Dear Margo: I had a best friend (of 20 years), and we used to gab on the phone every day during high school and college. We maintained a good degree of communication for a few years after graduation. 

Two years ago, he was promoted and things suddenly stopped. He didn't answer messages and very rarely sent them himself. I asked him what was going on, and he said he was just busy.

The 1998 film Rounders is often cited as a kind of early catalyst for the poker “boom” of the last decade.  Many of those who watched Chris Moneymaker win the 2003 WSOP Main Event -- and indeed, Moneymaker himself -- have referred to the movie as having also provided an early inspiration for their interest in poker, especially Texas hold’em.

My “He Said” partner in this dual column teaches a college course called “Poker in American Film & Culture.” When he suggested we each give our opinions on the portrayal of women in the classic poker film “Rounders,” I was intrigued. I watched the movie again.