Ingrid Bergman Refused a Hollywood Studio Makeover for Casablanca—and the Rest is Movie History

In the late 1930s, Bergman arrived in Hollywood with one suitcase and no makeup kit, prompting producer David Selznick’s wife, Irene, to ask, incredulously, “You mean you have nothing on your face?” She didn’t. When the actress met the filmmaker, he immediately sized her up, commenting, “Your eyebrows are too thick, and your teeth are no good, and there are lots of other things...I’ll take you to the makeup department in the morning.” Bergman immediately fought back. “I think you’ve made a big mistake,” she said. “Now you’ve seen me, you want to change everything. So I’d rather not do...