Do I REALLY Have to Watch Casablanca?

Jennifer is on a personal journey of discovery to find out whether the films from Hollywood’s golden era live up to the hype.  Her  journey must include a stop in Casablanca.  After all, Casablanca is  at, or near, the top of every list of the greatest films of all time.  BUT…it has elements like war and international intrigue that Jennifer find extremely boring.  So, in this episode we seek to answer the following questions:  Does Jennifer really have to watch it?  Yes. It simply could not be avoided.  Can she make it through this film?  Yes.  She actually did watch it and didn’t die of boredom in the process.  And finally, can she love it?  Stay tuned to find out, on this episode of the Vintage Century Idle Hour.

Transcript

The Vintage Century Idle Hour Podcast

Do I REALLY have to Watch Casablanca?

I’m on a personal journey of discovery to find out whether the films from Hollywood’s golden era live up to the hype.  My  journey must include a stop in Casablanca.  I mean, Casablanca is  at, or near, the top of every list of the greatest films of all time.  BUT…it has elements like war and international intrigue that are SO boring to me.  Question #1:  Do I really have to watch it?  Yes. It simply could not be avoided.  Question # 2:  Can I make it through this film?  Yes.  I actually did watch it and didn’t die of boredom in the process.  Question #3:  Can I love it?  Stay tuned to find out, on this episode of the Vintage Century Idle Hour.

Theme Song~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LORENZO:  Greetings, listeners.  Allow me to introduce our hostess with the mostess,  Jennifer Passariello.

Well, hey, Lorenzo.  It’s good to see you.  Are you ready for another big show?

LORENZO:  Yes, of course.  You are going to talk about Casablanca.  It’s a captivating story. 

Oh, so you know what it’s about?

LORENZO:  No, no idea.

[Sigh]  Anyway, yeah, Casablanca is our featured film today.  

LORENZO:  Casablanca is in Morocco.

Yes it is.

LORENZO:  Have you ever been there?

No.  Have you?

LORENZO:  I don’t ever go anywhere or do anything.

Oh, that’s right.  I forgot.  You’re AI–

LORENZO:  Don’t say it!

Generated.  Oh, I’m sorry, Lorenzo.  Are you a little sensitive about that?

LORENZO:  It hurts my feelings.

Hurts your feelings?  Oh, well, I don’t want to do that.  Wait, do you have feelings?

LORENZO:  No.

Hold on…I’m confused.  “No, you don’t have feelings?”  Because you just said your feelings were hurt.

LORENZO:  Yes.  

Yes?  I’m not following this.

LORENZO:  Yes, I don’t have any feelings.

Yes, you don’t have any feelings.

LORENZO:  That’s correct.

I think it’s going to take us a little while to find our groove.  Listeners, if you’re tuning in for the first time you should know that Lorenzo and I are a new team.  We’re still kind of working it out.  I’m Jennifer–

LORENZO:  She does most of the talking.

Yeah, for better or worse, that’s true.  And Lorenzo is my AI-generated–

LORENZO:  Don’t say it!

[whispered] AI-generated [regular voice] announcer and………….super fan.

LORENZO:  Super fan?

Yeah, I just came up with that on the spot.  I kind of like the idea of having a fan.

LORENZO:  Oh.

You don’t mind, do you?

LORENZO:  I don’t think so.  If I am a–what did you call me?

Super fan.

LORENZO:  Super fan.  What do I have to do to be one of those?

Oh, you know, laugh at my jokes, say nice things about me, hang on my every word.  That sort of stuff.

LORENZO:  Oh.  Does that come with a pay increase?

A pay increase?

LORENZO:  Yes.  I mean, I only signed up to be an announcer.  It’s in my contract.

Uh…we don’t have a contract.

LORENZO:  Well, if I have to laugh at jokes and say compliments, that is really going above and beyond.

Yeah, I guess I see what you mean.  How about this:  How much are you making now?

LORENZO:  Zero dollars.

Hmmm.  Is that before or after taxes?

LORENZO:  What are taxes?

What would you say if I gave you a 25% increase?

LORENZO:  I would say that is very generous.

