Casablanca: 1943 Best Picture

Casablanca was really made in 1942 but it went in with the 1943 films for an Oscar nomination because it was not released to the general public until January 1943.

Always included on Top Movie lists, it will undoubtedly hold the honor of one of the greatest and most-loved films of the 20th century forever, if not all time. Out of 8 nominations, “Casablanca” won 3 Academy Awards, Best Picture, Best Director (Michael Curtiz) and Best Adapted Screenplay (Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch).

Here are few interesting trivia items from IMDB:

• Many of the actors who played the Nazis were in fact German Jews who had escaped from Nazi Germany.
• Humphrey Bogart’s wife Mayo Methot continually accused him of having an affair with Ingrid Bergman, often confronting him in his dressing room before a shot. Bogart would come onto the set in a rage. In fact, despite the undeniable on-screen chemistry between Bogart and Bergman, they hardly spoke, and the only time they bonded was when the two had lunch with Geraldine Fitzgerald.
• Dooley Wilson (Sam) was a professional drummer who faked playing the piano. He was the only member of the cast to have ever actually visited the city of Casablanca.
• Director Michael Curtiz’ Hungarian accent often caused confusion on the set. He asked a prop man for a “poodle” to appear in one scene. The prop man searched high and low for a poodle while the entire crew waited. He found one and presented it to Curtiz, who screamed “A poodle! A poodle of water!”

There are lots of Jeopardy! clues on “Casablanca”
AT THE MOVIES $800: Rick gives Ilsa up to Victor in this 1942 film masterpiece
AFRICAN CITIES $5,000 (Daily Double): As luck would have it, the 1942 film named for this city opened 3 weeks after the Allies landed there
GIN $200: 1942 film that includes the line, “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine”
MOVIE MUSIC $400: Max Steiner wrote the score for this 1942 film, but it was Herman Hupfeld who gave us “As Time Goes By”
FICTIONAL HEROINES $800: Ilsa Lund Laszlo was the heroine of this 1942 film classic
QUOTATIONS FROM BARTLETT’S $800: Julius Epstein, Philip Epstein & Howard Koch are grouped together for quotes from this classic 1942 film
MISQUOTED $200: Contrary to popular belief, Humphrey Bogart never said “Play it again, Sam” in this 1942 film
FILM QUOTES: From a 1942 movie, No. 2 on Guinness’ top 10 film quotes is a line that mentions this liquor
1940s MOVIES: This 1942 film gained greater distinction following a January 1943 meeting of Allied leaders in its title location
THE WGA’s TOP 101 SCREENPLAYS $200: In the No. 1 spot is this 1942 movie’s script
WAR STARS $400: Songs like “As Time Goes By” were as much the stars of this 1942 classic as the lead actors
OSCAR $1200: Hal Wallis was nominated for producing an amazing 19 times, but won only once — for this 1942 Bogart classic
THE AFI’S 100 GREATEST LOVE STORIES $200: “Here’s looking at you, kid” & at this 1942 classic which tops the list
“C” YOU AT THE MOVIES $100: Ann Sheridan & Hedy Lamarr were considered for the role of Ilsa in this 1942 classic
FICTIONAL HEROINES $800: Ilsa Lund Laszlo was the heroine of this 1942 film classic

“The Song of Bernadette” had 12 nominations and won 4, including Best Actress for its star, Jennifer Jones, but we only found one clue which was related to the novel, not the film.
FAMOUS AUSTRIANS $200: Franz Werfel’s most famous novel is “The Song of” this young girl of Lourdes

Likewise for “Whom the Bell Tolls”, starring Gary Cooper and Ingrid Bergman. All the clues are about the Ernest Hemingway novel or the English poet John Donne because he wrote the line (No Man is an Island, Meditation XVII, 17th devotion).
THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL $600: In this Hemingway novel, Robert Jordan, a young U.S. professor, serves as a dynamiter in the Spanish Civil War
BORROWED BOOK TITLES $1600: This Hemingway title comes from poet John Donne’s meditations about the inter-connectedness of people
ABBOTT & COSTELLO: Their 1943 film “It Ain’t Hay” was based on a story by this “Guys and Dolls” author

More Jeopardy! clues on 1943 films:
FILMS OF THE ’40s $600: She was “Mrs. Miniver”, “Madame Curie” & “Mrs. Parkington”
MARINE BIOLOGY $1200: In 1943 this undersea explorer produced his first film, “Par Dix-huit Metres du Fond”, or “18 Meters Down”
THE ANTHONY QUINN FILM FESTIVAL $1200: In this 1943 film “Incident”, Anthony Quinn & Dana Andrews are mistakenly lynched by a mob
FILMS OF THE ’40s $1000: Anthony Quinn, Dana Andrews & Francis Ford were mistakenly hanged by a lynch mob in this 1943 film