 'small' Bogart films I'd like to recommend: my annual Christmas favorite "We're No Angels" which has a half dozen best-of roles from others and Bogart's best comedic role; secondly, "It All Came True", where he both plays a gangster and against type, with another half dozen memorable character actors doing their best. I usually rewatch that one each year at Thanksgiving.

[@lepetitchat123]

Do you like Sabrina then?

[@OffRampTourist]

@@lepetitchat123 I'm not a William Holden fan but I do like the film; it's one that I occasionally just watch a few scenes from rather than the whole film. I love the chauffeur's complex of relationships with family and employers, some of the Paris and New York scenes, and of course the Bogart scenes in general. It reminds me a bit of Holiday with Grant and Hepburn, which I watch more often, in part because of Edward Everett Horton's delightful role and Lew Ayres as the brother is such a sympathetic character.

[@jk3521]

Black Legion could have been filmed in 2020 and been current.

[@arnepianocanada]

May surprise you, but this process is to me much like studying early Beethoven, Chopin or Brahms to appreciate the seeds that soon would flower into greatness. Very well presented.

[@user-in9gx8zu4i]

what does the host mean when he says "by 1936..." - when 1936 and Petrified Forest rolled in, Bogart was RETURNING to movies after having made a success playing the Duke Mantee role on Broadway - initially, it looked as though Edward G. Robinson was going to play the role in the film version, but something went wrong and Leslie Howard (who'd appeared in the stage version with Bogart and was also one of the play's producers) apparently helped Bogart secure the role - Warner's insisted on Bogart signing a long-term contract and the rest is known to all movie buffs - the studio tried occasionally to make Bogart into a traditional leading man in films like Marked Woman or Swing Your Lady, but Bogart seemed to fare best as heavies - between 1937 and 1940 Bogart must have been killed in at least a dozen movies (probably more) - 1940 was the beginning of his turnaround - a sympathetic role in They Drive by Night and a gangster who actually dies heroically in another George Raft vehicle called Invisible Stripes put Bogart in just the place he needed to be when Paul Muni, James Cagney and George Raft ALL turned High Sierra down, Bogart grabbed the role and really made something of it - and in '41 Raft was kind enough to turn down The Maltese Falcon (because he didn't want to work with first-time director John Huston and also because the studio had already made TWO other adaptions of the book), Bogart stepped in, the film was a hit and Bogart was firmly established as a star. The rest is history.

[@deanfrank7671]

💅👴🚬💅U NEED A GIRL FRIEND

[@cautionTosser]

very interesting retrospective. I like the way it was put together.

[@Kelli.Hicks.5]

I'm so glad this was posted. I caught a few minutes if it the other night, but wasn't able to finish it.

[@rajananantharaman4298]

Thanks for the incomparable bogie memories

[@darrensmith6999]

Thank You ! Recently started getting into Humphry Bogarts movies , i already own a number of his films Treasure of the Sierra Madre Casablanca etc, but was looking for some of his movies with more subtle yet stand out performances and this video has given me some great movies to check out (:

[@nicoletanis3703]

Thank you Humphrey Bogart to manage getting the audience undivided attention. Your tough guy style and skilled detective are impressive. He will steal the show regardless. Happy Birthday!

[@joeguzman3558]

I remember back in the 1970s in high school we did a class on acting ans i remember our teacher was an older man, he used to tell us that the audience is the camara lens, what we want the people to see is the most important thing ,face expression and places and things, it's like reading a book with your camara

[@VEGASWINGZ]

Please TCM, put CLOSED CAPTIONING for everything you show, not just the movies. Lots of wonderful things you show between shows, but can't enjoy it.

[@williamknight8016]

The best film reviewer/commentator i have ever heard. VERY ENTERTAINING.!!! TCM ought to give him PLENTY of work!!!

[@winggullseagull1230]

I'm glad "Black Legion" got the attention it deserves. Most Bogart documentaries never mention this movie. It showed Bogart's acting chops in a very demanding role. Black Legion was the first time Bogart was the star in an important movie that made quite an impact in 1937 & was praised by critics & the public. This forgotten classic really showed Bogart's star power & the film was quite controversial because of the right wing extremism & racism. Another classic movie was "Dead End" he was in a good gangster role with depth. These 2 films & "The Petrified Forest" were his best films of the 1930's. Bogart should've been a star before "High Sierra" & "The Maltese Falcon" in 1941.

[@emilianohermosilla3996]

Beautiful video!

[@ericthered760]

So not only does TCM have Eddie Muller, it also has Eddy Von Mueller - Howz about that !

[@jackm4457]

Very interesting, but a little disappointing, as well. I just re-watched "High Sierra" on TCM and was amazed at how proficient Bogart had become in holding together a movie that was very unfocused and a bit scrambled -- too many characters, locations and sub-plots. But Bogart used all of it to help reveal the many different facets of a very complicated character. George Raft couldn't have done have a good a job at tying all of it together. But Bogart had learned a lot by 1941. As a kid, he was my first "favorite" from Hollywood's Golden Era. While a few others have joined him, he still has his place on the very highest level. (Plus, he could play a mean game of chess!)

[@jk3521]

George Raft could act ?

[@emerybayblues]

9:34 is that Ma Kettle?

[@deanfrank7671]

💅👴🚬💅 NO , JUST YO MA

[@gwenniegirl50]

Yes. Marjorie Main.

[@matthewbaduria]

High Sierra is a timeless movie.that has stands the test of time.

[@snaht1]

he was LIKE no body... but he was bogie the GOAT

[@VincentAgostino-gy6hr]

I can watch The Maltese Falcon twice a year…

[@CliffBronson1212]

Humphrey makes America 🇺🇸 look special #Empirelook

[@andrewhernandez6459]

Soooooo cool!!

[@jpgabriele9596]

beautifully made video

[@bentheblackbutterfly222]

First time I saw Humphrey , I knew where Al Pacino came from lmao

[@Nosferigatoni]

@Turner Classic Movies ..do you know who made the music that's played during the first minute?

[@bernardmcgroary3372]

Does any one know where I can find a copy of the music in this video

[@MapleSyrupPoet]

Bogie ...everyman, leading man 👨 ...but, there is a king 🤴 in Bogie ...I can see 👀 it ...definitely Capricorn ♑ 🎭

[@pamelashelley6547]

Does anyone know which movie the image of Bogart at 6:17 is from?

[@anastasiabeaverhausen8220]

Looks like The Petrified Forest to me.

[@SallySallySallySally]

30-year-old Phil Silvers at 10:51

[@Cubertfilm]

i would think they would have a better telling of his beginning in Hollywood in 1930 with Bette Davis in Bad Sister... he left and went back to NY - and came back in Petrified Forest - demanded by Leslie Howard - as they starred together in the play. Bette Davis was featured as the lead actress in this fabulous gem.

[@coehelen]

His first movie was Up the River in 1930

[@FIREBRAND38]

The title of the video is How Humphrey Bogart Became A Star not a comprehensive look at how he got into pictures.

[@FunkyDisco79]

How Humphrey Bogart Became a Scar

[@Elane-hd5rz]

A scar? (S).

[@theaterdreamer]

Riveting!

[@jonihagler5244]

I’m ex

[@Existomalus]

It's funny because that "right wing rant" you're talking about was actually a democratic way of thinking back then. Lol brush up on history my boy

[@SayMyName316]

Expand I’m genuinely curious

[@zcam1969]

TCM showed Gone With The Wind ,, 5 times every year ,,, now TCM shows Shaft and Sydney Poitire 5 times a week ...SMH ,,,

[@ih8urVideo]

You should cry about it more.