Having co-written the play "Everybody Comes to Rick's" with Joan Alison, the former English teacher and Cornell University graduate was unable to find anyone willing to produce it on Broadway. Consequently, Burnett and Alison sold the play to Warner Brothers for $20,000, where it was renamed "Casablanca". In later years, Burnett became increasingly frustrated, with what he perceived to be a lack of recognition for his contribution to the classic film.