One of the more challenging celebrity names to pronounce is that of Humphrey Bogart’s wife, Mayo Methot. Have you ever wondered how to properly pronounce Mayo Methot? Read this newspaper article from 1931 and you’ll be saying ‘Mayo Methot’ correctly in no time!
Humphrey Bogart & wife Mayo Methot make the holiday news in this 1944 article.
In addition to her successful acting career and marriage to Humphrey Bogart, Mayo Methot has long aroused curiosity because of her unusual name.
This compelling news story from 1931 suggests why she never changed it.
Many songs associated with film icon Humphrey Bogart were featured in his films. Some of these include ‘Knock On Wood’ and ‘As Time Goes By,’ both from the 1942 film ‘Casablanca.’ There’s also the tune ‘Am I Blue’ from the 1944 movie ‘To Have And Have Not’ and ‘Moanin’ Low’ from 1948’s ‘Key Largo.’
Some contemporary songs are associated with Bogie, too. This includes the 1981 hit ‘Key Largo’ by Bertie Higgins. Before both were featured in 1937’s ‘Marked Woman,’ Bogie and future wife Mayo Methot re-acquainted after years apart.
Yet the song that started it all for them wasn’t a new one. The tune they first danced to had been released a few years earlier in 1934 by Ray Noble, titled ‘The Very Thought Of You.’ Here’s the original version they likely enjoyed, arm-in-arm.
The Very Thought Of You
Music & Lyrics by Ray Noble
The very thought of you and I forget to do
The little ordinary things that everyone ought to do
I’m living in a kind of daydream
I’m happy as a king
And foolish though it may seem
To me that’s everything
The mere idea of you, the longing here for you
You’ll never know how slow the moments go till I’m near to you
I see your face in every flower
Your eyes in stars above
It’s just the thought of you
The very thought of you, my love
The mere idea of you, the longing here for you
You’ll never know how slow the moments go till I’m near to you
I see your face in every flower
Your eyes in stars above
It’s just the thought of you
The very thought of you, my love
If you’ll be anywhere near Portland, Oregon this Memorial Day, you may wish to pay respects at the resting place of a celebrity from long ago. That person is Humphrey Bogart’s erstwhile wife, Mayo Methot. Your destination? Wilhelm’s Portland Memorial mausoleum.
Mayo was married to ‘Bogie’ for nearly seven years and their union is considered by many to be the stuff of lore. Since their disagreements frequently played out in public, Mayo & Humphrey were sometimes called the “Battling Bogarts.”
Yet Mayo’s fame was not simply due to marrying the number one leading man in movies, as voted by the American Film Institute. Before meeting Humphrey Bogart, Mayo herself was a star of both Broadway and film.
Mayo’s crypt is located on the entry level at Wilhelm’s Portland Memorial. However, it’s a massive structure, so feel free to ask for assistance in order to best navigate your way around.
If all you know about Broadway and film star Mayo Methot is her marriage to leading Hollywood actor Humphrey Bogart, there’s much more to the story. Here’s a glimpse into what convinced her biographer into writing ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby.’
Photo copyright, Roy Widing
Here’s a little known fact: After more than half a century, Humphrey Bogart & wife Mayo Methot’s Oregon love nest is STILL known as ‘Casablanca.’
Located minutes from the former Eastmoreland district home of Mayo’s mom, the 1920’s-era residence features a picturesque waterfront view off a quiet street in a tony neighborhood just outside Portland.
Some reports have Bogie & Mayo staying at the home on several successive summers, with others suggesting the newlyweds vacationed at ‘Casablanca’ in August, 1938 on their trip from California to visit Mayo’s mother living nearby.
Photo copyright, Roy Widing
Click here for more on the debut biography ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby:’
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According to the 1940’s movie magazine ‘Screenland,’ movie star Humphrey Bogart’s hobbies included sailing, golfing and yet another less publicized activity: Photography.
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Mayo with Peter the Cat by Humphrey Bogart
Bogie took the above photo of his wife Mayo Methot holding their cat, Peter.
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Fans of Humphrey Bogart are well aware of his multiple marriages. Of them all, Bogie’s most tempestuous were his seven years as husband to actress Mayo Methot. Nicknamed ‘Sluggy,’ Mayo’s public disagreements with her movie ‘tough guy’ spouse made the ‘Battling Bogarts’ a constant source of celebrity news. Here are three tidbits you probably didn’t know about Bogie’s famously feisty partner.
