If you haven't had the following dinner party tiff, we'll sit here and eat an extra-large tub of popcorn, no butter, no salt. (OK, that isn't much of a threat, given the fact that we'd probably happily do so, anyway.)
This is the tiff: What's the most famous classic film you've never seen?
Expect the table to get loud, instantly. Everyone has probably seen "The Wizard of Oz" and "Sound of Music" and "The Godfather" but then. But then? But then "Casablanca" comes up, and while anyone born after 1942 practically arrives on earth knowing the lines "We'll always have Paris" and "Play it again, Sam" (which, famous, is a misquote), a lot of people seem to have missed a full screening of the winner of Outstanding Motion Picture at the 16th Academy Awards.
It's time to correct that. The LA Conservancy is screening it not once but twice at the Saban Theatre on Saturday, June 29. It's part of Last Remaining Seats, the preservation-minded organization's annual summertime cinema series, a series that focuses on beloved films screened vintage movie palace settings.
"Casablanca" is the last film of the 2013 series. Tickets are still available -- this is seriously unusual -- and they're $20 each.
And, yep, our observation that "Casablanca" is the most famously unseen of all the classic films is purely anecdotal and comes from a deep-seated movie-loving nerdiness, but our fear is real. Can this be true?
AFI, we know you round up the top 100 funniest flicks and most romantic weepies, but, we implore you, put your top minds on the films everyone can quote but have not actually seen.
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There are plenty, but Rick and Elsa seem to lead this particular pack. There's a way to correct this and make things right in your life, film fan, and you don't even need to get into a tussle at your next dinner party: Go see it on the big screen and help out LA Conservancy in the process.
Here's looking at you, "Casablanca" quoter who has never actually seen it. Here is looking at you.