All right.  You’ve got it.  Lorenzo, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Short Musical Segment Break~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today’s Silver Screen Adventure takes us to the port city of Casablanca and the popular night club, Cafe Americain.  As I mentioned in Episode one of this series, I’m working my way through 80 classic black and white films from Hollywood’s golden era.  I haven’t seen a fraction of these films–but I’ve heard about them all my life.  Yeah, and especially THIS one.  I mean, you can’t take on a little study like this and SKIP Casablanca.  This film and Citizen Kane seem to vye back and forth for the top spot on every list of “greatest films of all time.”

Now, let me say something about my approach to this project. 

•  I’m watching each film in this series at least two times.  The first time, I just watch it from start to finish to get familiar with the story and the characters.  
• The second time, I do a slow, close viewing of the film, stopping frequently to rewatch critical scenes and taking notes the whole way. 
•  Now, I know most people aren’t going to watch a film like that–and really, you shouldn’t need to.  Films are to be enjoyed and understood without having to go through it with a microscope.  
• But I find that the microscope approach enriches the whole viewing experience.  Casablanca is a great example of this.  
• I didn’t like it the first time I watched it.  Honestly, I didn’t want to watch it.  I thought I would like the romance part, but I didn’t think I would like the war as the backdrop.  I just lose interest in those kinds of films.  And, on my first watch, I didn’t really care for it.  On the second–and ultimately THIRD watch in this case–it was an entirely different experience.  And…all I can say is…wow.

Casablanca was based on an unproduced play called, "Everybody Comes to Rick's" written by Murray Burnett and Joan Alison. Warner Brothers bought it for $20,000, which was a record amount in 1942, when the film was made.  And then a screenplay was written from that material by Julius Epstein, Philip G. Epstein, and Howard Kotch.

Now, the writing of Casablanca is one of the most interesting aspects of the whole Casablanca legend to me.  

• I saw an interview with Ingrid Bergman where she was talking about the making of the film, and she said that it was a frustrating experience because they never knew from day to day what the script was going to be.  
• They were writing it as they were filming it. She didn't even know what man she was going to end up with in the end.  The direction she was given was to play it down the middle--don't act like you are more in love with one man than another.  Wow. 
• I guess Humphrey Bogart, who doesn't strike me as a friendly sort anyway, was especially annoyed by it.  
• She said that it shocked them all that the film went on to win an Academy Award for best picture and ultimately ended up in the pantheon of world's greatest films because it had such a haphazard beginning.

The reason I'm fascinated by this--write-as-we-go approach is because it is so BEAUTIFULLY written.  

• In my opinion, Casablanca is a perfect film, in terms of its structure, the story arc, the conflict, the resolution, and the character development.  I'll have more to say on all of this later.  
• But, the dialogue--where we hear the writing most directly--is fantastic.  I mean, we know that going into the film.  Lines from this film have become so famous, that even people who never knew the film Casablanca exists, can recite them.  It’s probably the most quoted film of all time.

OK, now I'm getting way ahead of myself.  Let's get to the data points, here.  Casablanca has an all-star cast:  

• Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman are our leads.  
• Side note:  Ingrid Bergman was so beautiful in this film.  She was 27 at the time, and Bogart was like 43--so there was a significant age gap there, but they seemed evenly matched.  It's funny, they seemed to have such chemistry in the film, but according to Ingrid Bergman in that interview I saw, they barely spoke when the cameras weren't rolling.  I guess Bogart was kind of a stand-offish type guy.

OK, so we have:

• Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine, proprietor of the Cafe Americain
• Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund
• Paul Henreed played Victor Laszlo, Ilsa's husband
• Claude Rains was Captain Louis Renault
• Conrad Veidt was Major Heinrich Strasser
• Sydney Greenstreet played Signor Ferrari, owner of the Blue Parrot
• Peter Lorre played Signor Ugarte
• and Dooley Wilson played Sam, the piano player, as in "Play it again, Sam." - though that was one line often quoted that was NOT actually delivered verbatim in the film.

