Convert optional string to Int64
<p>I am trying to convert an optional string to a string and then to an Int64.</p>

<pre><code> let number = blog["number"] as! String
print(Int64(number))
</code></pre>

<p>The problem is that the "number" key is an optional string so it crashes when going to Int64. I have a couple methods to remove the optional type but none worked.</p>