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The screenwriter, Charles Spaak, was imprisoned by the German occupation in wartime Paris while he wrote the film "Les Caves du 'Majestic'". This film, with a story told in the kitchen and backrooms of a grand hotel, is obsessed with food, and while you see people supposedly cooking and serving food, you often only see steam rising, or covered dishes. This is because real food was scarce in Paris in 1945. At the time people had rationing coupons which could amount to 25 grams of bread per day, for example.

The story of Charles Spaak, as well as the writing and production of this film "Les Caves du 'Majestic'", is told in the award-winning French film, "Laissez-Passer" (English title: Safe Conduct), directed in 2002 by Bertrand Tavernier.