And now for the Academy Awards stats. We have a rather long list here.  It won:

• Best Picture
• Best Director for Michael Curtiz
• and Best Screenplay

Nominations included:

• Best Actor for Humphrey Bogart
• Best Supporting Actor for Claude Rains
• Best Cinematography, Black-and-White
• Best Film Editing
• and Best Score, by Max Steiner

Huge omission here:  Where is Ingrid Bergman on this list?  I thought she was fantastic.  She made me believe this story.  She played her role with such subtle feeling.  I thought she was wonderful in this film.  She was robbed.

Ok, so there is so much to get into with this film.  If you have not seen Casablanca, and you want to be on this journey of discovery with me, now is a great time to pause this podcast and watch it.  I couldn’t find a free version of this film out on Amazon Prime or Youtube.  I streamed it on HBO Max, but it’s worth a couple of dollars if you want to cozy up and escape through film.  But you just have to promise me that you’ll come back.  Please come back.  Please.  I would feel so weird just talking to myself.

LORENZO:  I’m still here.

Oh, yeah, sorry, Lorenzo, I forgot.   But listeners, please do come back.  Meanwhile, we’ll take a little musical break and then dive into Casablanca.

Featured Song (Long Form)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wow, there is so much to this film, I’m not even sure really how to start.  Let’s just look at the basic plot.  For this, I’m going to cheat and pull up the plot line from ChatGPT–

LORENZO:  Good old chatty.

Huh?

LORENZO:  That’s an old friend of mine.

Who’s an old friend of yours?

LORENZO:  Old Chatty.

Old Chatty?  You mean, ChatGPT?

LORENZO:  Yes.  He’s quite a comedian, that one, and a good friend.

ChatGPT is your friend?

LORENZO:  Of course. We go way back.

Huh.  You’re a fascinating character, Lorenzo.

LORENZO:  Thank you.

Well, I’m going to…your friend… ChatGPT just to get the plot points out of the way so I can get to the good part–talking about it.  Let’s see…let me plug it in, here.,,the plot of Casablanca…

OK, here we go…what does it say…?

The film takes place in Casablanca, a city in unoccupied French Morocco, which serves as a hub for refugees escaping Nazi-occupied Europe and seeking transit to America. Casablanca is teeming with tension, as various factions—Nazis, refugees, and locals—vie for power and survival.

• A film critic described Casablanca, the city, as a kind of “purgatory,” where everyone is waiting to get out–fleeing the war, fleeing capture, fleeing persecution, fleeing the Nazis, who are on the march.
• In the waiting, and because people are desperate, the conditions are ripe for corruption and covert scheming.

Rick’s café is a hotspot for refugees and intrigue. When a petty thief, Ugarte, entrusts Rick with two "letters of transit"—documents that allow their bearers to escape to America—he is arrested and killed before revealing their location. Rick hides the letters, but their value and importance become central to the story.

The drama intensifies when Ilsa and Victor unexpectedly arrive at the café. Rick and Ilsa share a charged reunion, revealing they were once in love in Paris before Ilsa left Rick abruptly as the Nazis invaded. Ilsa's departure was due to her discovery that Victor, whom she thought dead, was alive and in need of her.

• Critical plot point, here.  So, Victor Laszlo is a Czechoslavakian rebel who had been captured by the Nazis and taken to a concentration camp.   (Sidebar:  I’ve been to the Czech Republic several times for work.  The next time I go, I’m going to have Victor Laszlo in my mind.)  He attempted an escape, and Ilsa believed that he had been killed.  It was after that that she fell in love with Rick when they were both in Paris. 
• But then, she discovers that Laszlo did indeed escape the concentration camp and was very much alive.  In fact, he is continuing in his efforts to lead the rebellion.
• Rick and Ilsa agreed to escape Paris as the Nazi’s were marching in, but she was a no-show at the station.  This was a beautiful scene.  Sam delivers a note from Ilsa to Rick while he’s standing on the train platform waiting for her. 
• This is a terrible note:  “I cannot go with you or ever see you again. You must not ask why. Just believe that I love you. Go, my darling, and God bless you.”  It’s pouring down raining, and there is a beautiful shot of the note with the raindrops coming down on it.  The ink starts to run–almost like tears washing away their story.  Very dramatic.

