''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a 1946 American
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures.
The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
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. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...
produced and directed by
Frank Capra
Frank Russell Capra (born Francesco Rosario Capra; May 18, 1897 – September 3, 1991) was an Italian-American film director, producer, and screenwriter who was the creative force behind Frank Capra filmography#Films that won Academy Award ...
. It is based on the short story and booklet "
The Greatest Gift", self-published by
Philip Van Doren Stern in 1943, which itself is loosely based on the 1843
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...
novella ''
A Christmas Carol
''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...
''.
The film stars
James Stewart
James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...
as
George Bailey, a man who has given up his personal dreams to help others in his community and whose thoughts of suicide on Christmas Eve bring about the intervention of his
guardian angel
A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary deity, tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played ...
,
Clarence Odbody.
Clarence shows George all the lives he touched and what the world would be like if he had not existed.
Although it was nominated for five
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...
, including
Best Picture
The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards.
Best Actor/Best Actress
*See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...
, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' initially received mixed reviews and was unsuccessful at the box office. Theatrically, the film's break-even point was $6.3 million, about twice the production cost, a figure it did not come close to achieving on its initial release. Because of the film's disappointing sales, Capra was seen by some studios as having lost his ability to produce popular, financially successful films. Its copyright in the U.S. expired in 1974 following a lack of renewal and it entered the public domain, allowing it to be broadcast without licensing or royalty fees, at which point it became a Christmas classic.
''It's a Wonderful Life'' is now considered to be one of the
greatest films of all time
This is a list of films voted the best in national and international Opinion poll, surveys of Film criticism, critics and the public.
Some surveys focus on all films, while others focus on a particular genre or country. Electoral system, Voti ...
and among the best Christmas films. It has been recognized by the
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...
as one of the
100 best American films ever made.
It was no. 11 on the
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...
's
1998 greatest movie list, no. 20 on its
2007 greatest movie list, no. 8 on
its list of greatest love stories, and no. 1 on
its list of the most inspirational American films of all time. In 1990, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' became one of 25 films selected for preservation in the United States
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation (library and archival science), preservation, each selected for its cultural, historical, and aestheti ...
by the
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
for being deemed as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Capra revealed that it was his favorite among the films he directed and that he screened it for his family every Christmas season. It was one of Stewart's favorite films. A modern remake of the film, written and directed by
Kenya Barris
Kenya Barris (born August 9, 1974) is an American film and television writer, producer, director, and actor. He is best known as the creator of the ABC sitcom ''Black-ish'' (2014–2022).
Early life and education
Barris, the second-youngest am ...
, is in development at
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
as of January 2024.
Plot
On
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...
1945, in
Bedford Falls,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
,
George Bailey contemplates suicide. The prayers of his family and friends reach
Heaven
Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...
, where
guardian angel
A guardian angel is a type of angel that is assigned to protect and guide a particular person, group or nation. Belief in tutelary deity, tutelary beings can be traced throughout all antiquity. The idea of angels that guard over people played ...
second class
Clarence Odbody is assigned to save George in order to earn his wings.
Clarence is shown flashbacks of George's life. He watches 12-year-old George rescue his younger brother Harry from drowning in a frozen pond, leaving George with an ear infection and, subsequently, deafness in his left ear. George later saves the pharmacist, Mr. Gower, from accidentally poisoning a customer.
In 1928, George plans a world tour before college. He is reintroduced to
Mary Hatch, who has loved him since childhood. When his father dies from a
stroke
Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...
, George postpones his travel to settle the family business, Bailey Brothers
Building and Loan.
Avaricious board member
Henry F. Potter, who owns the bank and most of the town, seeks to dissolve the company, but the
board of directors
A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency.
The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
votes to keep it open if George runs it. George acquiesces and works alongside his uncle Billy, giving his tuition savings to Harry with the understanding that Harry will take over the company when he graduates.
Harry returns from college married and with a job offer from his father-in-law, and George resigns himself to running the building and loan. George and Mary rekindle their relationship and marry, but abandon their honeymoon to use their savings to keep the company solvent during a
run on the bank
A bank run or run on the bank occurs when many clients withdraw their money from a bank, because they believe the bank may fail in the near future. In other words, it is when, in a fractional-reserve banking system (where banks normally only ...
.
Under George, the company establishes Bailey Park, a housing development surpassing Potter's overpriced slums. Potter entices George with a high-paying job, but George rebuffs him when he realizes that Potter's true intention is to close the building and loan.
On Christmas Eve, the town prepares a hero's welcome for Harry, a
Navy
A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...
fighter pilot awarded the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...
for preventing a ''
kamikaze
, officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...
'' attack on a troopship. Billy goes to Potter's bank to deposit $8,000 of the building and loan's money. He taunts Potter with a newspaper headline about Harry, but absentmindedly wraps the cash in Potter's newspaper.
Potter keeps the money, while Billy cannot recall how he misplaced it. With a
bank examiner
A bank examiner is a financial professional who has the task of making sure that banks and savings and loan associations are operating legally and safely, in accordance with the bank regulations imposed on these institutions by the chartering lev ...
reviewing the company's records, George fruitlessly retraces Billy's steps. Frustrated and angered by Billy's blunder, which may lead to scandal and jail, George resents the sacrifices he has made and the family that has kept him trapped in Bedford Falls. He appeals to Potter for a loan, offering his meager
life insurance
Life insurance (or life assurance, especially in the Commonwealth of Nations) is a contract
A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typical ...
policy as collateral. Potter scoffs that George is worth more dead than alive and phones the police.
George flees Potter's office, gets drunk at a bar, and prays for help. Contemplating suicide, he goes to a bridge. Before George can jump, Clarence dives into the river and George rescues him. When George wishes he had never been born, Clarence shows George an
alternate timeline
Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...
in which he never existed. Bedford Falls is Pottersville, an unsavory town occupied by sleazy entertainment venues and callous people. Mr. Gower was jailed for
manslaughter
Manslaughter is a common law legal term for homicide considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is sometimes said to have first been made by the ancient Athenian lawmaker Draco in the 7th ce ...
because George was not there to stop him from poisoning the customer. Uncle Billy was
institutionalized after the building and loan failed. Bailey Park is a cemetery, where George discovers Harry's grave: without George, Harry drowned as a child, and without Harry to save them, the troops aboard the transport ship were killed. George finds that Mary is an "
old maid
Spinster or old maid is a term referring to an unmarried woman who is older than what is perceived as the prime age range during which women usually marry. It can also indicate that a woman is considered unlikely to ever marry. The term origin ...
"
librarian
A librarian is a person who professionally works managing information. Librarians' common activities include providing access to information, conducting research, creating and managing information systems, creating, leading, and evaluating educat ...
. When he grabs her and claims to be her husband, she screams and runs away.
George races back to the bridge and begs for his life back. With his wish granted, he rushes home to await his arrest. Mary and Billy have rallied the townspeople, who donate more than enough to replace the missing money. Harry arrives and toasts George as "the richest man in town". Among the donations, George finds a copy of ''
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (also simply known as ''Tom Sawyer'') is a novel by Mark Twain published on June 9, 1876, about a boy, Tom Sawyer, growing up along the Mississippi River. It is set in the 1830s-1840s in the town of St. Petersbu ...
,'' a gift from Clarence inscribed, "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings!" When a bell on the Christmas tree rings, George's youngest daughter, Zuzu, explains that, "every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings", while all sing "
Auld Lang Syne
"Auld Lang Syne" () is a Scottish song. In the English-speaking world, it is traditionally sung to bid farewell to the old year at the stroke of midnight on Hogmanay/New Year's Eve. It is also often heard at funerals, graduations, and as a far ...
".
Cast
Uncredited cast members include:
*
Jimmy
Jimmy may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
* ''Jimmy'' (2008 film), a 2008 Hindi thriller directed by Raj N. Sippy
* ''Jimmy'' (1979 film), a 1979 Indian Malayalam film directed by Melattoor Ravi Varma
* ''Jimmy'' (2013 f ...
as Uncle Billy's pet raven
*
Marian Carr as Jane Wainwright
*
Adriana Caselotti
Adriana Elena Loretta Caselotti (May 6, 1916 – January 19, 1997) was an American actress and singer. Caselotti was the voice of the title character of the first Walt Disney animated feature, '' Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs'' (1937), for which ...
as the singer at Martini's
*
Tom Fadden
Tom Fadden (January 6, 1895 – April 14, 1980) was an American actor. He performed on the stage, vaudeville, in films and on television during his long career.
Early life
Fadden was born in Bayard, Iowa, on January 6, 1895; his father was a mi ...
as the bridge tollhouse keeper
*
Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer
Carl Dean Switzer (August 7, 1927 – January 21, 1959) was an American child actor, comic singer, dog breeder, and guide. He was best known for his role as Alfalfa in the ''Our Gang'' series of short subjects, short-subject comedies.
Switz ...
as Freddie Othello, the student who tries to flirt with Mary
*
Moroni Olsen
Moroni Olsen (June 27, 1889November 22, 1954) was an American actor.
Life and career
Olsen was born in Ogden, Utah, to Latter-day Saint parents Edward Arenholt Olsen and Martha ( Hoverholst) Olsen, who named him after the Moroni found in the ...
as the Senior Angel Franklin (voice)
Production
Background

The original story, "
The Greatest Gift", was written by
Philip Van Doren Stern in November 1939. After it was rejected by several publishers, he had it printed as a 24-page pamphlet and mailed to 200 family members and friends for Christmas 1943.
