Dooley Wilson Overview:

Character actor, Dooley Wilson, was born Arthur Wilson on Apr 3, 1886 in Tyler, TX. Wilson died at the age of 67 on May 30, 1953 in Los Angeles, CA and was laid to rest in Angelus Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles, CA.

MINI BIO:

With sad eyes but a massive smile, Dooley Wilson was a singing drummer and nightclub owner in his early years. He took up acting in 1930 and won praise for his leading role in the stage production of Cabin in the Sky. He then brought his warm personality to films, most notably as Sam the pianist at Rick's Café American in the film Casablanca. Ironically, this was easily his best-remembered role, but in real life, he could not play a note and was dubbed for the film.

(Source: available at Amazon Quinlan's Illustrated Dictionary of Film Character Actors).

HONORS and AWARDS:

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BlogHub Articles:

By Bogart Fan on Oct 5, 2014 From The Bogie Film Blog

Birth Name: Arthur ?Dooley? Wilson Date of Birth: April 3, 1886 Date of Death: May 30, 1953 Number of Films Made With Humphrey Bogart: 2 The Lowdown: Perhaps the most exciting thing that?s happened to me while working on the blog occurred one night while I was reading tidbits and trivi... Read full article


– As Time Goes By from “Casablanca”

By Art on Feb 28, 2011 From Classic Cinema Gold

“As Time Goes By” is as synonymous with the 1942 classic movie Casablanca as any song ever was with a movie. It was originally written in 1931 by Herman Hupfeld for the Broadway Musical Everybody’s Welcome, where it was sung by Francis Williams. After it was released, “As Tim... Read full article


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Dooley Wilson Quotes:

Sam: Boss, ain't you going to bed?
Rick: Not right now.
Sam: Ain't you planning on going to bed in the near future?
Rick: No.
Sam: You ever going to bed?
Rick: No!
Sam: Well, I ain't sleepy either.


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Dooley Wilson Facts
Dooley won the role of Sam over top contender Clarence Muse who later played Sam in a 1950s TV adaptation of "Casablanca."

Dooley's piano playing in the film was actually performed by pianist/composer/songwriter Elliot Carpenter, who was placed where Wilson could see and imitate his hand movements. The only black talent on the Casablanca (1942) set, Wilson and Carpenter became and remained friends.

There is a line often misquoted from Casablanca (1942). In a scene where Rick (Bogart) sits in the darkened nightclub, alone except for Dooley's piano-playing Sam, he is seen drinking and tormenting himself by insisting that Sam repeatedly play "As Time Goes By," saying, "You played it for her, you can play it for me... If she can stand it, I can! Play it!" Bogart's line is often misquoted as, "Play it again, Sam!"

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