Mayo Methot

Methot and Bogart became a couple of high-profile Hollywood celebrities, but it was not a smooth marriage. Both drank heavily, and Methot gained a reputation for her violent excesses when under the influence. They became known as "The Battling Bogarts," with Methot widely known, due to her combativeness, as "Sluggy." Bogart later named his motor yacht Sluggy in her honor.

During World War II, the Bogarts traveled Europe, entertaining the troops. But the troops weren't the only ones who were entertained. Usually they stayed in officers' quarters. They had no trouble borrowing guns, and many times were caught "shooting up the place" in the middle of the night. Afterwards, the army banned married couples from entertaining the troops for the remainder of the war.

At one point in their travels during the war, they linked up with director John Huston in Italy. During a night of heavy drinking, Methot insisted that everyone listen to her perform a song. Though they told her no, she sang anyway. The performance was so bad and embarrassing that Huston and Bogart remembered it years later and based a scene in Key Largo on the incident. It is the scene in which the alcoholic girlfriend (Claire Trevor) of the mobster (played by Edward G. Robinson) sings a number off key and while intoxicated. The performance won Trevor an Oscar. Read Less