1. When Mayo was just a teenager, her sea captain father broke the jaw of a young boy who blew kisses to her. This taught Mayo to take matters into her own hands…later with her Hollywood husband.
2. Early in their relationship, Mayo was an accomplished Broadway star and ‘Bogie’ was a struggling movie novice. Their roles changed over time and as Bogart acquired bigger parts, Mayo relinquished both her stage and screen career.
Mayo Methot – 1930, The Ben Solowey Collection
3. After her death in 1951, Humphrey Bogart had flowers regularly sent to Mayo’s Oregon crypt. They stopped arriving in 1957, the year of Bogart’s own passing.
Mayo’s Portland, Oregon Crypt, Photo © Roy Widing
Actor David Niven became a close friend of Humphrey Bogart. Click here or on the image below for his candid account of the feisty dynamic between Bogie & Mayo.
Actor David Niven
News of Mayo Methot’s budding romance with a mystery beau hit newspapers in June, 1947. At this point, Mayo had been single for two years after her divorce from Humphrey Bogart.
Yet who was this mystery man? Find out by ordering the biography of Mayo Methot, ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby’ here.
Initially designated to honor the deceased who served in our military, Memorial Day for some is also connected to the memory of civilians.
Memorializing is one way to honor others who are no longer with us. After her death at the age of 47 in 1951, actress Mayo Methot’s former husband, Humphrey Bogart, reportedly sent flowers to her crypt until he died in 1957.
Due to this year’s Coronavirus concerns, few are expected to visit the Portland, Oregon mausoleum where Mayo is interred. Yet the memory of Mayo Methot lives on for many who appreciate her noteworthy legacy, since this small town girl ‘made it’ by achieving the most unlikely trifecta of all.
That’s because Mayo (1). Starred on Broadway, (2). Performed for years before the klieg lights of Hollywood and (3). Married arguably the biggest screen icon of all time, Humphrey Bogart, named the greatest male star by the American Film Institute.
Curious To Know More?
This year instead of placing flowers for Mayo, consider catching up on the life of this one-of-a-kind personality who achieved so much in her short life. Check out the debut biography about Mayo Methot here.
The below 1943 news column by journalist Jimmy Fidler provides an often overlooked perspective about the relationship between Humphrey Bogart and his wife, Mayo Methot. Fidler suggests their much-reported tempestuous relationship was calmer at sea in the absence of others, especially away from the white hot media spotlight.
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The couple’s mutual nautical interests were aided by the fact that Bogart was a Navy veteran and Mayo’s father a sea captain.
Mayo & Bogie, Happy at Sea
While aboard their boat the ‘Sluggy,’ the case can be made that these two professional actors didn’t have an audience egging them on, so it was easier to simply enjoy each other’s company. Get the real story behind film icon Humphrey Bogart’s seven year marriage to stage and screen actress Mayo Methot here in the new book ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby.’
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This 1944 news column helps to explain Mayo Methot’s headgear while touring with husband Humphrey Bogart during WWII:
The simple act of hair washing wasn’t practical during that wartime visit, so ladies, including Mayo, got creative.
Mayo Methot & Humphrey Bogart in 1944
Get the real scoop of this dynamic and controversial Hollywood couple. Order your copy of ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby’ by clicking here.
The book ‘Only In Oregon’ features a section on Wilhelm’s Portland Memorial, the mausoleum where Mayo Methot is interred.
In the news 75 years ago, as Humphrey Bogart announces divorce plans from Mayo Methot: “Mayo’s a fine girl…”
The new biography ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby’ was featured in a recent Fox News article.
Click here or on the image below for more on this author interview.
This week—seventy six years ago, in November, 1946—Ohio’s Evening Independent newspaper documented an employment offer for stage & screen star Mayo Methot.
1946 News Article
The opportunity arrived more than a year after Humphrey Bogart and Mayo Methot divorced. Yet it wasn’t the only offer Mayo received. That’s because a year earlier, Mayo received a different letter from an experienced Broadway producer & director:
“…I want to bring you back to the theatre, either as a player or a co-producer. I have the play which I intend to open in N.Y…”
Makes a Great Christmas Gift!