[Ervin, Kathleen A]
"Some Kind of Wonderful"
. ''Failure Magazine'' (n.d.). Retrieved June 2, 2007. The story came to the attention of either
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...
or RKO producer David Hempstead, who showed it to Grant's agent. In April 1944,
RKO Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the major film studios, "Big Five" film studios of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood's Clas ...
bought the rights to the story for $10,000, hoping to turn it into a vehicle for Grant.
Dalton Trumbo
James Dalton Trumbo (December 9, 1905 – September 10, 1976) was an American screenwriter who scripted many award-winning films, including ''Roman Holiday'' (1953), '' Exodus'', ''Spartacus'' (both 1960), and '' Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo'' (194 ...
,
Clifford Odets
Clifford Odets (July 18, 1906 – August 14, 1963) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. In the mid-1930s, he was widely seen as the potential successor to Nobel Prize–winning playwright Eugene O'Neill, as O'Neill began to withd ...
, and
Marc Connelly
Marcus Cook Connelly (December 13, 1890 – December 21, 1980) was an American playwright, director, producer, performer, and lyricist. He was a key member of the Algonquin Round Table, and received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1930.
Biogra ...
each worked on versions of the screenplay before RKO shelved the project. In Trumbo's draft, George Bailey is an idealistic politician who grows more cynical as the story progresses, then tries to end his life after losing an election. The angel shows him Bedford Falls not as it would be if he had never been born, but if he had gone into business instead of politics. Grant went on to make another Christmas movie staple, ''
The Bishop's Wife
''The Bishop's Wife'' (also known as ''Cary and the Bishop's Wife'') is a 1947 American Christmas Romance film, romantic Fantasy film, fantasy comedy film directed by Henry Koster, starring Cary Grant, Loretta Young and David Niven. The plot is ...
''.
RKO studio chief
Charles Koerner
Charles W. Koerner (September 10, 1896 – February 2, 1946) was an American film executive, best known for being executive vice president of production at RKO Radio Pictures from 1942 until his death in 1946.
Koerner is best remembered for ...
urged Frank Capra to read "The Greatest Gift". Capra's new production company,
Liberty Films, had a nine-film distribution agreement with RKO. Capra immediately saw its potential, and wanted it for his first Hollywood film after making documentaries and training films during the war. RKO sold Capra the rights for $10,000 and threw in the three earlier scripts for free. (Capra claimed the rights and the scripts cost him $50,000.)
Capra salvaged a few scenes from Odets' earlier screenplay and worked with writers
Frances Goodrich
Frances Goodrich (December 21, 1890 – January 29, 1984) was an American actress, dramatist, and screenwriter, best known for her collaborations with her partner and husband Albert Hackett. She received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama with her hu ...
and
Albert Hackett
Albert Maurice Hackett (February 16, 1900 – March 16, 1995) was an American actor, dramatist and screenwriter most noted for his collaborations with his partner and wife Frances Goodrich. Their film work includes the first three instalments in ...
,
Jo Swerling
Jo Swerling (April 8, 1897 – October 23, 1964) was an American theatre writer, lyricist, and screenwriter.
Early life and early career
Born Joseph Swerling in Berdichev, Ukraine, Swerling was one of a number of Jewish refugees from the Tsari ...
,
Michael Wilson, and
Dorothy Parker
Dorothy Parker (née Rothschild; August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American poet and writer of fiction, plays and screenplays based in New York; she was known for her caustic wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles.
Parker ros ...
(brought in to "polish" the script), on many drafts of the screenplay.
It was not a harmonious collaboration. Goodrich called Capra "that horrid man" and recalled, "He couldn't wait to get writing it himself." Her husband, Albert Hackett, said, "We told him what we were going to do, and he said 'That sounds fine.' We were trying to move the story along and work it out, and then somebody told us that
apraand Jo Swerling were working on it together, and that sort of took the guts out of it. Jo Swerling was a very close friend of ours, and when we heard he was doing this we felt rather bad about it. We were getting near the end and word came that Capra wanted to know how soon we'd be finished. So my wife said, 'We're finished right now.' We quickly wrote out the last scene and we never saw him again after that. He's a very arrogant son of a bitch."
Later, a dispute ensued over the writing credits. The final screenplay, renamed by Capra ''It's a Wonderful Life'',
was credited to Goodrich, Hackett, and Capra, with "additional scenes" by Jo Swerling. Capra said, "The Screen Writers' Arbitration committee decided that Hackett and Goodrich and I should get the credit for the writing. Jo Swerling hasn't talked to me since. That was five years ago."
Some in
Seneca Falls, New York
Seneca Falls is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 9,027 at the 2020 census.
The Town of Seneca Falls contains the former village also called Seneca Falls. The town is east of Geneva, New York, in the north ...
, believe Capra was inspired to model Bedford Falls after the town following a visit in 1945. The town has an annual "It's a Wonderful Life Festival" on the second weekend in December. On December 10, 2010, the "It's a Wonderful Life" Museum opened in Seneca Falls, with Karolyn Grimes, who played Zuzu in the movie, cutting the ribbon. However, film historian
Jeanine Basinger
Jeanine Basinger (born February 3, 1936, Ravenden, Arkansas) is an American film historian who was the Corwin-Fuller professor of film studies at Wesleyan University and the founder and curator of the university's cinematic archives.
Early life ...
, curator of the Frank Capra archives at Wesleyan University and author of ''The 'It's A Wonderful Life' Book'', has said no evidence exists for Seneca Falls' claim. "I have been through every piece of paper in Frank Capra's diaries, his archives, everything. There's no evidence of any sort whatsoever to support this. That doesn't mean it isn't true, but no one is ever going to prove it." Basinger said that Capra always described Bedford Falls as an "Everytown".
Philip Van Doren Stern said in a 1946 interview, "Incidentally, the movie takes place in
Westchester County
Westchester County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York, bordering the Long Island Sound and the Byram River to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The county is the seventh most populous cou ...
. Actually, the town I had in mind was
Califon, N.J." The
historic iron bridge in Califon is similar to the bridge that George Bailey considered jumping from in the movie.
Casting
In his autobiography, Capra recalled: "Of all actors' roles I believe the most difficult is the role of a Good Sam who doesn't know that he is a Good Sam. I knew one man who could play it ... James Stewart. ... I spoke to
Lew Wasserman
Lewis Robert Wasserman (March 22, 1913 – June 3, 2002) was an American businessman and talent agent, described as "the last of the legendary movie moguls" and "arguably the most powerful and influential Hollywood titan in the four decades afte ...
, the MCA agent who handled Jimmy, told him I wanted to tell Jimmy the story. Wasserman said Stewart would gladly play the part without hearing the story." Stewart and Capra had previously collaborated on ''
You Can't Take It with You'' (1938) and ''
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' is a 1939 American political comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra, starring Jean Arthur and James Stewart, and featuring Claude Rains and Edward Arnold. The film is about a naive, newly appointed United ...
'' (1939).
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image.
Bo ...
, Stewart's best friend, was also considered.
[Greene, Liz. . ''Blockbuster Inc.'' Retrieved August 2, 2011.][Cox 2003, p. 6.] Both actors had returned from the war with no employment prospects. Fonda, however, was cast in John Ford's ''
My Darling Clementine
''My Darling Clementine'' is a 1946 American Western film directed by John Ford and starring Henry Fonda as Wyatt Earp during the period leading up to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral. The ensemble cast also features Victor Mature (as Doc Holli ...
'' (1946), which was filmed at the same time that Capra shot ''It's a Wonderful Life.'' For 17 supporting roles
in the film, Capra considered more than 170 established actors.
Jean Arthur
Jean Arthur (born Gladys Georgianna Greene; October 17, 1900 – June 19, 1991) was an American film and theater actress whose career began in silent films in the early 1920s and lasted until the early 1950s.
Arthur had feature roles in three F ...
, Stewart's co-star in ''You Can't Take It With You'' and ''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,'' was first offered the role of Mary, but had recently dropped out of the Broadway show ''
Born Yesterday'' from exhaustion shortly before its premiere. Capra next considered
Olivia de Havilland
Dame Olivia Mary de Havilland (; July 1, 1916July 26, 2020) was a British and American actress. The major works of her cinematic career spanned from 1935 to 1988. She appeared in 49 feature films and was one of the leading actresses of her tim ...
,
Martha Scott
Martha Ellen Scott (September 22, 1912 – May 28, 2003) was an American actress. She was featured in major films such as Cecil B. DeMille’s '' The Ten Commandments'' (1956), and William Wyler's ''Ben-Hur'' (1959). Martha played the mother of ...
,
Ann Dvorak
Ann Dvorak (born Anna McKim; August 2, 1911 – December 10, 1979) was an American stage and film actress.
Asked how to pronounce her adopted surname, she told ''The Literary Digest'' in 1936: "My fake name is properly pronounced ''vor'shack ...
, and
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers (born Virginia Katherine McMath; July 16, 1911 – April 25, 1995) was an American actress, dancer and singer during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood. She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starri ...
before borrowing Donna Reed from MGM. Rogers turned it down because she considered it "too bland." In chapter 26 of her autobiography ''Ginger: My Story,'' she questioned her decision by asking her readers: "Foolish, you say?"
A long list of actors was considered for the role of Potter (originally named Herbert Potter):
Edward Arnold,
Charles Bickford
Charles Ambrose Bickford (January 1, 1891 – November 9, 1967) was an American actor known for supporting roles. He was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for '' The Song of Bernadette'' (1943), '' The Fa ...
,
Edgar Buchanan
William Edgar Buchanan II (March 20, 1903 – April 4, 1979) was an American actor with a long career in both film and television. He is most familiar today as Uncle Joe Carson from the '' Petticoat Junction'', '' Green Acres'', and '' The Bever ...