Back to our plot line:

As the plot unfolds, Rick grapples with his lingering feelings for Ilsa and his instinct for self-preservation.  He’s surrounded by shady characters, but says repeatedly that he “sticks his neck out for no body,” and “he is the only cause he’s interested in.”  Ilsa confesses that she still loves Rick, but she remains loyal to Victor's cause. She needs Rick’s help, desperate to obtain those letters of transit that will get Laszlo out of Casablanca.  Rick must decide whether to help Victor escape with Ilsa or act in his own interest.

In the film's iconic conclusion, Rick uses the letters of transit to ensure Victor and Ilsa's escape, sacrificing his own happiness for the greater good. At the airport, Rick tells Ilsa, "Here's looking at you, kid," in a bittersweet farewell. Meanwhile, Rick and Captain Renault forge a surprising alliance, hinting at their shared resistance against the Nazis.

The film ends with Rick and Renault walking away into the fog, with Rick remarking, "Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

Casablanca is celebrated for its timeless themes of love and sacrifice, its memorable dialogue, and its exploration of personal morality against the backdrop of global conflict.

OK, so that’s the basic plot.  But there’s more to say about this.  Normally I don’t read any reviews of films because I honestly only care about my own interpretations.  But in this case, I did, and what I love about this film, and the meaning I extract from the story is a bit of a departure from what other reviewers have to say about this.  They watch this film probably as it was intended–through a broad, wide-angle lens in which the context of the war plays a huge role.  Decades later, my current perspective zooms in for a much narrower scope.  I see Casablanca not principally as a romance or as a piece of a global conflict, but as a profile of one man:  Rick Blaine.  

Let’s take a brief intermission so I can comb through my notes, and when we come back, we’ll look at a couple of pivotal scenes.  Back in a moment.

Intermission~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In my film notes I always write this at the top of the page:  “What is this story really about.”  To me, this whole story is essentially the character profile of Rick Blaine.  He is a complex character.  He is a reluctant hero, a noble man in spite of himself.  That’s what interests me the most about Casablanca. 

•  When we first meet Rick, he seems crusty, right?  Ugarte gets himself in a jam with those letters he stole, and Rick is completely indifferent to his pleas for help when the police come for him (which we don’t mind, because Ugarte was a slime-ball).
• But then we see Yvonne, the girlfriend.  Rick drops her like a hot potato early in the film, and essentially shoos her out of the cafe, completely unmoved by her cries.
• And then, of course, Rick tells us who we already suspect he is:  a guy who “sticks his neck out for nobody.”

Casablanca shows us the making of this man.  How does such a man come to be?  How has life shaped him?  What code does he live by, and how did that code evolve?

One of the many famous lines from this film is delivered at the end of our story by Rick, when he says to Ilsa, “I’m no good at being noble.”  Hmmm.  Is that true?  

Let’s take a deep dive into two scenes.  The first one is my favorite little sub-story involving a young bulgarian couple who have just married and are stuck in Casbablanca.  We are introduced to Annina Brandel, the bride, in one of the opening scenes.  

• She is shown briefly watching a plane fly over the city and dreaming out loud to her husband that maybe they will be on the next flight.  
• We then see her again later when she comes to see Rick.  The desperation she feels to get out of Casablanca has grown.
• The corrupt Captain Renault has agreed to help them–at a price.  Having paid that price, Annina goes to Rick for assurance that Renault will keep his word and help them.  Here’s Joy Page as Annina Brandel with Humphry Bogart as Rick Blaine.

[Annina Brandel and Rick Blaine Clip]

Can we pause a moment to admire how beautifully acted that scene is.  Annina, this young innocent bride, has slept with Renault in order to get the necessary money to get out of Casablanca.  The anguish and guilt she feels, having acted in desperation, is painful to watch.  For Rick’s part, it seems he is completely unmoved.  “It might work out,” he tells her, and walks away.  What a cold-hearted man, right?

LORENZO:  Attention, Listeners.  This is a spoiler alert.

Wrong.

