Can You Recognize This Mega Movie Star in His First Role Ever?

Awarded an Oscar in 1952 for his role in John Huston’s The African Queen, American actor Humphrey Bogart is a major figure from the classic Hollywood era. Famous for his role in Casablanca, he appeared in nearly 80 films between 1930 and 1956. But are you familiar with his very first screen role?

Did you recognize him?

Humphrey Bogart’s first feature film was Up The River, directed by the legendary John Ford. In this film, two inmates (Spencer Tracy and Warren Hymer) befriend another prisoner, Steve (Humphrey Bogart), who is in love with a fellow inmate, Judy (Claire Luce). Five months later, Steve is released and promises to wait for his beloved. However, upon his release, he is blackmailed into participating in a scam.

In this debut feature produced by Fox, Bogart played the role of a young lead. Even in this early role, Bogart displayed his characteristic stoic demeanor and charming smile that would lead to his success in the years to come. Interestingly, John Ford and Humphrey Bogart would never work together again after this project.

A film with John Ford, then what?

Bogart continued to work for Fox until his scenes were cut from the film Women of All Nations by Raoul Walsh in 1931. He briefly worked with Universal (Bad Sister, Midnight) and Columbia (Love Affair) before finding a long-term home at Warner Bros., where he started in 1932 with Big City Blues and continued until 1951 with The Enforcer, his last film for the studio.

Before this, Bogart had begun self-producing through his company, Santana Productions, which made seven films between 1949 and 1953 that were released in theaters by Columbia. Bogart never returned to Warner and worked with nearly every other studio, from United Artists to Paramount, including 20th Century Fox.

His major films include The Big Sleep, The Maltese Falcon, Casablanca, In a Lonely Place, and Angels with Dirty Faces, all of which are classics that are essential viewing if you want to discover or rediscover this great actor with an unforgettable face.