在《卡薩布蘭卡》咖啡館追憶舊時(shí)光

CASABLANCA, Morocco — Some things get better astime goes by. Rick’s Café may be one of them.

摩洛哥卡薩布蘭卡——隨著時(shí)間的推移，有些事情會(huì)變得更好。里克咖啡館(Rick's Café)便是其中之一。

Chris Kelley of Bath, England, stopped there onerecent day for lunch on his way to a kite-surfingvacation in southern Morocco, and said he wasimpressed at how lovingly restored the old placewas. It was just like the one in the movie“Casablanca.”

最近的一天，在一次前往摩洛哥南部的風(fēng)箏沖浪度假之行時(shí)，英國(guó)巴斯的克里斯·凱利(Chris Kelley)在那里吃了一次午餐，并且表示這個(gè)老地方的精心修復(fù)給他留下了深刻印象。跟電影《卡薩布蘭卡》(Casablanca)里的那個(gè)咖啡館一模一樣。

Like many visitors here, Kelley was surprised to learn that Rick’s Café Américain never existed, except on a Hollywood movie lot, where the classic film starring Humphrey Bogart and IngridBergman was made.

像這里的許多客人一樣，凱利驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)，里克美式咖啡館除了在好萊塢一個(gè)片場(chǎng)以外，從未真的存在過。亨弗萊·鮑嘉(Humphrey Bogart)和英格麗·褒曼(Ingrid Bergman)主演的那部經(jīng)典影片就是在那個(gè)片場(chǎng)中誕生的。

It was 1942, the world was at war, and the eponymous city was occupied by the Axis powers. Rick’s was just the figment of a writer’s imagination.

那是1942年，世界還處于戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)中，這座與影片齊名的城市當(dāng)時(shí)為軸心國(guó)所占領(lǐng)。里克只是編劇想象出來的虛構(gòu)人物。

The owner and founder of the real Rick’s Café in Casablanca is a former American diplomat, Kathy Kriger.

卡薩布蘭卡現(xiàn)實(shí)中的里克咖啡館背后的老板和創(chuàng)始人是一位名叫凱西·克里格(Kathy Kriger)的前美國(guó)外交官。

“We wanted to make it everything it was in the movie, and then some,” she said.

“我們想完全還原電影里的場(chǎng)景，而且還不止于此，”她說。

A dozen white arches supported by columns frame the main dining room, under a three-story, octagonal cupola, and green leather bumpers grace the curved bar top. Palms in the corners, hanging brass chandeliers, beaded table lamps and a baby grand piano tucked into an archwaylend to the period-authentic mise-en-scène.

12個(gè)由圓柱支撐起來的白色拱門構(gòu)成了主用餐區(qū)的框架，上方是三層高、八角形的穹頂，綠色的皮質(zhì)鑲邊裝飾著曲面吧臺(tái)。角落的棕櫚樹，掛在上方的黃銅吊燈，放在桌上的串珠臺(tái)燈和一架嚴(yán)絲合縫地放入拱門的袖珍三角鋼琴，讓人覺得仿佛置身于當(dāng)年的場(chǎng)景中。

Not coincidentally, Kriger on most nights can be found standing at the corner of the bar, thewaiters under instructions to refill her wineglass with water until 11 p.m., when a Moroccan Vald’Argan Blanc is allowed. A lot of the regulars call her “Madame Rick.”

無獨(dú)有偶，在很多個(gè)晚上，你都能在酒吧角落找到站在那里的克里格，遵照指示的侍者會(huì)不斷為她的酒杯倒?jié)M水，直至晚上11點(diǎn)，才能喝上一杯摩洛哥瓦干白葡萄酒。許多?？投挤Q她為“里克女士”。

The incarnation of Rick’s Café has nothing to do with World War II, but a lot to do with themodern-day war on terrorism, and Kriger’s own small role in it. It also has much to say aboutthe enduring power of a great work of art to affect destinies in real life.

里克咖啡館的化為現(xiàn)實(shí)和“二戰(zhàn)”毫無干系，但卻與當(dāng)代對(duì)恐怖主義的戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)，以及克里格個(gè)人在其中的微小作用有所關(guān)聯(lián)。對(duì)于偉大藝術(shù)作品經(jīng)久不衰的力量，影響現(xiàn)實(shí)生活中的個(gè)人命運(yùn)，它也很有發(fā)言權(quán)。

Like a lot of Americans, Kriger was long a fan of “Casablanca,” which often makes critics’ lists ofthe 10 greatest movies of all time. She first saw it in 1974 at a movie festival in her hometown, Portland, Oregon.

像許多美國(guó)人一樣，克里格一直以來都是《卡薩布蘭卡》的忠實(shí)影迷，這部影片也常常登上影評(píng)人有史以來十大最佳電影的榜單。她第一次觀看這部電影時(shí)是1974年，當(dāng)時(shí)她在自己的家鄉(xiāng)俄勒岡州波特蘭。

“At the end, everyone stood up and applauded,” she said.

