Humphrey Bogart Was Hollywood Royalty – And His Final Words Still Touch Fans Today

Humphrey Bogart was undoubtedly one of the greatest actors of Hollywood’s Golden Age. He starred in some of era’s most iconic movies: from playing the world-weary bar owner in Casablanca to a grumpy boat skipper in The African Queen. But his final words to fellow screen legend and wife Lauren Bacall would have moved even some of his most cynical characters.

A True Rat Packer

At the time of his death in January 1957, Bogart’s health had been deteriorating for several years. According to reports, the star had even joked that he’d lose his hair and teeth before a long-term contract was through. Bogart had also drank heavily during his career and was believed to have smoked two packs of cigarettes a day. In fact, his wife Bacall had once named him and his friends The Rat Pack after observing their bedraggled state the morning after a heavy night.

The Diagnosis

Bacall, for her part, discovered her husband Bogart’s throat cancer in February 1956. And only after this bleak diagnosis did he change his Chesterfield cigarette habit to the filtered variety, according to the Daily Mail. But the actor’s health continued to decline rapidly, and in March that year Bogart had two lymph nodes, a rib and his whole esophagus removed.

Swift Downfall

Bogart also underwent chemotherapy, and in November 1956 he went through more corrective surgery after the cancer spread further. The actor soon became wheelchair bound, and by the end of the year he struggled to go up and down the stairs in his house. According to his wife’s 1978 book Lauren Bacall by Myself, the actor quipped with his wry humor, “Put me in the dumbwaiter and I’ll ride down to the first floor in style.”

Saying Goodbye

Bogart died at the age of 57 in January 1957 – less than a year after his diagnosis. And at the time of his death, he weighed just 80 pounds. The day before he passed, the star was visited by fellow Tinseltown greats Spencer Tracy, Frank Sinatra and Katharine Hepburn. According to A.M. Sperber and Eric Lax’s 1997 book Bogart, Hepburn said, “Spence patted him on the shoulder and said, ‘Goodnight, Bogie.’ [He] turned his eyes to Spence very quietly and with a sweet smile covered Spence’s hand with his own and said, ‘Goodbye, Spence.’”