We wanted to end this season of Hot and Bothered with Casablanca because it's Casablanca.

It's known as one of the greatest American films of all time, often on the top of lists with Citizen Kane and the Godfather.

It won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay at the Oscars.

Warner Brothers, still, as long as it exists, uses as time goes by as its theme music.

That's how iconic Casablanca is.

It's one of the most famous romances of all time.

Casablanca came out in 1942.

It takes place in 1940 and 1941.

It is wild to watch it, knowing that it was released just months after the United States was joining World War II.

You'll often hear that while making Casablanca, nobody thought it was anything special,

that it was meant to be a B movie. I don't think that that characterization is quite right.

All people mean is that it was part of the studio system.

People weren't being precious about it.

There were lots of writers involved and people were changing things up to the last minute as they were being shot.

In fact, apparently, it was kind of an unpleasant set.

But it didn't set out to be a B movie.

The fun thing about the set is that all but three of the actors were immigrants,

and almost no English was spoken between takes.

The movie primarily takes place in December of 1941 in Casablanca, French Morocco.

An American, Rick, runs Rick's Cafe Americon, a saloon with gambling, good drinks, a great musician,

Sam, and a band.

The movie starts with a voiceover, explaining that Casablanca was the last treacherous stop

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