| “ | As leader of all illegal activities in Casablanca, I am an influential and respected man. | „ |
| ~ Signor Ferrari |
Signor Ferrari is a supporting character in the 1942 Warner Bros. film Casablanca.
He's the king of Casablanca's black market and the owner of the Blue Parrot Café, Ferrari wants to buy Rick's Café Americain from Rick Blaine, who refuses to sell it to him, though even so, they are in friendly terms.
He was portrayed by the late Sydney Greenstreet, who also played Kasper Gutman in The Maltese Falcon.
History[]
Ferrari is first seen entering Rick's café making an offer to buy Rick café, which had been done before by several others. When Rick turns down the offer, Ferrari offers to buy the contract of Rick's piano player Sam instead, then criticizes Rick for his "isolationist" policy.
Later on in the film, Rick visited the Blue Parrot Café and reencountered Ferrari, a dealer in black market items. Ferrari is seen escorting a couple out of his office, suggesting to them that they see Captain Renault. With small beady eyes emphasizing his cynical craftiness, Ferrari suspects that the late Ugarte left the valuable exit visas with Rick and offers to help Rick unload them at a profit.
Rick learns the real value of the letters of transit from their conversation. He claims that he's a "poor businessman" who needs them more than Ferrari, plays ignorant about their whereabouts, and refuses to make a deal with him. As Rick leaves, he passes Victor who is on his way in to meet with the corrupt marketeer, pointing out that he was the "fat gent". While Victor was in the Blue Parrot Café, his wife Ilsa was shopping-bargaining for fabric.
Victor and Ilsa helplessly ask for assistance from Senor Ferrari in leaving Casablanca to prevent Major Heinrich Strasser from capturing and sending them to a concentration camp. Ferrari tells them that Ilsa will be the only one able to leave and he may be able to help smuggle her out.
During their conversation, Victor's goal changes to one of acquiring an exit visa for Ilsa, rather than himself, and Ilsa responds that she is uncertain about abandoning him. Word had gotten around that it is too risky to find an exit visa for Victor since "it would take a miracle to get [him] out of Casablanca", They decide that Ilsa will not go alone ahead of Victor to America (because he never abandoned her in the past), and that they will continue searching for two exit visas.
As they part and thank Ferrari for his time, Ferrari is "moved" (altruistically) to shrewdly suggest that Ugarte left the stolen letters of transit with Rick.