The Story Behind 'It's a Wonderful Life'

How a rejected story got a second life

Merry Christmas!

It’s a great time of year to watch movies!

Last week I shared a story about the history of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. And the week before I shared how A Charlie Brown Christmas came to be.

This week I am trying to top (or at least match) the positive sentiment of those stories.

Naturally, my inspiration involves pop culture.

Specifically, Christmas movies.

And not just any Christmas movie – the quintessential Christmas movie (aside from Die Hard, obvs).

Frank Capra’s 1946 classic, It’s a Wonderful Life.

Here’s a fun fact about the film that some people know and others are shocked to learn – 

The reason It’s a Wonderful Life became so popular in the United States is because the copyright for the film lapsed in 1974.

That meant anyone could air it on TV – for free.

And I can tell you that when I was growing up, you could find the story of George Bailey and the residents of Bedford Falls on TV ALL THE TIME in December.

You might think (as I did) that It’s a Wonderful Life had always been a hit.

But, the movie actually lost money when it was released in 1946.

Despite being nominated for five Academy Awards, the film was considered a flop.

But the constant presence of Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed every December from 1974 onwards gave It’s a Wonderful Life a second life.

NB: In 1994, the television rights were purchased. And just like that, the days of It’s a Wonderful Life playing constantly through December were over. 

But who came up with the story for It’s a Wonderful Life?

I was curious…

Our tale begin in 1938, when a man named Philip Van Doren Stern woke up with an idea.

Philip Van Doren Stern

He had an idea for a story about a suicidal man who is stopped from jumping off a bridge by a guardian angel.

The next year, Stern began writing the story.

He spent years writing and rewriting, and in 1943, Stern’s agent tried to sell the story to everything from The Saturday Evening Post to farm journals.

But no one was interested.

So, Stern printed 200 printed copies of his 4000-word story, called The Greatest Gift, and sent it to friends as a Christmas card in December 1943.

Three months later, Stern’s phone rang.

His Christmas card story had somehow made it to Hollywood.

Stern sold the rights to his story for $10,000 to a studio that wanted to turn it into a movie.

Actor Cary Grant was at one point attached to star in the film – but the project stalled as various screenwriters tried to adapt it.

Cary Grant could have been George Bailey

Then the rights ended up with director Frank Capra, who said he was drawn to the story’s message that ‘no man is poor if he has friends.’

Capra brought in his friend, Jimmy Stewart, to star as the small-town banker, George Bailey.

The two men had worked together before to great success years earlier, but It’s a Wonderful Life was their first collaboration after serving in WWII, and was said to be their favorite film.

Capra and Stewart on the set

As for Stern, his daughter wrote in a 1996 edition of The Greatest Gift that:

“Starting with those 200 Christmas cards, my father’s story has reached millions of people.”

You might think that Stern’s most celebrated accomplishment would be creating the story that became It’s a Wonderful Life.

But in fact, Stern was more well-known for his books about Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War.

Stern went on to author more than 40 books, including historical titles about Lincoln, Robert E. Lee, and several other books about the Civil War.

When Stern died at age 83 in 1984, the headline of his obituary in the New York Times read:

“Philip Van Doren Stern dies; A specialist on Civil War era.”

Thanks for reading.

I hope this brightens your day, and reminds you that good ideas get rejected all of the time.

That doesn’t mean they don’t have value.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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Stay Curious!

-Beth

This is me (really writing and drinking coffee).