Humphrey Bogart Warner Bros. wanted to cast the then much better known Edward G. Robinson for the film adaptation; however Leslie Howard, who played the protagonist in both the play and the film, insisted on Bogart being given the part. His breakthrough came in 1941 when his performances in "High Sierra" and "The Maltese Falcon" made him a star. His first true romantic lead role came in 1942's "Casablanca", breaking his typecasting as a gangster. He and Lauren Bacall starred together in "To Have and Have Not" (1944). After they married, she also played his love interest in "The Big Sleep" (1946),
Humphrey Bogart never to try to win another one ... too many stars ... win it and then figure they have to top themselves ... they become afraid to take chances. The result: A lot of dull performances in dull pictures". "The African Queen" marked the first Technicolor film starring Bogart. He appeared in relatively few color films of any kind during the rest of his career, which continued for another five years. Bogart dropped his asking price to get the role of Captain Queeg in Edward Dmytryk's 1954 drama "The Caine Mutiny". Though he griped with some of his old bitterness