1940's The Arts | Bogart, Humphrey 1899-1957

ACTOR

Unlikely Origins.

He made his name as a sensitive tough guy on the screen. He came to define an everyman sensibility and cynicism with his edgy, slightly slurred urban delivery. In the 1940s and early 1950s he was among Hollywood's biggest box-office stars. But Humphrey Bogart's origins belie the screen persona he was to become. He was born into affluence on Riverside Drive in New York City. His mother, Maud Humphrey, was a well-known illustrator. Her "Maud Humphrey Baby" became a popular figure in advertising. The portrait was of the infant Humphrey Bogart. Bogart attended Trinity School in New York City and the prestigious Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. He was a poor student and left the school early to join the navy. He reported to the USS Leviathan in October 1918, and World War I ended sixteen days later. In June 1919 Bogart was discharged. The navy gave him one thing—his distinctive...