''A Wonderful Life'' is a 1951 black-and-white

short Short may refer to: Places * Short (crater), a lunar impact crater on the near side of the Moon * Short, Mississippi, an unincorporated community * Short, Oklahoma, a census-designated place People * Short (surname) * List of people known as ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

produced by the National Council of Churches of Christ and distributed by the

Protestant Film Commission The Protestant Film Commission, also known as the Protestant Film Office, was an American film agency which promoted Protestant religious and moral values in Hollywood cinema. Representing 200,000 American Protestant churches with approximately 34 ...

. It is an adaptation of

Frank Capra Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-born American film director, producer and writer who became the creative force behind some of the major award-winning films of the 1930s ...

's 1946 film ''

It's a Wonderful Life ''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American Christmas by medium#Films, Christmas Fantasy film, fantasy drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story and booklet ''The Greatest Gift'', which Philip Van Doren Stern se ...

'' for the

Christian film industry The Christian film industry is an aspect of Christian media for films containing a Christian-themed message or moral. They are often interdenominational films, but can also be films targeting a specific denomination of Christianity. Criteria P ...

. Directed by

William Beaudine William Washington Beaudine (January 15, 1892 – March 18, 1970) was an American film actor and director. He was one of Hollywood's most prolific directors, turning out films in remarkable numbers and in a wide variety of genres. Life and car ...

, it stars James Dunn,

Allene Roberts Emma Allene Roberts (September 1, 1928 – May 9, 2019) was an American actress. Early years Born in Fairfield, Alabama, Roberts was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank W. Roberts. In 1941, she won the "America's Most Charming Child" contest ...

, and

Arthur Shields Arthur Shields (15 February 1896 – 27 April 1970) was an Irish actor on television, stage and film. Early years Born into an Irish Protestant family in Portobello, Dublin, Shields started acting in the Abbey Theatre when he was 17 years old. ...

. The film retells the life of an ordinary Christian family man in flashback as his family and friends remember all the good he did through his devotion to church and community. The film emphasizes the power of faith, love, and community service for living a meaningful life, together with the message that people do not realize the true worth of others until after they have died. The film was not released commercially, but was distributed to some 30,000 churches throughout the United States and Canada.

Plot

Henry Wood ( James Dunn) is an ordinary Christian family man who lives with faith, love, and dedication to his church and community in the fictional Martinville, Missouri. However, his acquaintances and family consider him naïve and someone who is easily taken advantage of. After his unexpected death, his family and friends gather to reminisce about his life, seen in flashback. Henry's daughter Mary is bitter about the way he never received remuneration for serving as treasurer in a host of committees, leaving the family to struggle financially. But after Henry's life and his effect on other people is reexamined—including his care of Mary when she was diagnosed with

infantile paralysis Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe sym ...

, and his providing the funds to send her to college—Mary realizes that her father did live a meaningful life, and resolves to emulate his commitment to do good for others.

Cast

* James Dunn as Henry Wood *

as Mary Wood *

Isabel Withers Isabel Withers (January 20, 1896 – September 3, 1968) was an American actress, who worked in theatre, film, and television.Arthur Shields Arthur Shields (15 February 1896 – 27 April 1970) was an Irish actor on television, stage and film. Early years Born into an Irish Protestant family in Portobello, Dublin, Shields started acting in the Abbey Theatre when he was 17 years old. ...

as Pastor *Madge Crane as Grandma Wood *Donna Jo Boyce as Mary Wood (age 9) *

Jack Larson Jack Edward Larson (February 8, 1928 – September 20, 2015) was an American actor, librettist, screenwriter and producer best known for his portrayal of photographer/cub reporter Jimmy Olsen on the television series '' Adventures of Superm ...

as Richard Wood (age 16) *David Kasday as Richard Wood (age 7) *

Andrew Tombes Andrew Tombes (29 June 1885 – 17 March 1976) was an American comedian and character actor. Biography The son of a grocer, originally from Ashtabula, Ohio, Tombes was educated at Phillips Exeter Academy. Early in his career, he worked as a v ...

as Harry Jenkins

Production

Development

''A Wonderful Life'' is an adaptation of

's 1946 film ''

'' for the

. The death of an ordinary Christian family man leaves a "spiritual vacuum" among his friends and neighbors due to his selfless acts of charity for his church and community. The story was inspired by a real-life case in

Sedalia, Missouri Sedalia is a city located approximately south of the Missouri River and, as the county seat of Pettis County, Missouri, United States, it is the principal city of the Sedalia Micropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had ...

. The original screenplay was written by Alan Shilin. The

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-Diegetic#Film sound and music, diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, th ...

narration was supplied by

, who played the pastor. The film was one of 11 short features directed by

for the

. Beaudine was considered ideal for the job because of his "aversion to preaching": he was able "to create films with a strong story whose message was evident but not overwhelming". Technical advisers included Rev. S. Franklin Mack, an ordained Presbyterian minister who was director of films for the Broadcasting and Film Commission of the National Council of Churches of Christ, and Oscar Rumpf, who once served as a minister in Sedalia. Producer Paul F. Heard and associate producer

Barney Sarecky Barney Sarecky (May 7, 1895 – August 10, 1968) was an American film producer and screenwriter, from the late 1930s into the 1950s. The younger brother of producer/screenwriter Louis Sarecky, he had a much more prolific career, writing or produ ...

completed the film for the National Council of Churches of Christ.

Filming

Beaudine typically finished this and similar films on a six-day shooting schedule. The production, staged at

KTTV KTTV (channel 11) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the Fox network. It is owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division alongside MyNetworkTV outle ...

studios in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, with exterior scenes filmed in Sedalia, Missouri, was completed in December 1950.

Release

The film was distributed exclusively to churches throughout the United States and Canada. These included

Congregational Christian Churches The Congregational Christian Churches were a Protestant Christian denomination that operated in the U.S. from 1931 through 1957. On the latter date, most of its churches joined the Evangelical and Reformed Church in a merger to become the United ...

, Presbyterian Church U.S.A.,

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

churches, and

Reformed Reform is beneficial change Reform may also refer to: Media * ''Reform'' (album), a 2011 album by Jane Zhang * Reform (band), a Swedish jazz fusion group * ''Reform'' (magazine), a Christian magazine *''Reforme'' ("Reforms"), initial name of the ...

churches, with a reach estimated at some 30,000 churches.

Awards

The film won first prize in the Protestant Religious Section at the first annual film festival sponsored by the Film Council of Greater Boston in 1951.

References

Sources

* * * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wonderful Life (1951 film) 1951 short films 1951 films Films about Christianity Films shot in Los Angeles Films shot in Missouri American drama films 1951 drama films American black-and-white films 1950s English-language films 1950s American films