,
Louis Calhern
Carl Henry Vogt (February 19, 1895 – May 12, 1956), known by his stage name Louis Calhern, was an American actor. Described as a “star leading man of the theater and a star character actor of the screen,” he appeared in over 100 roles ...
,
Victor Jory
Victor Jory (November 23, 1902 – February 12, 1982) was a Canadian-American actor of stage, film, and television. He initially played romantic leads, but later was mostly cast in villainous or sinister roles, such as Oberon in ''A Midsummer Ni ...
,
Raymond Massey
Raymond Hart Massey (August 30, 1896 – July 29, 1983) was a Canadian actor known for his commanding stage-trained voice. For his lead role in '' Abe Lincoln in Illinois'' (1940), Massey was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. He r ...
,
Thomas Mitchell, and
Vincent Price
Vincent Leonard Price Jr. (May 27, 1911 – October 25, 1993) was an American actor. He was known for his work in the horror film genre, mostly portraying villains. He appeared on stage, television, and radio, and in more than 100 films. Price ...
.
Lionel Barrymore, who eventually was cast, was a famous
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge () is a fictional character and the protagonist of Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, ''A Christmas Carol''. Initially a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas, his redemption by visits from the ghost of Jacob Marley, the G ...
in radio dramatizations of ''
A Christmas Carol
''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...
'' at the time, and was a natural choice for the role. Barrymore had also worked with Capra and Stewart on Capra's 1938 Best Picture Oscar winner, ''
You Can't Take It with You.''
Before Capra decided on Ward Bond as Bert,
he also considered
Sam Levene
Sam Levene (born Scholem Lewin; August 28, 1905 – December 28, 1980) was an American Broadway theatre, Broadway, films, radio, and television actor and Television director, director. In a career spanning over five decades, he appeared in over ...
,
Barton MacLane
Barton MacLane (December 25, 1902 – January 1, 1969) was an American actor, playwright, and screenwriter. He appeared in many classic films from the 1930s through the 1960s, including his role as General Martin Peterson on the 1960s NBC ...
,
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He is known for his antihero roles and film noir appearances. He received nominations for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award. He received a star on the Holl ...
, John Alexander and
Irving Bacon
Irving Ernest Bacon (September 6, 1893 – February 5, 1965) was an American character actor who appeared in almost 500 films.
Early years
Bacon was the son of entertainers Millar West Bacon (who was a teenager) and Myrtle Vane. He was born ...
for the role.
Before Capra cast Thomas Mitchell as Uncle Billy, he also considered
Walter Brennan
Walter Andrew Brennan (July 25, 1894 – September 21, 1974) was an American actor and singer. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for ''Come and Get It (1936 film), Come and Get It'' (1936), ''Kentucky (film), Kentucky'' (19 ...
and
W. C. Fields
William Claude Dukenfield (January 29, 1880 – December 25, 1946), better known as W. C. Fields, was an American actor, comedian, juggler and writer. His career in show business began in vaudeville, where he attained international success as a ...
for the role.
H. B. Warner
Henry Byron Warner (né Lickfold; 26 October 1876 – 21 December 1958) was an English film and theatre actor. He was popular during the silent era and played Jesus Christ in '' The King of Kings''. In later years, he successfully moved int ...
, who was cast as Mr. Gower, the pharmacist, had studied medicine before going into acting. He was also in some of Capra's other films, including ''
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
''Mr. Deeds Goes to Town'' is a 1936 American comedy-drama romance film directed by Frank Capra and starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur in her first featured role. Based on the 1935 short story "Opera Hat" by Clarence Budington Kelland, whi ...
,'' ''
Lost Horizon
''Lost Horizon'' is a 1933 novel by the English writer James Hilton. The book was turned into a film, also called '' Lost Horizon'', in 1937 by the director Frank Capra and a musical remake in 1973 by the producer Ross Hunter with music by Bu ...
,'' ''
You Can't Take It with You,'' and ''
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
''Mr. Smith Goes to Washington'' is a 1939 American political comedy-drama film directed by Frank Capra, starring Jean Arthur and James Stewart, and featuring Claude Rains and Edward Arnold. The film is about a naive, newly appointed United ...
.'' In the silent era, he had played the role of
Jesus Christ
Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...
in
Cecil B. DeMille
Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of American cinema and the most co ...
's ''
The King of Kings'' (1927). The name Gower came from Capra's employer
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
, which had been located on
Gower Street for many years. Also on Gower Street was a drugstore that was a favorite for the studio's employees.
Charles Williams, who was cast as Eustace Bailey, and
Mary Treen
Mary Treen (born Mary Louise Summers; March 27, 1907 – July 20, 1989) was an American film and television actress. A minor actress for much of her career, she managed to secure a plain, unassuming niche for herself in dozens of movies and t ...
, who was cast as Matilda "Tilly" Bailey, were both B-list actors, having appeared in 90 films each before ''It's a Wonderful Life.''
Jimmy the raven (Uncle Billy's pet) appeared in ''You Can't Take It with You'' and each subsequent Capra film.
[Cox 2003, p. 24.]
Filming
''It's a Wonderful Life'' was shot at
RKO Radio Pictures
RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...
Studios in
Culver City, California
Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights, Californi ...
, and the 89-acre RKO
movie ranch
A movie ranch is a ranch that is at least partially dedicated for use as a set in the creation and production of motion pictures and television shows. These were developed in the United States in southern California, because of the climate.
Movi ...
in
Encino, where "Bedford Falls" was adapted from
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People and fictional and mythical characters
* Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar
* Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
-winning sets originally designed by art director
Max Ree for the 1931 epic film ''
Cimarron.'' Covering 4 acres (1.6 ha), the town consisted of a main street stretching 300 yards (three city blocks) with 75 stores and buildings, and a residential neighborhood. Capra added a tree-lined center parkway, built a working bank set, and planted 20 full-grown oak trees. Pigeons, cats, and dogs were allowed to roam the mammoth set to give the "town" a lived-in feel.
Due to the requirements of filming in an "alternate reality," as well as different seasons, the exterior set was extremely adaptable. RKO studio's head of special effects,
Russell Shearman
Russell Morrison Shearman (April 27, 1908 – May 5, 1956) was an Oscar-winning American special effects artist. He was electrocuted while repairing equipment used in filming '' The Sharkfighters'' in Cuba 1956, serving as head technician on th ...
, developed a new compound using water, soap flakes, foamite, and sugar to create "chemical snow" for the film. Before then, movie snow was usually made from untoasted cornflakes, which were so loud when stepped on that dialogue had to be redubbed afterwards.
Filming started on April 15, 1946, and wrapped on July 27, 1946, exactly on deadline for the 90-day principal photography schedule.
Only two locations from the film survive. The first, the swimming pool that was unveiled during the high-school dance sequence, is located in the gymnasium at
Beverly Hills High School
Beverly Hills High School (shortly as BHHS or Beverly) is a public high school in Beverly Hills, California. The other public high school in Beverly Hills is Moreno High School, a small alternative school located on Beverly Hills High School's c ...
and is still in use . The second is the "Martini home" in
La Cañada Flintridge, California
La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as just , is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of the San Gabriel Valley, it is the l ...
. RKO's movie ranch in Encino was razed in 1954.
The scene where young George saves his brother Harry from drowning was different in an early draft of the script. The boys play ice hockey on the river (which is on Potter's property) as Potter watches with disdain. George shoots the puck, but it goes astray and breaks the "No Trespassing" sign and lands in Potter's yard. Potter becomes irate and his gardener releases attack dogs, which cause the boys to flee. Harry falls in the ice and George saves him with the same results.
In another draft, after he unsuccessfully attempts to consult his father about Mr. Gower and the pills, George considers asking Uncle Billy, but he is on the phone with the bank examiner. Billy lights his cigar and throws his match in the wastebasket. George turns to Tilly (who, along with Eustace, are his cousins, although not Billy's kids), but she is on the phone with her friend, Martha. She says, "Potter's here, the bank examiner's coming. It's a day of judgment." The wastebasket suddenly catches fire and Billy cries for help. Tilly runs in and puts the fire out with a pot of coffee. George decides to deal with the Gower situation by himself.
According to Bobbie Anderson, in the confrontation between Mr. Gower and young George, H. B. Warner, who was drunk at the time of the drug store scene, slapped him for real and made his ear bleed, reducing him to tears. Warner hugged him after the scene was shot.
Composer
Dimitri Tiomkin
Dimitri Zinovievich Tiomkin (May 10, 1894 – November 11, 1979) was a Russian and American film composer and conductor. Classically trained in Saint Petersburg before the Bolshevik Revolution, he moved to Berlin and then New York City after t ...
had written "Death Telegram" and "Gower's Deliverance" for the drugstore sequence, but Capra elected to forgo music in those scenes. Tiomkin had worked on many of Capra's previous films, but those changes, and others, led to a falling out between the two men. Tiomkin felt as though his work was being seen as a mere suggestion. In his autobiography ''Please Don't Hate Me,'' he called the incident, "an all around scissors job."
[Willian 2006, p. 15.]
In the scene where Uncle Billy gets drunk at Harry and Ruth's welcome home/newlyweds' party and staggers away off camera, a crash is heard off screen. Mitchell, as Uncle Billy, yells, "I'm all right! I'm all right!", implying that Uncle Billy had knocked into some trash cans. A technician had actually knocked over some equipment; Capra left in Mitchell's impromptu ad lib and rewarded the technician with $10 (equal to $141.84 in 2021), thanking him for his 'sound improvement.'
According to rare stills that have been unearthed, several sequences were filmed but subsequently cut.