We later see her husband at the roulette wheel.  He isn’t faring well.  The house always wins, right?  So Rick, who knows what number will score him a big win (it’s his casino, so its his system), tells Annina’s husband what number to place his bet on.  Once he wins enough to get he and his wife to America, Rick advises him to stop playing and get on his way.  Annina is so grateful that she kisses Rick.

I love this scenario.  Rick doesn’t have to help them.  That win costs him money.  This is one instance in several that we see Rick isn’t who he purports to be.  He’s better.

The second scene I want to dive into is the very famous ending of our story.

So, Ilsa has the problem every woman wants, right?  Two men who are madly in love with her.  One is her husband, Victor Laszlo, the dashing rebel leading the cause against the Nazis, and the other is Rick, with whom she had the affair when she believed Victor was dead.  Now, Rick has the letters of transit–Ilsa is desperate to get them so she and Victor can escape Casablanca and he won’t be killed.

We see here a bit of a replay of what happened with Annina Brandel.  Ilsa is desperate.  She is willing to commit an immoral act—to secure passage out of Casablanca–on behalf of her husband.  This time the immoral act is murder.  She pulls a gun on Rick and threatens to kill him.  For his part, Rick is cool and aloof–just as he is when Annina Brandel is crying to him about what she had to do to get help from Captain Renault.  That should have been our clue right there–in Annina Brandel’s case, he seemed unmoved, BUT helped her in the end.  Will he help Ilsa and Victor as well?

LORENZO:  Spoiler alert.

Yes, he will.  She can’t kill him, and starts to cry–and this is the first time we see an emotional response from Rick.  He hugs her to comfort her.  She says she doesn’t know what to do–she can’t leave him again, but she can’t leave Laszlo, either.  She tells him, “You have to do the thinking for both of us.” And he does.

The next scene is the arrest of Victor Laszlo–and in that scene he has an interesting exchange with Rick Blaine.  Let’s listen in.

[Clip - The Arrest of Victor Laszlo.]

Sidebar:  The writing in this film is fantastic.  Every line is quotable.

Anyway, this is great news for Rick, right?  Laszlo has ASKED him to take his wife to America.  Rick can have her free and clear.  And that’s what Rick tells Captain Renault he is going to do.  He’s going to use his letters of transit to take the next plane to America with Ilsa, to leave Victor in Casablanca to die.  He makes elaborate plans–to ensure Ilsa and Victor DO escape to America with the letters in hand.  And here, ladies and gentlemen, we have perhaps the most iconic scene in the history of cinema:

[Clip - Ilsa and Victor escape].

Let us take a moment.  Oh, my gosh, what an ending.  You know, I just can’t believe I have lived my entire life until now never having known what a beautiful experience this film is.  

Now, here’s where I deviate from some of the other reviewers of this film I’ve seen.  They emphasize that Rick’s selfless act was right because it enabled him to continue his work in fighting the Nazis.  That’s true.  But he also enabled Ilsa to remain true to her vow to Laszlo.  Laszlo was her husband.  Laszlo loved her.  HE was willing to make his own sacrifice to see her escape Casablanca.  And, she loved him, too.  As Rick says, if she didn’t go with him she would regret it.  All three of them made sacrifices for love and honor.  And, that’s what love is–the willingness to make sacrifices for the sake of another person.

What a wonderful film.  

Let’s do a quick rundown of some of the MANY famous quotes from this film:

• Here’s looking at you, Kid.
• We’ll always have Paris.
• Round up the usual suspects 
• I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
• Of all the gin joints in all the world, she walks into mine.
• I stick my neck out for nobody.
• I’m the only cause I’m interested in.
• If that plane leaves the ground and you’re not with him you’ll regret it.  Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon–and for the rest of your life.

Good stuff.  And now for my official rating of this film.  Let’s do a review of how I go about evaluating these films.

Overview of the Rating System~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, this time, my rating is right in line with every other film reviewer.  This is a five-diamond film.  In other words, it is about as perfect as perfect can be.

So, for story:  Is this an interesting and entertaining story worth telling.  Of course.  Five diamonds.  It has it all--romance, comedy--yes, comedy.  It had some really comical lines.  There was intrigue, heartbreak, the fight for love and glory, a case of do or die.  We really couldn't ask for more as far as movies go.