“影片最后，每個(gè)人都站起來鼓掌了，”她說。

Kriger later joined the State Department, which posted her as a commercial attaché to thisAtlantic coastal port, Morocco’s business center and biggest city.

克里格后來在國(guó)務(wù)院就職，后者將她以商務(wù)參贊的身份派駐到了這個(gè)大西洋沿海港口，這里是摩洛哥的商業(yè)中心，也是該國(guó)最大的城市。

She was stunned to discover there was no Rick’s Café here, which seemed to her a missedmarketing opportunity.

當(dāng)她發(fā)現(xiàn)這里沒有里克咖啡館后感到十分震驚，在她看來，這是一個(gè)被錯(cuò)失掉的營(yíng)銷機(jī)會(huì)。

Then came the Sept. 11 attacks, and what she considered a backlash in America againstMuslims. She wanted to fight that backlash, she said.

然后9·11襲擊就來了，還有在她看來在美國(guó)出現(xiàn)的對(duì)穆斯林的反彈。她想對(duì)抗這種反彈，她說。

She decided that a good way would be to show that an American woman, operating alone in aMuslim society, could start a business like Rick’s Café, to act as an exemplar of tolerance, arefuge in a troubled world.

于是她決定，達(dá)成這個(gè)目的的一個(gè)好方法，是展示出一名單獨(dú)在穆斯林社會(huì)工作生活的女性，也能做像里克咖啡館這樣的生意，以其作為社會(huì)包容的典范、一個(gè)問題重重世界的避難所。

Kriger cashed in her 401(k) plan and found a wreck of an old stately home in the AncienneMedina, the old city of Casablanca, which was then and is still a shabby, litter-strewn place.

克里格把自己的養(yǎng)老金都提了出來，在卡薩布蘭卡老城老麥地那找到了一座古老、宏偉的破舊住宅，那里當(dāng)時(shí)是，今天也依舊是一個(gè)破爛不堪，垃圾遍地的地方。

The house did not look like much, but it faced the port, had two royal palm trees flanking itsfront door, and inside was an architectural gem in the rough. She enlisted noted interiordesigner Bill Willis to help restore it, and went to a Moroccan bank for a loan.

房子看起來很不起眼，但它面對(duì)著港口，前門的兩側(cè)種著皇家棕櫚樹，里面則是一個(gè)未經(jīng)雕琢的建筑寶石。她招募了著名室內(nèi)設(shè)計(jì)師比爾·威利斯(Bill Willis)幫忙重建，然后去一家摩洛哥銀行貸了一筆款。

The loan wasn’t enough, so Kriger began emailing friends in the States with a pitch that begansomething like: “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, this is the one.”

貸款的數(shù)目不夠，于是克里格開始給美國(guó)的朋友發(fā)郵件，里面的提議是這么開頭的：“在全世界所有小鎮(zhèn)里的杜松子酒酒吧中，這就是你要找的那一家了。”

Many of them responded to the idea of starting a real Rick’s Café. She referred to herfundraising effort as “rounding up the usual suspects,” which inspired the name of thecorporate entity that would own the club.

他們中許多人對(duì)開一家真實(shí)的里克咖啡館作出了積極回應(yīng)。她將自己的籌款行動(dòng)稱作“圍捕非常嫌犯”，這也成為了擁有該俱樂部的公司實(shí)體名稱的來源。

It was 2002 when she was fundraising, amid much suspicion in America about the finances ofIslamic extremists, so she proactively went to the Treasury Department to explain why peoplewere wiring money to the Usual Suspects Société Anonyme in Casablanca.

2002年，當(dāng)她籌款時(shí)，美國(guó)對(duì)伊斯蘭極端分子的財(cái)務(wù)狀況非常懷疑，因此她主動(dòng)前往財(cái)政部，解釋人們?yōu)槭裁磳㈠X匯給卡薩布蘭卡的非常嫌犯匿名社團(tuán)(Usual Suspect Société Anonyme)。

Even so, one of her investors, in Lincoln, Nebraska, received a visit from the local FBI office toquestion his investment, she said.

她說，即便如此，她在內(nèi)布拉斯加州林肯市的一位投資者還是被當(dāng)?shù)芈?lián)邦調(diào)查局辦公室訪問，質(zhì)疑他的這筆投資。

Kriger was interviewing Moroccan candidates for a manager when she met Issam Chabaa. Hementioned he could play the piano. “I asked him to show me, and he sat down and played ‘AsTime Goes By,'” Kriger said. “He was hired.”

為了招募經(jīng)理，克里格面試了幾位摩洛哥候選人，并且遇到了伊薩姆·查巴(Issam Chabaa)。他提到自己會(huì)彈鋼琴。 “我讓他給我彈一下，他坐下來，彈起了《時(shí)光流逝》(As Times Goes By)，”克里格說。“他被錄用了。”

He has been with her since the opening 14 years ago.

