Tough Without a Gun: The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of Humphrey Bogart Review

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Tough Without a Gun: The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of Humphrey Bogart ReviewDoes anyone ever really get to understand a Hollywood star. It's all illusion and manufactured. The only way to pierce the veil of the invented perception is to get down and read a thoroughly researched book that has no ax to grind, and that is exactly what we have here. Author Stefan Kanfer has gone back and done the research and thoroughly dissected the history of one of the true 20th century Hollywood legends - Humphrey Bogart. Born to wealth, in trouble as a young man, Bogart finally came to the realization later in life that there were only two types of people. There were the bums and there were the professionals. He wanted to be known as a professional, and thus began the long journeyman career into acting.

He worked on it for almost two decades, honing his craft, playing bit after bit part, until he catches a big break when Director John Huston puts him in High Sierra. Both the star and director were drinking buddies, and drinks and buddies count in Hollywood. It was a radically different industry back then. Today the average movie costs $120 million and studios put out between 12 and 15 big budget movies per year. Back in the 1930's and 1940's, the average studio of which there were seven, put out a picture a week. That's right a picture a week which means about 50 pictures per studio per year. It's one of the reasons why you had the cast system, which meant that the actors were owned lock, stock, and barrel by the studio. From month to month they would be moved around from movie to movie as they were needed. On occasion they would be loaned to a different studio in return for a payment. This was the system that Bogart who became one of the biggest stars of his generation was a part of, in his case a big part of.

The book points out that in generations passed, voice impersonators were always taking on the job of impersonating famous actors. From James Cagney to Clark Gable, and then there was Humphrey Bogart, the most impersonated actor of all time. Today nobody impersonates actors anymore. When was the last time you saw someone trying to impersonate Brad Pitt, or Sean Connery. It just doesn't happen because the unique egos that occupied the screen in generations passed have now been supplanted by publicists who create the modern screen legends. In the case of Bogart he has transcended them all by having the American Film Institute name him the greatest male legend in movie history. In almost the first 30 movies of his career, he gets killed in the movie, or as he likes to say, he spent more time lying down and dying, then standing up and acting. At 42 years of age, he breaks through, and Hollywood was changed forever. He is probably the only actor that was bigger after he died than during his own lifetime. The public simply could not get enough of him. It was 1957 when Bogie died, and here we are 50 plus years later, and he's still going strong. The man was born to privilege. His family was New York high society, his father a prominent surgeon in three hospitals, while his mother was an art prodigy who sold her first drawings at age 16. Humphrey could have easily become a doctor like his father, but chose a rough and tumble life, and created some pain for the family, and then the acting bug bit him, and thus began the life we have come to know. In 1946 he was the highest paid actor in the world earning $467,000. He had just signed a contract with Warner Brothers. He would do one studio project per year and they would pay him $200,000. He would approve the director and the script. He had written permission to do one project outside the studio each year, and this would go on for 15 years per the contract. This meant he would not have to worry about money until he was 61 years, being 47 at the time. He had already worked in 53 films, and before that 19 plays. It's all here in 255 pages of easy to read, entertaining, and informative narrative. The author Kanfer takes you through the highs and lows of Bogies career. He compares him to other stars of his time, and to the stars today. He takes you through how Bogart would help other actors who were to follow him form their careers based on his persona. He was in fact the real deal. No one today is compared to him and no one will be. They broke the mold when he died in 1957. He helped other actors when they were in need like Peter Lorre, and Fanny Arbuckle. He lent a helping hand to Gene Tierney and Joan Bennett. Unlike his movie persona, he was an absolute gentleman with women. With men, his word was his bond, a handshake as good as a contract. For those who were blacklisted during the communist scare of the 1950's, he sought employment for them. His gifts to charity were enormous, and he did not seek publicity for his good works. He was as they say a man's man.

Legendary director John Huston says that Bogart was endowed with the greatest gift a person can have. That gift is talent, and the whole world came to recognize it. Read the book. Have a great time exploring the life of this extraordinarily influenetial actor and icon, and thank you for reading this review.

Richard C. StoyeckTough Without a Gun: The Life and Extraordinary Afterlife of Humphrey Bogart Overview

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