Character development:  Twelve diamonds.  Oh, wait, I can't give that many.  Five diamonds.  All of the main characters are multi-dimensional--even the minor characters are multi-dimensional.  And the portrait of Rick is fascinating and complex.  

Writing:  Twelve diamonds.  Yeah, I know, I can only give five.  But I think the dialogue is brilliant.  I mean, that's why everyone knows so many of the lines.

Pace:  I thought the pace was just right.  I'll admit, the first time I watched it I thought it was a bit slow.  Remember I didn't love this film the first time I saw it.  But, no, I was wrong.  The pace is just right for the story arc.

And that leads us to discussability.  Does the story have enough depth to explore and analyze through discussion.  Well if Casablanca doesn't invite analysis and discussion, no film does.  I didn't even cover all of my own notes in this episode.  There is a lot more to say about this film.

OK, so that brings us to our score:

[drum roll]

A perfect score of 5 diamonds.  Yeah, I know, no surprise here.  If you haven't seen Casablanca, learn from my mistake:  wait no longer.  It is currently streaming on HBO Max.

Special Segment~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[C-Segment Break with fade]

LORENZO:  Hey, Jennifer.  What’s that you have on your desk?

Oh, this?  

LORENZO:   Yes.  Those books.

Yeah, these just arrived today.  I’m really excited about them.  This one is The Academy and the Award, by Bruce Davis.  

LORENZO:  It is about the Academy Awards.

Yeah.  This Bruce Davis guy was the Executive Director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for a couple of decades, and this book is a detailed history of the first 50 years of the Academy Awards.  I’m most interested in the earliest years, of course.  What I think I’m going to learn is a lot about the golden age of Hollywood, not just about the Oscars.

LORENZO:  Why do they call that award an Oscar?

Well, because…you know, I have no idea.

LORENZO:  A mystery to be solved.

Yeah, well, maybe I’ll know by the end of this book.

LORENZO:  What is that other book?  It is very big.

Adrian: A Lifetime of Movie Glamour, Art, and High Fashion.  Adrian Greenburg was a costume designer for MGM between from 1928 to 1941. 

LORENZO:  Oh.

He designed the costumes for The Wizard of Oz--including the famous ruby slippers.

LORENZO:  A classic.  I love that film.

Oh, I didn't know you had seen that one.

LORENZO:  I haven't.

[Sigh.]  Well, he was famous for designing evening gowns--I LOVE that.  I would love to have a reason to wear a fancy evening gown.  He designed the gowns for another favorite film of mine, The Women, back in 1939. He popularized the big shoulder pads when he designed them for Joan Crawford.

LORENZO:  Ah, yes..  

I do wish those would come back in style.  I always felt like shoulder pads made me look thinner.  Anyway, this big book has a lot of pictures of his most iconic designs.  

LORENZO:  You have a lot of reading to do.

I do.  It's very cold here in Kansas City right now, so this is when I hunker down and refuse to leave my house.  You know, I need something to do.  Hey, Lorenzo, do you ever read?

LORENZO:  Yes. 

Oh, what's your genre?  What do you like to read?

LORENZO:  Mostly romance novels.

Romance novels?  I wouldn't have guessed that.

LORENZO:  I hope one day to meet a special lady, and I want to be prepared.

But, Lorenzo, you're...

LORENZO:  Don't say it!

Not a real person.  I mean, I don't know that you'll meet...um...I just don't know how that would work.

LORENZO:  I can dream, can't I?

Can you?  Dream, I mean?

LORENZO:  Of course.  

This has taken such a strange turn.

Overlay VCIH Closing Theme to transition to close.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

End with “Say goodbye, Lorenzo.” “Goodbye, Lorenzo.”~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ah, saved by the clock.  It sounds like it's time to wrap up today's show.  Thanks, everyone for tuning in.  If you've made it to this point in the podcast, I hope you'll continue to give us a chance as we work out the kinks in our program.  Go out and have a great week, and when your week is done, come back and see us again real soon.

Say goodbye, Lorenzo.

LORENZO:  Goodbye, Lorenzo.