自14年前開業(yè)以來，他一直和她在一起。

Chabaa still plays jazz piano several nights a week, as well as managing the club’s 60 employees. Hardly a week goes by without some diner asking him to “Play it again, Issam.”

查巴現(xiàn)在管理著俱樂部的60名員工，每個(gè)星期，他仍然會(huì)有幾個(gè)晚上在這里演奏爵士鋼琴。每個(gè)星期總會(huì)有幾個(gè)用餐者對(duì)他說，“再來一次，伊薩姆。”

Chabaa does play “that song” a lot, but he’s a proud man. When customers say, “Play it again, Sam,” he corrects them: “My name is Issam.”

查巴確實(shí)經(jīng)常演奏“那首歌”，但他是個(gè)驕傲的人。如果客人說，“再來一次，山姆，”他總會(huì)糾正他們：“我的名字是伊薩姆。”

(Historical note: “Play it again, Sam,” is never actually uttered in the movie; Ingrid Bergman’scharacter, Ilsa, says, “Play it once, Sam, for old time’s sake.”)

(關(guān)于歷史的腳注：電影里其實(shí)沒有“再來一次，山姆”這句臺(tái)詞;英格麗·褒曼(Ingrid Bergman)飾演的伊爾莎[Ilsa]說的是，“彈一次吧，山姆，為了舊時(shí)光。”)

What Kriger feels she has created, she said, is a place that can showcase what is great aboutAmerica and Americans, when the country is once again on a protectionist, isolationist bent.

克里格認(rèn)為，當(dāng)美國(guó)再次出現(xiàn)保護(hù)主義和孤立主義傾向時(shí)，她創(chuàng)造了一個(gè)可以展現(xiàn)美國(guó)和美國(guó)人偉大之處的地方。

“Casablanca” was, first of all, a propaganda movie, at a time when Americans were debatingwhether to send troops to North Africa and later to Europe. Kriger’s own politics are hinted at inthe restaurant’s menu, which includes dishes like “Obama Family Chili con Carne.” It issurprisingly spicy.

《卡薩布蘭卡》首先是一部政治宣傳片，當(dāng)時(shí)美國(guó)人正在討論是否要派兵到北非，之后再前往歐洲。克里格用餐廳菜單來暗示自己的政見，其中有“奧巴馬家族香辣肉醬”等菜品。它辣得令人難以置信。

Her Rick’s Café seems a success, filling its tables in five dining rooms over two floors for lunchand dinner on most days. At any given sitting there are guests from such a variety of placesthey would rival the movie’s own very international set of characters, and cast.

她的里克咖啡館似乎生意很好，大多數(shù)日子里，兩個(gè)樓層的五個(gè)餐室里都坐滿了來吃午餐和晚餐的客人。不管什么時(shí)候，這里的客人都是來自五湖四海，可以同那部電影非常國(guó)際化的角色和演員相媲美。

Lakeitha Anderson, 49, is more of an exile than a tourist, an American who decided afterPresident Donald Trump’s election that she was leaving the country and taking heremployment recruiting business on the road.

今年49歲的雷凱莎·安德森(Lakeitha Anderson)與其說是在旅游，不如說是在流亡，唐納德·特朗普當(dāng)選總統(tǒng)后，這位美國(guó)人決定離開祖國(guó)，在路上從事她的就業(yè)招聘工作。

 

 

“I love the oasis feeling of it here,” she said, over dinner. “Especially for people of color, weneed a break from it all.”

“我喜歡這里綠洲般的感覺，”她在晚餐時(shí)說道。“特別是對(duì)于有色人種來說更是如此，我們需要從發(fā)生的一切之中抽身出來休息片刻。”

Wasn’t the point of the movie, though, that the oasis that was Rick’s Café Américain could notlong evade what was happening in the wider world?

不過，電影的重點(diǎn)難道不是在于，像里克美式咖啡館這樣的綠洲也無法長(zhǎng)期逃避廣闊世界中發(fā)生的事情嗎?

“That may be,” Anderson said, “but I’m going to stay away for as long as I can.”

“可能是吧，”安德森說，“但我會(huì)盡可能長(zhǎng)時(shí)間地置身事外。”

Kriger, 72 and divorced, said she planned to spend the rest of her days in Rick’s Café, holdingup her corner of the bar when she is not mingling with customers. “This is my assisted livingcenter,” she quipped. Or as Humphrey Bogart’s character, Rick Blaine, put it in the movie: “I’mgoing to die in Casablanca. It’s a good place for it.”

克里格今年72歲，已經(jīng)離婚，她說，她打算在里克咖啡館度過余生，不和客戶打交道時(shí)，她就獨(dú)自呆在酒吧的角落里。“這里是我的輔助生活中心，”她打趣說?；蛘哒鐫h弗萊·鮑嘉飾演的角色里克·布萊恩(Rick Blaine)在電影中說的：“我會(huì)死在卡薩布蘭卡。這是一個(gè)死去的好地方。”