[Cox 2003, p. 15.] Alternative endings were also considered. Capra's first script had Bailey fall to his knees to recite "The Lord's Prayer" (the script also called for an opening scene with the townspeople in prayer). Feeling that an overly religious tone undermined the emotional impact of the family and friends rushing to George's rescue, the closing scenes were rewritten.
Capra found the film's original cinematographer
Victor Milner slow and pretentious, and when Milner became ill, Capra borrowed
Joseph Walker from Columbia. Walker had lensed 19 previous Capra films. But when
Rosalind Russell
Catherine Rosalind Russell (June 4, 1907November 28, 1976) was an American actress, model, comedian, screenwriter, and singer,Obituary '' Variety'', December 1, 1976, p. 79. known for her role as fast-talking newspaper reporter Hildy Johnson in ...
demanded that Walker return to
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
to shoot her next film, Walker trained veteran camera operator
Joseph Biroc
Joseph Francis Biroc, (February 12, 1903 – September 7, 1996) was an American cinematographer. He was born in New York City and began working in films at the Paragon Studios in Fort Lee, New Jersey. After working there for approximately six ye ...
to be his replacement. Although working with three cinematographers was difficult for Capra, in Walker's opinion it turned out very well because the scenes each cinematographer shot were so different that they did not have to match each other's visual styles.
Reception
Critical response

According to a 2006 book, "A spate of movies appeared just after the ending of the Second World War, including ''It's a Wonderful Life'' (1946) and ''
Stairway to Heaven
"Stairway to Heaven" is a song by the English rock band Led Zeppelin, released on 8 November 1971 on the band's untitled fourth studio album (commonly known as ''Led Zeppelin IV''), by Atlantic Records. Composed by the band's guitarist Jimmy ...
'' (1946), perhaps tapping into so many people's experience of loss of loved ones and offering a kind of consolation." ''It's a Wonderful Life'' premiered at the
Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a Theater (structure), theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 at Southwark, close to the south bank of the Thames, by Shakespeare's playing company, the Lord Chamberlain's Men. It was ...
in New York City on December 20, 1946, to mixed reviews.
While Capra thought the contemporary critical reviews were either universally negative, or at best dismissive, ''
Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' said, "''It's a Wonderful Life'' is a pretty wonderful movie. It has only one formidable rival (Goldwyn's ''
The Best Years of Our Lives
''The Best Years of Our Lives'' (also known as ''Glory for Me'' and ''Home Again'') is a 1946 American drama film directed by William Wyler and starring Myrna Loy, Fredric March, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright, Virginia Mayo and Harold Ru ...
'') as Hollywood's best picture of the year. Director Capra's inventiveness, humor, and affection for human beings keep it glowing with life and excitement."
In his review for
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
, Bert Briller wrote, "''It’s a Wonderful Life'' will enjoy just that at the b.o.
ox office and eminently deserves to do so." He added: "
Capra may not have taken here the stride forward in film-making technique he achieved in “''
It Happened One Night
''It Happened One Night'' is a 1934 American pre-Code romantic comedy film with elements of screwball comedy directed and co-produced by Frank Capra, in collaboration with Harry Cohn, in which a pampered socialite ( Claudette Colbert) tr ...
'', but no past Capra celluloid possessed any greater or more genuine qualities of effectiveness." Briller praised Reed's performance, writing, "In femme lead, Donna Reed will reach full-fledged stardom with this effort."
Bosley Crowther
Francis Bosley Crowther Jr. (July 13, 1905 – March 7, 1981) was an American journalist, writer, and film critic for ''The New York Times'' for 27 years. His work helped shape the careers of many actors, directors and screenwriters, though some ...
, writing for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', complimented some of the actors, including Stewart and Reed, but concluded, "the weakness of this picture, from this reviewer's point of view, is the sentimentality of it—its illusory concept of life. Mr. Capra's nice people are charming, his small town is a quite beguiling place and his pattern for solving problems is most optimistic and facile. But somehow, they all resemble theatrical attitudes, rather than average realities."
Writing in ''
The Nation'' in 1946, critic
James Agee
James Rufus Agee ( ; November 27, 1909 – May 16, 1955) was an American novelist, journalist, poet, screenwriter and film critic. In the 1940s, writing for ''Time'', he was one of the most influential film critics in the United States. His autob ...
stated, "... Frank Capra's first film since those he made for the army, is one of the most efficient sentimental pieces since ''
A Christmas Carol
''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. It recounts the ...
''. Often, in its pile-driving emotional exuberance, it outrages, insults, or at least accosts without introduction, the cooler and more responsible parts of the mind; it is nevertheless recommended.... "
The film, which went into general release on January 7, 1947, placed 26th ($3.3 million) in box-office revenues for 1947
(out of more than 400 features released), one place ahead of another Christmas film, ''
Miracle on 34th Street
''Miracle on 34th Street'' (initially released as ''The Big Heart'' in the United Kingdom) is a 1947 American Christmas film, Christmas comedy-drama film released by 20th Century-Fox, written and directed by George Seaton and based on a story ...
''. The film was supposed to be released in January 1947, but was moved up to December 1946 to make it eligible for the
19th Academy Awards
The 19th Academy Awards were held on March 13, 1947, honoring the films of 1946. The top awards portion of the ceremony was hosted by Jack Benny.
''The Best Years of Our Lives'' won seven of its eight nominations, including Best Picture, Bes ...
held in March 1947. This move was seen as worse for the film, as 1947 did not have quite the stiff competition as 1946. If it had entered the 1947 awards, its strongest competitor would have been ''Miracle on 34th Street''. The number-one grossing movie of 1947, ''The Best Years of Our Lives'', made $11.5 million.
The film recorded a loss of $525,000 at the box office for RKO.
On May 26, 1947, the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
issued a memo stating, "With regard to the picture ''It's a Wonderful Life'',
edactedstated in substance that the film represented rather obvious attempts to discredit bankers by casting Lionel Barrymore as a 'scrooge-type' so that he would be the most hated man in the picture. This, according to these sources, is a common trick used by Communists.
naddition,
edactedstated that, in his opinion, this picture deliberately maligned the upper class, attempting to show the people who had money were mean and despicable characters." Film historian
Andrew Sarris
Andrew Sarris (October 31, 1928 – June 20, 2012) was an American film critic. He was a leading proponent of the auteur theory of film criticism.
Early life
Sarris was born in Brooklyn, New York, to Greek immigrant parents, Themis (née Kat ...
observed as "curious" that "the censors never noticed that the villainous Mr. Potter gets away with robbery without being caught or punished in any way".
[Sarris, 1998. p. 356]
In 1990, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
and selected for preservation in their
National Film Registry
The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation (library and archival science), preservation, each selected for its cultural, historical, and aestheti ...
.
In 2002,
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
in the United Kingdom ranked ''It's a Wonderful Life'' as the seventh-greatest film ever made in its poll "The 100 Greatest Films". The channel airs the film to British viewers annually on Christmas Eve.
In June 2008, AFI revealed its ''
10 Top 10'', the best 10 films in 10 "classic" American film genres, after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. ''It's a Wonderful Life'' was acknowledged as the third-best film in the fantasy genre.
Somewhat more iconoclastic views of the film and its contents are occasionally expressed. In his review for ''
The New Republic
''The New Republic'' (often abbreviated as ''TNR'') is an American magazine focused on domestic politics, news, culture, and the arts from a left-wing perspective. It publishes ten print magazines a year and a daily online platform. ''The New Y ...
'' in 1947, film critic
Manny Farber
Emanuel Farber (February 20, 1917 – August 18, 2008) was an American painter, film critic and writer. Often described as "iconoclastic",Grimes, William (August 19, 2008) ''New York Times''Kiderra, Inga (August 21, 2008Obituary: Artist and Crit ...
wrote, "To make his points,
apraalways takes an easy, simple-minded path that doesn't give much credit to the intelligence of the audience", and adds that it has only a "few unsentimental moments here and there". Wendell Jamieson, in a 2008 article for ''The New York Times'' which was generally positive in its analysis of the film, observed that far from being simply a sweetly sentimental tale, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' "is a terrifying, asphyxiating story about growing up and relinquishing your dreams, of seeing your father driven to the grave before his time, of living among bitter, small-minded people. It is a story of being trapped, of compromising, of watching others move ahead and away, of becoming so filled with rage that you verbally abuse your children, their teacher, and your oppressively perfect wife."
In a 2010 essay for ''
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...
'',
Richard Cohen described ''It's a Wonderful Life'' as "the most terrifying Hollywood film ever made". In the "Pottersville" sequence, he wrote, George Bailey is not seeing the world that would exist had he never been born, but rather "the world as it does exist, in his time and also in our own". Nine years earlier, another ''Salon'' writer, Gary Kamiya, had expressed the opposing view that "Pottersville ''rocks!''", adding: "The gauzy,
Currier-and-Ives veil Capra drapes over Bedford Falls has prevented viewers from grasping what a tiresome and, frankly, toxic environment it is ... We all live in Pottersville now."
The film's elevation to the status of a beloved classic came three decades after its initial release, when it became a television staple during Christmas season in 1976. This came as a welcome surprise to Frank Capra and others involved with its production. "It's the damnedest thing I've ever seen", Capra told ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
'' in 1984. "The film has a life of its own now, and I can look at it like I had nothing to do with it. I'm like a parent whose kid grows up to be President. I'm proud ... but it's the kid who did the work. I didn't even think of it as a Christmas story when I first ran across it. I just liked the idea."
[Cox 2003, p. 11.] In a 1946 interview, Capra described the film's theme as "the individual's belief in himself" and that he made it "to combat a modern trend toward atheism".
It ranked 283rd among critics, and 107th among directors, in the
2012 ''Sight & Sound'' polls of the greatest films ever made.