This newspaper article was published in the San Mateo Times on October 30, 1944:
‘Sluggy’ is the biography of Mayo Methot, third wife of film star Humphrey Bogart during the peak of his career. Anyone curious about their seven year roller-coaster Hollywood marriage will find ‘Sluggy’ a revealing view into the mercurial relationship that even movie ‘tough guy’ Humphrey Bogart couldn’t control. His later wife was called ‘Bogie’s Baby.’ Yet years before her, was ‘Bogie’s Other Baby,’ Mayo Methot. Buy ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby.’ Available at Amazon here.
The following book excerpt is from ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby,’ scheduled for release on October 17, 2019. Order your ebook copy today.
It was an August, 1938 trip to Portland soon after their marriage that signaled both Mayo’s commitment to new husband Humphrey Bogart and her disengagement from acting. Mayo had a minor role in the film ‘The Sisters’ released on October 14, 1938, starring Errol Flynn and Bette Davis. Yet when the topic of her future was raised in a front page Oregon Journal story on August 24, 1938, Mayo stated “…I’m not interested in my career anymore. Humphrey’s career is my interest.” Humphrey responded with “Thank you, darling. And to my surprise and amazement, the bride can cook.” However, Hollywood’s hold on Mayo hadn’t completely loosened.
Humphrey Bogart’s third wife, Hollywood and Broadway performer Mayo Methot, is interred at Wilhelm’s Portland Memorial in Portland, Oregon. Known as ‘The Portland Rosebud’, Mayo’s hometown experiences were key in shaping her later success.
Perform an Internet search or read the countless books about Hollywood. There you’ll find sordid and sorry snippets of Mayo Methot’s once high-profile life. What hasn’t been told is a fact-based account of both her human frailties and strengths.
Mayo Methot’s untold backstory of grit and talent included a work ethic that took her to the top. ‘Sluggy’ fills this void with the ambition of even-handedness, avoiding hagiography and its evil twin, the hatchet job. —Excerpt from ‘Sluggy: Bogie’s Other Baby.’
Mayo Methot was Humphrey Bogart’s third wife. Born in 1904, she was twenty years older than Lauren Bacall, Bogart’s fourth wife. Before Bacall’s 1924 birth, Mayo Methot was already performing on the Broadway stage, as noted in this newspaper article.
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Given their age difference, fourth wife Lauren Bacall was sometimes called ‘Bogie’s Baby.’ But long before Bacall was Mayo Methot, ‘Bogie’s Other Baby.’ The first ever biography about Mayo Methot is scheduled for release on October 17th, 2019, with book pre-orders now available here.
Click for e-Book Details
Mayo Methot’s paternal grandmother Minnie helped pave the way for her granddaughter’s entertainment future.
Public Domain Image
Minnie Methot both sang opera and composed numerous songs, like ‘Don’t Be So Unruly.’
Oregon’s Catlin Gabel Campus in Autumn
‘Six degrees of separation’ involves the concept that we’re all six or fewer personal connections from each other. This means if you follow the ‘friend of a friend’ link far enough, any two people can be linked within a maximum of six steps. While the theory has been popularized more recently, an early proponent of ‘six degrees of separation’ was Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy in 1929.
‘Six Degrees’ proponent Frigyes Karinthy
Mayo Methot’s educational background is shared by well known luminaries. Like Mayo, some have been been involved in acting and/or film. Here are a few of Mayo’s fellow celebrities from Oregon’s Catlin Gabel School, previously known as ‘Miss Catlin’s School.’
Catlin Students
Margaux Hemingway-Model, actress & granddaughter of novelist Ernest Hemingway.
Margaux Hemingway
Gus Van Sant, Jr. -Film Director
Gus Van Sant, Jr.
Catlin Faculty
James Beard-Chef
James Beard
An early object of Mayo Methot’s affection was actor William Reid, whom she met as a youth.
Wallace Reid – Public Domain Photo
After an injury in 1919 while filming ‘Valley of the Giants’ on location in Oregon, the ‘movie star handsome’ Reid was given painkillers in order to continue filming. He became addicted and as a result, his health deteriorated. In 1923, Wallace Reid died in the arms of his wife, Dorothy Davenport. Wallace Reid is now considered one of Hollywood’s earliest victims of drug addiction.
Mayo Methot 