It’s easy to say, though, that without the aid and assistance of George Raft, there is no Humphrey Bogart. I know that’s hard to believe today, since Bogart has become such a revered cult figure. But he scuffled for a decade or more in second-rate stuff. High Sierra began the turnaround, a part that Raft rejected. Then came The Maltese Falcon. Raft didn’t want to play Sam Spade because he didn’t trust the first-time-out director, John Huston. Finally, Casablanca. Would you have enjoyed that great entertainment as much with George Raft and Hedy Lamarr? Or Ronald Reagan and Ann Sheridan? They
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