The film's positive reception has continued. On
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the film holds an approval rating of 94% based on 97 reviews, with an average rating of 9.0/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The holiday classic to define all holiday classics, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' is one of a handful of films worth an annual viewing." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, which assigns a normalized rating to reviews, the film has a score 89 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Many filmmakers have praised the film, including
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...
,
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese filmmaker who List of works by Akira Kurosawa, directed 30 feature films in a career spanning six decades. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers in the History of film, history of cinema ...
,
Frank Darabont
Frank Árpád Darabont (born Ferenc Árpád Darabont, January 28, 1959) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer.
He has been nominated for three Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Award. In his early career, he was primarily a scre ...
,
David Lynch
David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...
,
Don Hertzfeldt
Don Hertzfeldt (born August 1, 1976) is an American animator, writer, and independent filmmaker. He is a two-time Academy Award nominee who is best known for the animated films ''It's Such a Beautiful Day (film), It's Such a Beautiful Day'', the ...
, and
Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro Gómez (; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, Gothic fiction, gothicism and horror fiction, horror often blending the genres ...
. Spielberg once said of the film: "''It’s a Wonderful Life'' shows that every human being on this Earth matters – and that’s a very powerful message." He ranked the film first on his list of 20 favorite films.
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...
played Mr. Potter in the made-for-television remake ''
It Happened One Christmas''; when asked by
Henry Jaglom
Henry David Jaglom (born January 26, 1938) is an English-born American actor, film director and playwright.
Life and career
Jaglom was born to a Jewish family in London, England, the son of Marie (née Stadthagen) and Simon M. Jaglom, who wor ...
what he thought of the movie, Welles said, "There's no way of hating that movie."
Awards and honors
Prior to its Los Angeles release, Liberty Films mounted an extensive promotional campaign that included a daily advertisement highlighting one of the film's players, along with comments from reviewers.
Jimmy Starr wrote, "If I were an Oscar, I'd elope with ''It's a Wonderful Life'' lock, stock and barrel on the night of the Academy Awards". The ''New York Daily Times'' published an editorial that declared the film and James Stewart's performance to be worthy of Academy Award consideration.
''It's a Wonderful Life'' received five
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
nominations:
["The 19th Academy Awards (1947) Nominees and Winners"](_blank)
. ''oscars.org''. Retrieved August 17, 2011.
''The Best Years of Our Lives'', a drama about servicemen attempting to return to their pre-World War II lives, won most of the awards that year, including four of the five for which ''It's a Wonderful Life'' was nominated. (The award for "Best Sound Recording" was won by ''
The Jolson Story
''The Jolson Story'' is a 1946 American biographical musical film, a highly fictionalized account of the life of singer Al Jolson, produced by Columbia Pictures and directed by Alfred E. Green. It stars Larry Parks as Jolson, Evelyn Keyes a ...
''.) ''The Best Years of Our Lives,'' directed by
William Wyler
William Wyler (; born Willi Wyler (); July 1, 1902 – July 27, 1981) was a German-born American film director and producer. Known for his work in numerous genres over five decades, he received numerous awards and accolades, including three Aca ...
, Capra's business partner along with
George Stevens
George Cooper Stevens (December 18, 1904 – March 8, 1975) was an American film director, producer, screenwriter and cinematographer. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for ''A Place in the Sun (1951 film), A Place in the Sun'' (1951) ...
in Liberty Films, was also an outstanding commercial success, ultimately becoming the highest-grossing film of the decade, in contrast to the more modest initial box-office returns of ''It's a Wonderful Life''.
''It's a Wonderful Life'' received a
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...
for Capra as
Best Motion Picture Director. He also won a "CEC Award" from the
Cinema Writers Circle in
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, for ''Mejor Película Extranjera'' (Best Foreign Film). Jimmy Hawkins won a "Former Child Star Lifetime Achievement Award" from the
Young Artist Awards
The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...
in 1994; the award recognized his role as Tommy Bailey as igniting his career, which lasted until the mid-1960s.
The film was included by the Vatican in
a list of important films compiled in 1995, under the category of "Values".
The February 2020 issue of ''
New York Magazine
''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City.
Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...
'' lists ''It's a Wonderful Life'' as among "The Best Movies That Lost Best Picture at the Oscars."
Release
Ownership and copyright issues
Liberty Films was purchased by
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...
, and remained a subsidiary until 1951. In 1955, M. & A. Alexander purchased the movie. This included key rights to the original television syndication, the
original nitrate film elements, the music score, and the film rights to the story on which the film is based, ''
The Greatest Gift''.
National Telefilm Associates
National Telefilm Associates (NTA) was a distribution company primarily concerned with the syndication of American film libraries to television, including the Republic Pictures film library. It was successful enough on cable television between 19 ...
(NTA) took over the rights to the film soon thereafter.
A clerical error at NTA prevented the copyright from being renewed properly in 1974. Despite the lapsed copyright, television stations that aired it still had to pay royalties because—though the film's images had entered the public domain—the film's story was still restricted as a
derivative work
In copyright law, a derivative work is an expressive creation that includes major copyrightable elements of a first, previously created original work (the underlying work). The derivative work becomes a second, separate work independent from ...
of the published story ''The Greatest Gift'', the copyright of which Philip Van Doren Stern had renewed in 1971.
[Cox 2003, p. 115.] The film became a perennial holiday favorite in the 1980s, possibly due to its repeated showings each holiday season on hundreds of local television stations. It was mentioned during the deliberations on the
Copyright Term Extension Act
The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act – also known as the Copyright Term Extension Act, Sonny Bono Act, or (derisively) the Mickey Mouse Protection Act – extended copyright terms in the United States in 1998. It is one of several ac ...
of 1998.
In 1993,
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures is currently an acquisition-only label owned by Paramount Pictures. Its history dates back to Republic Pictures Corporation, an American film studio that originally operated from 1935 to 1967, based in Los Angeles, California ...
, which was the successor to NTA, relied on the 1990
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
ruling in ''
Stewart v. Abend'' (which involved another Stewart film, ''
Rear Window
''Rear Window'' is a 1954 American mystery film, mystery thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock and written by John Michael Hayes, based on Cornell Woolrich's 1942 short story "After-Dinner Story, It Had to Be Murder". Originally released ...
'') to enforce its claim to the copyright. While the film's copyright had not been renewed, Republic still owned the film rights to ''The Greatest Gift''; thus, the plaintiffs were able to argue its status as a derivative work of a work still under copyright.
["Notes for 'It's a Wonderful Life'"](_blank)
Retrieved October 29, 2011. ''TCM Movie Database''. 2010. Retrieved November 8, 2010. That year, Republic made a deal with
Turner Broadcasting System
Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. was an American television and media conglomerate founded by Ted Turner in 1965. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it merged with Time Warner (later WarnerMedia) on October 10, 1996. As of April 2022, all of its asse ...
, authorizing only three airings of the movie, all on cable's
TNT
Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...
and
TBS. However, the studio's attempt to reassert control was widely ignored since there were still some existing distribution deals that Republic had to honor.
In 1994, the studio sold exclusive television rights to
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
. "We're thrilled that we will have the opportunity to broadcast this picture," said NBC Entertainment President
Warren Littlefield
Warren W. Littlefield (born May 11, 1952) is an American television executive.
Born in Montclair, New Jersey, Littlefield attended Montclair High School and graduated from Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York, where he was awar ...
at the time. "We will broadcast the original director's cut in black and white, full-length, the way Frank Capra intended this picture to be seen."
NBC traditionally shows the film on Christmas Eve. It had, for a time in the late 1990s, aired the film on Thanksgiving but removed that airing due to low ratings and began airing the
National Dog Show
The National Dog Show is an American all-breed benched conformation show sanctioned by the American Kennel Club and the Kennel Club of Philadelphia, which takes place on Thanksgiving each year and has been televised on NBC since 2002.
History
The ...
instead.
Paramount (via parent company
Viacom
Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to:
* Viacom (1952–2005), a former American media conglomerate
* Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom
* Viacom18, a joint venture between Pa ...
's 1998 acquisition of Republic's then-parent,
Spelling Entertainment) once again has distribution rights for the first time since 1955.
Colorization
Capra met with Wilson Markle about having Colorization Inc.
colorize
Film colorization (American English; or colourisation/colorisation [both British English], or colourization [Canadian English and Oxford English]) is any process that adds color to black-and-white, sepia, or other monochrome m ...
''It's a Wonderful Life'' based on an enthusiastic response to the colorization of ''
Topper'' from actor Cary Grant.
The company's art director, Brian Holmes, prepared 10 minutes of colorized footage from ''It's a Wonderful Life'' for Capra to view, which resulted in Capra signing a contract with Colorization Inc., and his "enthusiastic agree
entto pay half the $260,000 cost of colorizing the movie and to share any profits" and giving "preliminary approval to making similar color versions of two of his other black-and-white films, ''
Meet John Doe
''Meet John Doe'' is a 1941 American comedy drama film directed and produced by Frank Capra, written by Robert Riskin, and starring Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward Arnold. The film is about a "grassroots" political campaign created ...
'' (1941) and ''
Lady for a Day'' (1933)".
However, the film was believed to be in the public domain at the time, and as a result, Markle and Holmes responded by returning Capra's initial investment, eliminating his financial participation, and refusing outright to allow the director to exercise artistic control over the colorization of his films, leading Capra to join in the campaign against the process.
Three colorized versions have been produced. The first was released by
Hal Roach Studios
Hal Roach Studios was an American motion picture and, through its TV production subsidiary, Hal Roach Television Corporation, television production studio. Known as ''The Laugh Factory to the World'', it was founded by producer Hal Roach and busin ...
in 1986. The second was authorized and produced by the film's permanent owner, Republic Pictures, in 1989. Both Capra and Stewart took a critical stand on the colorized editions. The Hal Roach color version was re-released in 1989 to VHS via
Video Treasures. A third, computer-colorized version was produced by
Legend Films
Legend Films is a San Diego–based company founded in August 2001 which originally provided restoration and colorization of classic black-and-white films for TV, theatrical and home video release via Legend Films Home Entertainment Distribution. ...
in 2007 and has been released on DVD, Blu-ray, and streaming services.
Home media
VHS
Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, when the film was still thought to be public domain, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' was released on VHS by a variety of home video companies. Among the companies that released the film on home video before Republic Pictures stepped in were Meda Video (which would later become
Media Home Entertainment
Media Home Entertainment Inc. was a home video company headquartered in Culver City, California, originally established in 1978 by filmmaker Charles Band.
Media Home Entertainment also distributed video product under additional labels — The N ...
),
Kartes Video Communications (under its Video Film Classics label),
GoodTimes Home Video, and Video Treasures (now
Anchor Bay Entertainment
The revived Anchor Bay Entertainment is an American independent film production and distribution company owned by Umbrelic Entertainment co-founders Thomas Zambeck and Brian Katz. Anchor Bay Entertainment markets and releases "new release genre ...
). After Republic reclaimed the rights to the film, all unofficial VHS copies of the film still in the hands of video distributors were supposed to have been destroyed.
Artisan Entertainment
Artisan Entertainment (formerly known as U.S.A. Home Video, International Video Entertainment (IVE) and LIVE Entertainment) was an American film studio and home video company. It was considered one of the largest mini-major film studios until i ...
(under license from Republic) took over home video rights in the mid-1990s. Artisan was later sold to
Lions Gate Entertainment
Starz Entertainment Corp, formerly known officially as Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation and commonly as Lions Gate and/or Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment industry, entertainment company currently headquartered in Santa Monica ...
, which continued to hold US home video rights until late 2005, when they reverted to Paramount, which also owns video rights throughout Region 4 (
Latin America
Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
) and in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. Video rights in the rest of the world are held by different companies; for example, the
UK rights were once with
Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to:
* Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate
** Universal Pictures, an American film studio
** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex
* Various theme parks operat ...
, but have since reverted to Paramount.
Technological first: CD-ROM
In 1993, due in part to the confusion of the ownership and copyright issues,
Kinesoft Kinesoft Development Corporation was an American video game development company founded by Peter Sills in 1991. The firm, based in Illinois, had about 22 employees as of 1997. Mark Achler joined the company in 1994 to serve as president. Along wi ...
Development, with the support of Republic Pictures, released ''It's a Wonderful Life'' as one of the first commercial feature-length films on
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains computer data storage, data computers can read, but not write or erase. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold b ...
for the Windows PC (
Windows 3.1
Windows 3.1 is a major release of Microsoft Windows. It was released to manufacturing on April 6, 1992, as a successor to Windows 3.0. Like its predecessors, the Windows 3.1 series run as a shell on top of MS-DOS; it was the last Windows 1 ...
). Antedating commercial DVDs by several years, it included such features as the ability to follow along with the complete shooting script as the film was playing.
Given the state of video playback on the PC at the time of its release, ''It's a Wonderful Life'' for Windows represented another milestone, as the longest-running video on a computer. Prior to its release, Windows could play back only about 32,000 frames of video, or about 35 minutes at 15 frames per second. Working with Microsoft, Kinesoft was able to enhance the video features of Windows to allow for the complete playback of the entire film—all of this on a PC with a
486SX processor and 8 MB of RAM.
''
Computer Gaming World
''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American Video game journalism, computer game magazine that was published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 199 ...
'' said in April 1994, "The picture quality still has a way to go before it reaches television standards", but was "a noble effort" that would "please fans of the film".
DVD and Blu-ray
The film has seen multiple
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...
releases since the availability of the format. In the autumn of 2001,in 2002 in Australia by magna pacific and mra entertainment in 2004,Republic issued the film twice, once in August, and again with different packaging in September of that same year. On October 31, 2006, Paramount released a newly remastered "60th Anniversary Edition". On November 13, 2007, Paramount released a two-disc "special edition" DVD of the film that contained both the original theatrical black-and-white version, and a new, third colorized version, produced by
Legend Films
Legend Films is a San Diego–based company founded in August 2001 which originally provided restoration and colorization of classic black-and-white films for TV, theatrical and home video release via Legend Films Home Entertainment Distribution. ...
using the latest colorization technology. On November 3, 2009, Paramount re-released the previous DVD set as a "Collector's Edition" and debuted a
Blu-ray
Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
edition, also containing both versions of the film.
Restoration
In 2017, the film was restored in
4K resolution
4K resolution refers to a horizontal display resolution of approximately 4,000 pixels. Digital television and digital cinematography commonly use several different 4K resolutions. In television and consumer media, 38402160 (4K UHD) with a 16:9 asp ...
, available via streaming services and
DCP.
4K Ultra HD Blu-ray
On October 29, 2019, the film was released for the first time on 4K
Ultra HD Blu-ray
Ultra HD Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD, UHD-BD, or 4K Blu-ray) is a digital optical disc data storage format that is an enhanced variant of Blu-ray. Ultra HD Blu-ray supports 4K UHD (3840 × 2160 pixel resolution) video at frame rates up to 60 progre ...
, along with a digital copy featuring a new
Dolby Vision
Dolby Vision is a set of technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories for high dynamic range (HDR) video. It covers content creation, distribution, and playback. It includes dynamic metadata that define the aspect ratio and adjust the picture ...
transfer.
Adaptations in other media
The film was twice adapted for
radio
Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...
in 1947, first on ''
Lux Radio Theater
''Lux Radio Theatre'', sometimes spelled ''Lux Radio Theater'', a old-time radio, classic radio anthology series, was broadcast on the Blue Network, NBC Blue Network (1934–35) (owned by the National Broadcasting Company, later predecessor of A ...
'' (March 10) and then on ''
the Screen Guild Theater
''The Screen Guild Theater'' is a radio anthology series broadcast from 1939 until 1952 during the Golden Age of Radio. Leading Hollywood stars performed adaptations of popular motion pictures. Originating on CBS Radio, it aired under several d ...
'' (December 29), then again on the ''Screen Guild Theater'' broadcast of March 15, 1951. James Stewart and Donna Reed reprised their roles for all three radio productions. Stewart also starred in the May 8, 1949, radio adaptation presented on the ''
Screen Directors Playhouse
''Screen Directors Playhouse'' (sometimes written as ''Screen Directors' Playhouse'') is an American radio and television anthology series which brought leading Hollywood actors to the NBC microphones beginning in 1949. The radio program broadca ...
''.
A musical stage adaptation of the film, titled ''
A Wonderful Life'', was written by
Sheldon Harnick
Sheldon Mayer Harnick (April 30, 1924 – June 23, 2023) was an American lyricist and songwriter best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals such as '' Fiorello!'', '' She Loves Me'', and ''Fiddler on the Roof''.
Ear ...
and
Joe Raposo
Joseph Guilherme Raposo, OIH (February 8, 1937 – February 5, 1989) was an American composer and songwriter. He is best known for his work on the children's television series ''Sesame Street'', for which he wrote the theme song, and several no ...
. This version was first performed at the
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
in 1986, but a planned professional production was stalled by legal wrangling with the estate of Philip Van Doren Stern. It was eventually performed in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, by
Arena Stage in 1991, and had revivals in the 21st century, including a staged concert version in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
in 2005 and several productions by regional theatres.
Another musical stage adaptation of the film, titled ''It's a Wonderful Life – The Musical'', was written by
Bruce Greer and Keith Ferguson. This version premiered at the
Majestic Theatre Majestic Theatre or Majestic Theater may refer to:
Australia
* Majestic Theatre, Adelaide, former name of a theatre in King William Street, Adelaide, built 1916, now demolished
*Majestic Theatre, Launceston, a former cinema in Tasmania designed by ...
,
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
, in 1998. It was an annual Christmas show at the theater for five years. It has since been performed at venues all around the United States.
In July 2019, it was revealed that another stage musical adaptation was in development with music and lyrics by
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
(making his musical theatre debut), lyrics and book by
Lee Hall and produced by
Bill Kenwright
William Kenwright (4 September 1945 – 23 October 2023) was an English theatre and film producer. He was also the chairman of Everton Football Club for nearly two decades, from 2004 until his death in 2023.
Early life
Kenwright was born in ...
. The musical was set to debut late 2020, but is still yet to premiere.
In 1997,
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
aired ''
Merry Christmas, George Bailey'', taped from a live performance of the 1947 ''Lux Radio Theatre'' script at the
Pasadena Playhouse
Pasadena Playhouse is a Tony Award-winning historic performing arts venue located 39 S. El Molino Avenue in Pasadena, California. The 686-seat auditorium produces a variety of cultural and artistic events, professional shows, and community engag ...
. The presentation, which benefited the
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing pediatric HIV infection and eliminating pediatric AIDS through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs. Founded in 198 ...
, featured an all-star cast, including
Bill Pullman
William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American actor. After graduating with a Master of Fine Arts degree in theater, he was an adjunct professor at Montana State University before deciding to pursue acting.
Pullman made his film debut i ...
as George,
Nathan Lane
Nathan Lane (born Joseph Lane; February 3, 1956) is an American actor. Since 1975, he has been Nathan Lane on screen and stage, on stage and screen in both comedic and dramatic roles. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Na ...
as Clarence,
Martin Landau
Martin James Landau (; June 20, 1928 – July 15, 2017) was an American actor. His career began in the 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's '' North by Northwest'' (1959). His career breakthrough c ...
as Mr. Potter,
Penelope Ann Miller
Penelope Ann Miller (born Penelope Andrea Miller; January 13, 1964), sometimes credited as Penelope Miller, is an American actress. She began her career on Broadway in the original run of '' Biloxi Blues'' (1985–1986), later appearing in the ...
as Mary, and
Sally Field
Sally Margaret Field (born November 6, 1946) is an American actress. She has performed in movies, Broadway theater, television, and made records of popular music. Known for her extensive work on screen and stage, she has received many accola ...
as Mother Bailey.
''The Last Temptation of Clarence Odbody'' is a 2011 novel written by
John Pierson. The novel imagines the future lives of various characters if George had not survived his jump into the river.
A new "cinematic audio" adaptation by
David Ossman
David Ossman (born December 6, 1936, in Santa Monica) is an American writer and comedian, best known as a member of the Firesign Theatre and screenwriter of such films as '' Zachariah''.
Early life
Ossman attended Pomona College, where he star ...
of the
Firesign Theatre
The Firesign Theatre (also known as the Firesigns) was an American surreal humour, surreal comedy troupe who first appeared on November 17, 1966, in a live performance on the Los Angeles radio program ''Radio Free Oz'' on station KPFK FM broad ...
was produced and directed by Ossman and his wife Judith Walcutt of Otherworld Media in December 2019 at the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts. Their version combined elements of traditional and radio theatre, with costumes, sets, makeup, and lighting effects, as well as live music, live
sound effect
A sound effect (or audio effect) is an artificially created or enhanced sound, or sound process used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media.
In m ...
s, and over 20 microphones.
In 2024, Liverpool-based theatre company, Old Fruit Jar Productions, staged a production of Mary Elliott Nelson's adaptation of It's A Wonderful Life, which played for two weeks at the
Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool
The Royal Court Theatre is a theatre located at 1 Roe Street in Liverpool, England. The current Royal Court Theatre was opened on 17 October 1938, after fire destroyed its predecessor. It was rebuilt in Art Deco style and soon became Liverpool' ...
and a week's extension at
St George's Hall, Liverpool
St George's Hall is a building on St George's Place, opposite Liverpool Lime Street railway station, Lime Street railway station in Liverpool city centre, the centre of Liverpool, England. Opened in 1854, it is a Neoclassical architecture, Neocla ...
. In 2025, it was announced that the show would return to the Royal Court before marking the beginning of the Christmas season at The
Epstein Theatre after it's reopening.
Remakes
''
It Happened One Christmas'' was a 1977
television movie
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...
remake
A remake is a film, television series, video game, song or similar form of entertainment that is based upon and retells the story of an earlier production in the same medium—e.g., a "new version of an existing film". A remake tells the same s ...
of the classic film, the screenplay of which
Lionel Chetwynd
Lionel Chetwynd (born January 29, 1940) is a British-American screenwriter, director and producer.
Life and career
Lionel Chetwynd was born to a Jewish family in Hackney, London, the son of Betty (née Dion) and Peter Chetwynd. His family move ...
based on both the original Van Doren Stern short story and the 1946 screenplay. This remake employed gender-reversal, with
Marlo Thomas
Margaret Julia "Marlo" Thomas (born November 21, 1937) is an American actress, producer, author, and social activist. She is best known for starring on the sitcom ''That Girl'' (1966–1971) and her Children's television series, children's franc ...
as the protagonist Mary Bailey,
Wayne Rogers
William Wayne McMillan Rogers III (April 7, 1933 – December 31, 2015) was an American actor, known for playing the role of Captain "Trapper" John McIntyre in the CBS television series '' M*A*S*H'' and as Dr. Charley Michaels on '' House Call ...
as George Hatch, and
Cloris Leachman
Cloris Leachman (April 30, 1926 – January 27, 2021) was an American actress and comedian whose career spanned nearly eight decades. She received many accolades including 22 Primetime Emmy nominations and won eight, tying Julia Louis-Dreyfus ...
as the angel Clara Oddbody. Leachman received her tenth
Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
nomination for this role.
Orson Welles
George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...
was cast as Mr. Potter. Following initial positive reviews, the made-for-television film was rebroadcast twice in 1978 and 1979, but has not been shown since on national re-broadcasts or issued to home media.
[Webb, Chad]
"Missing: It Happened One Christmas"
. ''411mania.com'', 2010. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
''
Merry Christmas, George Bailey'' was a 1997
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
television movie adaptation of the film directed by
Matthew Diamond
Matthew Diamond (born November 26, 1951) is an American film and television director, producer and choreographer best known for directing '' Dancemaker''.
Life and career
Matthew Diamond was born in New York City, the son of Irwin and Pearl (n� ...
and starring
Bill Pullman
William Pullman (born December 17, 1953) is an American actor. After graduating with a Master of Fine Arts degree in theater, he was an adjunct professor at Montana State University before deciding to pursue acting.
Pullman made his film debut i ...
as George Bailey,
Penelope Ann Miller
Penelope Ann Miller (born Penelope Andrea Miller; January 13, 1964), sometimes credited as Penelope Miller, is an American actress. She began her career on Broadway in the original run of '' Biloxi Blues'' (1985–1986), later appearing in the ...
as Mary,
Nathan Lane
Nathan Lane (born Joseph Lane; February 3, 1956) is an American actor. Since 1975, he has been Nathan Lane on screen and stage, on stage and screen in both comedic and dramatic roles. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Na ...
as Clarence and
Martin Landau
Martin James Landau (; June 20, 1928 – July 15, 2017) was an American actor. His career began in the 1950s, with early film appearances including a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's '' North by Northwest'' (1959). His career breakthrough c ...
as Potter.
''
The Christmas Spirit'' was a retelling of the movie starring
Nicollette Sheridan
Nicollette Sheridan (born November 21, 1963) is an American actress. She began her career as a fashion model before landing a role in the short-lived American Broadcasting Company, ABC primetime soap opera ''Paper Dolls'' in 1984, as well as st ...
as Charlotte Hart. This was a made-for-TV film aired on December 1, 2013, on the
Hallmark Channel
Hallmark Channel is an American cable television network owned by Hallmark Media, a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards. The channel broadcasts family-oriented general entertainment programming, including television series and made-for-TV movies.
...
executive produced by Sheridan under her company, Wyke Lane Productions, and Brad Krevoy Television. The film was directed and written by Jack Angelo. ''Spirit'' was set in the present day, with the Hart character working to save a "quiet New England town from a ruthless real estate developer". The film was planned to kick off a film series about the Hart character. The film had 3.372 million viewers overall.
Parodies and references
A 1986 skit on ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...
'' features
William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
introducing the "lost ending" of ''It's a Wonderful Life'' in which
George Bailey (
Dana Carvey
Dana Thomas Carvey (born June 2, 1955) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, podcaster, screenwriter and producer.
Carvey is best known for his seven seasons on ''Saturday Night Live'', from 1986 to 1993, which earned him five consecutive Pri ...
) and the citizens of Bedford Falls discover that Mr. Potter (
Jon Lovitz
Jonathan Michael Lovitz ( ; born July 21, 1957) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his tenure as a cast member on the NBC sketch comedy series ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1985 to 1990 for which he was nominated for two Pr ...
) has stolen George's money and take turns attacking him in his office.
In 1992, the final episode of ''
Tiny Toon Adventures
''Tiny Toon Adventures'' is an American animated television series created by Tom Ruegger and produced by Warner Bros. Animation. It originally aired from September 14, 1990 to December 6, 1992, airing in syndication before eventually settling a ...
'' parodied ''It's A Wonderful Life'' entitled "It's A Wonderful Tiny Toon Christmas". In it, Buster Bunny feels sad after the failure of his play and wishes he had never become a Tiny Toon, so a guardian angel shows Buster what life would have been like without him.
In 2002, the television film ''
It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie
''It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie'' is a 2002 American musical fantasy comedy television film directed by Kirk R. Thatcher and written by Tom Martin and Jim Lewis. The film premiered November 29, 2002 on NBC and is the first televi ...
'' premiered on
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
. The film is a homage to ''It's a Wonderful Life''. In the film,
Kermit the Frog
Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created in 1955 and originally performed by Jim Henson. An anthropomorphic green frog, Kermit is the pragmatic everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably as the showrunner and host o ...
wishes that he had never been born.
"The Greatest Gift", the 2011 ''
Warehouse 13
''Warehouse 13'' is an American science fiction television series that originally ran from July 7, 2009, to May 19, 2014, on the Syfy network, and was executively produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins for Universal Cable Productions. Des ...
'' season 3 Christmas episode, tells a similar story after agent Pete Lattimer touches Stern's brush.
Sequel
In 1990, the made-for-television film ''
Clarence'' stars
Robert Carradine
Robert Reed Carradine ( ; born March 24, 1954) is an American actor. A member of the Carradine family, he made his first appearances on television Western series such as ''Bonanza'' and his brother David's TV series, ''Kung Fu''. Carradine's fi ...
in a new tale of
the helpful angel, Clarence Odbody.
Cancelled sequel
A purported sequel was in development for a 2015 release, and was to be called ''It's a Wonderful Life: The Rest of the Story''. It was to be written by Bob Farnsworth and Martha Bolton and follow the angel of George Bailey's daughter Zuzu (played once again by
Karolyn Grimes), as she teaches Bailey's evil grandson how different the world would have been if he had never been born. Producers were considering directors and hoped to shoot the film with a $25–$35 million budget in Louisiana early in 2014.
The film had been announced as being produced by Star Partners and Hummingbird Productions, neither of which are affiliated with Paramount, owners of the original film (Farnsworth claimed that ''It's a Wonderful Life'' was in the public domain). Later, a Paramount spokesperson claimed that they were not granting permission to make the film; "To date, these individuals have not obtained any of the necessary rights, and we would take all appropriate steps to protect those rights", the spokesperson said.
Modern remake
On January 19, 2024, it was announced that
Kenya Barris
Kenya Barris (born August 9, 1974) is an American film and television writer, producer, director, and actor. He is best known as the creator of the ABC sitcom ''Black-ish'' (2014–2022).
Early life and education
Barris, the second-youngest am ...
will write and direct a modern remake of the film for Paramount, with the intention to cast a
person of color
The term "person of color" (: people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is associated with, the United States. From th ...
in the role of George Bailey. On the announcement, Barris remarked: "I feel like Christmas movies are amazing and I think the idea of taking something that has that long of a history and a tale behind it and putting an amazing piece of talent to tell that story ... It's a guy who’s trying to help out his community and things are going to turn around on him. I think that’s the perfect story to tell for a person of color — Black or brown — to get into that because our communities have some issues and someone trying to help that community out. I think that’s the perfect vehicle to tell that story from."
''Sesame Street'' urban legend
It is commonly believed that the characters of
Bert and Ernie
Bert and Ernie are two List of Sesame Street Muppets, Muppet characters who appear together in numerous skits on the PBS/HBO children's television show ''Sesame Street''. Ernie acts the role of the naivety, naïve and exuberant troublemaker, whil ...
on ''
Sesame Street
''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...
'' were named after Bert the cop and Ernie the cab driver. However, in a correction for the 1999 "Annual Xmas Quiz" in the ''
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...
'', which made this claim, series writer
Jerry Juhl confirmed that, per producer
Jon Stone, the shared names were merely a coincidence. Despite this, the 1996 holiday special ''
Elmo Saves Christmas'' references the rumor, during a scene where Bert and Ernie walk by a TV set, which is playing the movie. The pair are surprised by the line: "Bert! Ernie! What's the matter with you two guys? You were here on my wedding night!"
Stephan's Quintet usage
The angelic figures depicted at the beginning of the film is an image of
Stephan's Quintet
Stephan's Quintet is a visual grouping of five galaxies of which four form the first Galaxy group#Compact Groups, compact galaxy group ever discovered. The group, visible in the constellation Pegasus (constellation), Pegasus, was discovered by É ...
, a group of five interacting galaxies.
See also
* "
Buffalo Gals
"Buffalo Gals" is a traditional American song, published as "Lubly Fan" in 1844 by the blackface minstrel John Hodges, who performed as "Cool White". Whilst the song is often attributed to John Hodges it is likely to have a history that pre-dat ...
", the song George Bailey and Mary Hatch liked to sing
*
Butterfly effect
In chaos theory, the butterfly effect is the sensitive dependence on initial conditions in which a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state.
The term is closely associated w ...
* ''
Dastar Corp. v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.'' (a legal case partially relating to another example of an out-of-copyright adaptation of a work still under copyright)
* ''
The Family Man
''The Family Man'' is a 2000 American romantic fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Brett Ratner, from a screenplay by David Diamond and David Weissman. The film stars Nicolas Cage and Téa Leoni, with Don Cheadle, Saul Rubinek, and Jerem ...
'', a 2000 film
*
List of Christmas films
Many Christmas stories have been Christmas film, adapted to feature films and TV specials, and have been broadcast and repeated many times on television. Since the popularization of home video in the 1980s, these films are sold and re-sold every ...
*
List of cult films
Cult films are films with a dedicated and passionate following, often defined by their opposition to mainstream appeal and traditional cinematic norms. While the term lacks a singular definition, it generally includes films that inspire devoted fa ...
*
List of films about angels
This is a list of films where angels appear.
Angel films are sometimes discussed in relation to Peter L. Valenti's definition of the 'film blanc', a variety of fantasy film characterised by "1) a mortal's death or lapse into dream; 2) subsequent ...
*
List of films considered the best
This is a list of films voted the best in national and international Opinion poll, surveys of Film criticism, critics and the public.
Some surveys focus on all films, while others focus on a particular genre or country. Electoral system, Voti ...
*
List of films featuring the deaf and hard of hearing
There is a body of films that feature the Deafness, deaf and hard of hearing. The ''Encyclopedia of Film Themes, Settings and Series'' wrote, "The world of the deaf has received little attention in film. Like blindness... it has been misused as a ...
* ''
Mr. Destiny'', a 1990 film
*
Parallel universes in fiction
A parallel universe, also known as an alternate universe, world, or dimension, is a plot device in fiction which uses the notion of a hypothetical universe co-existing with another, typically to enable alternative narrative possibilities. The su ...
* ''
A Wonderful Life'', a 1951 short film produced by the
National Council of Churches of Christ
*
Zu Zu Ginger Snaps
Zu Zu Ginger Snaps was a brand of round drop cookies originally manufactured in 1901 by the National Biscuit Company (NBC) –later changed to Nabisco – and produced until the early 1980s. The snaps are "a spicy combination of ginger and sugar-c ...
References
Citations
Bibliography
* Barker, Martin, and Thomas Austin. "Films, Audiences and Analyses". ''From Antz To Titanic: Reinventing Film Analysis''. London: Pluto Press, 2000, pp. 15–29. .
* Cahill, Marie. ''It's a Wonderful Life''. East Bridgewater, Massachusetts: World Publications Group, 2006. .
* Capra, Frank. ''Frank Capra, The Name Above the Title: An Autobiography''. New York: The Macmillan Company, 1971. .
* Cox, Stephen. ''It's a Wonderful Life: A Memory Book''. Nashville, Tennessee: Cumberland House, 2003. .
* Eliot, Mark. ''Jimmy Stewart: A Biography''. New York: Random House, 2006. .
* Finler, Joel W. ''The Hollywood Story: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the American Movie Business, But Didn't Know Where to Look''. London: Pyramid Books, 1988. .
* Goodrich, Francis, Albert Hackett and Frank Capra. ''It's a Wonderful Life: The Complete Script in its Original Form''. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1986. .
* Jones, Ken D., Arthur F. McClure and Alfred E. Twomey. ''The Films of James Stewart''. New York: Castle Books, 1970. .
* McBride, Joseph. ''Frank Capra: The Catastrophe of Success''. New York: Touchstone Books, 1992. .
* Michael, Paul, ed. ''The Great Movie Book: A Comprehensive Illustrated Reference Guide to the Best-loved Films of the Sound Era''. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1980. .
* Rodgers, James W. ''It's a Wonderful Life: A Play in Two Acts''. Woodstock, Illinois: Dramatic Publishing, 1994. .
* Sarris, Andrew. 1998. ''"You Ain't Heard Nothin' Yet." The American Talking Film History & Memory, 1927–1949''. Oxford University Press.
* Walters, James. "Reclaiming the Real: It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)". ''Alternative Worlds in Hollywood Cinema''. Bristol UK: Intellect Ltd, 2008, pp. 115–134. .
* Wiley, Mason, and Damien Bona. ''Inside Oscar: The Unofficial History of the Academy Awards''. New York: Ballantine Books, 1987. .
* Willian, Michael. ''The Essential It's a Wonderful Life: A Scene-by-Scene Guide to the Classic Film, 2nd ed.'' Chicago: Chicago Review Press, 2006. .
Further reading
* Stewart, Jimmy.
Jimmy Stewart Remembers 'It's a Wonderful Life'. 1977. MyMerryChristmas.com, 2012. Web. January 9, 2012.
* Cox, Stephen.
On a Wing and a Prayer. ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
'' December 23, 2006: E-1. Web. January 9, 2012.
* Sullivan, Daniel J.
Sentimental Hogwash?: On Capra's ''It's a Wonderful Life'', ''Humanitas'' (2005) 18.1–2: 115–140. Web. January 9, 2012.
* Kamiya, Gary.
All hail Pottersville! ''
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...
'' December 22, 2001. Web. January 9, 2012.
*
External links
*
*
*
*
*
The Making of ''It's A Wonderful Life'' Frank Capra Onlineat Eeweems.com
at AmericanMusicPreservation.com
''It's a Wonderful Life''on ''
Lux Radio Theater
''Lux Radio Theatre'', sometimes spelled ''Lux Radio Theater'', a old-time radio, classic radio anthology series, was broadcast on the Blue Network, NBC Blue Network (1934–35) (owned by the National Broadcasting Company, later predecessor of A ...
'': March 10, 1947
''It's a Wonderful Life''on ''
Screen Directors Playhouse
''Screen Directors Playhouse'' (sometimes written as ''Screen Directors' Playhouse'') is an American radio and television anthology series which brought leading Hollywood actors to the NBC microphones beginning in 1949. The radio program broadca ...
'': May 8, 1949
{{Authority control
1940s American films
1940s Christmas drama films
1940s English-language films
1940s fantasy drama films
1940s romantic fantasy films
1946 films
1946 romantic drama films
1940s supernatural films
American alternate history films
American black-and-white films
American Christmas drama films
American fantasy drama films
American romantic drama films
American romantic fantasy films
Existentialist films
Films about angels
Films about banking
Films about depression
Films about suicide
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Films about wish fulfillment
Films adapted into operas
Films based on American short stories
Films directed by Frank Capra
Films scored by Dimitri Tiomkin
Films set in 1919
Films set in 1928
Films set in 1932
Films set in 1945
Films set in New York (state)
Films set in libraries
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Films whose director won the Best Director Golden Globe
Liberty Films films
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English-language romantic drama films
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English-language fantasy drama films
English-language Christmas drama films