The Christmas Classic That Almost Wasn't (It's A Wonderful Life)

Inside Catholic ^ | December 25, 2008

[NYer]

The other night, along with many other Americans, I watched the Frank Capra classic It's a Wonderful Life. Starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed, the movie has become a Christmas staple -- but it was not always that way, and how it attained its holiday status has as much to do with the intricacies of intellectual property law as it does with the storyline and the production values.

 

When it was released in 1946, It's a Wonderful Life was only a moderate success. The story was unusual for Christmas -- built around an attempted suicide by banker George Bailey (Stewart) and the rescue by his guardian angel, Clarence (played by Harry Travers). The movie was nominated for five Oscars, but it didn't win any, nor did it meet its financial break-even point. By the 1970s, the film was so largely forgotten that its owner (apparently inadvertently) let the copyright protection lapse.

 

All forms of intellectual property -- including films, writings, photographs, and recordings -- are protected by law for a certain period of time after they are created. If a radio station wants to play a recording, or a network wants to broadcast a film, the holder of the copyright is entitled to receive a royalty. After an extended period of time -- which varies depending upon the medium, but which certainly spans several decades -- intellectual property can lose its protection. When a song or movie remains popular and profitable, the copyright holder can extend the copyright, but many movies and songs are permitted to fall into the public domain.

 

That's what happened to It's a Wonderful Life. The movie had not yet become a Christmas classic when, in 1974, its copyright protection was allowed to expire. That meant that television stations could air it over and over without paying full royalties. (There were still some smaller, derivative royalties due on the storyline, but it is not clear that they were always paid.) For a period of time from the mid-1970s into the 1990s, It's a Wonderful Life seemed to be on several stations, several times each week during the Christmas season. In fact, one episode of the old television series Cheers even dealt with the movie's frequent airings.

 

These repeated showings, made possible by the termination of copyright protection, turned It's a Wonderful Life into the Christmas tradition that it is today. That, in turn, sent people searching for ways to capitalize on the film.

 

Videotapes of It's a Wonderful Life were produced by several different manufacturers. Since they did not have to pay full royalties or even get permission to use the images, any VHS producer could bring the popular movie to market, and numerous ones did.

 

The lack of copyright protection also made It's A Wonderful Life one of the most notorious subjects of colorization. It was originally produced in black and white, but by the 1980s, computer graphics could add color. The new colorized film could then be copyrighted. It's a Wonderful Life was released in three different colorized versions. Of course, colorization was an abomination to true movie buffs. I still remember reading the short blurbs in the Chicago Tribune TV section, back when Gene Siskel was the paper's main critic: Blurbs for the black-and-white version called it a heart-warming Christmas classic; those for the colorized version talked about despondency and attempted suicide.

 

 

You may have noticed that, in recent years, It's a Wonderful Life comes on only once or twice per Christmas season, and only on a major network (NBC). The original copyright holders managed to reassert their rights, something that is virtually unheard of. But the rights associated with the background music, as well as the copyright protection stemming from the short story on which the movie was based, had not yet expired. That gave Republic Pictures the hook in needed to reassert its control of the film. (Apparently, there was some attempt by other groups to avoid paying royalties by running the film without music, but it was disallowed by the courts.)

 

As a result, one of the great Christmas films of all time is once again protected by the law -- ironic, considering that it became a classic in significant part because it was legally unprotected. But God works in mysterious ways -- and sometimes the law does, too.

 

From Mississippi, best wishes for a blessed and merry Christmas.

[NYer]

Ronald J. Rychlak is the associate dean and MDLA Professor of Law at the University of Mississippi School of Law. He is the author of Hitler, the War, and the Pope (2000) and Righteous Gentiles (2005).

[NYer]

Fascinating to learn the difference in reactions to colorized vs black and white.

[cvq3842]

Interesting story!

I must admit, I do like the colorized version of Laurel and Hardy’s “March of the Wooden Soldiers” and even the 1951 version of “A Christmas Carol,” but “It’s a Wonderful Life” always looked awful to me in color - cartoonish.

To each his own, I guess.

[the invisib1e hand]

someone ought to make a movie about what would have happened if they hadn’t made it.

[GeorgiaDawg32]

The 1951 film “A Christmas Carol” with Alistair Sim as Scrooge is my favorite Christmas movie. I simply can’t imagine watching it in color..

[oldsalt]

I do like the colorized version of Laurel and Hardy’s “March of the Wooden Soldiers”

IIRC the movie was "Babes in Toyland" and was an early Technicolor release.

[Cowboy Bob]

I remember back in the late '70s, someone did a remake of Its a Wonderful Life. In the roll of George Bailey, they used Marlo Thomas.

The movie was so horrible, that I don't believe it was ever shown again. (or at least I've never seen mention of it again in the TV guides)

[cvq3842]

Could be! The color really looks good. Thanks.

[End Times Sentinel]

It's a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol, the two movies that Christmas is incomplete without. Both Classics.

Since I see you're both fans of Christmas Carol, I'd like to suggest a lesser known 1997 version with Patrick Stewart and Joel Grey amongst others.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0216621/
As you said, cvq, to each his own, but in my eyes, this movie is perfection from start to finish. The acting, the costumes, the cinematography, the music, absolutely breath-taking. And the role of “Fred” (Scrooge's nephew) played by Dominic West a small but memorable part is incredible. At the risk of sounding sappy, I actually looked up this guy's other roles to see what else he was in.
I won't suggest you buying a copy from Amazon, like I did, but if you happen to see it while flipping around next year, consider giving it a watch.

[End Times Sentinel]

I remember back in the late '70s, someone did a remake of Its a Wonderful Life. In the roll of George Bailey, they used Marlo Thomas

I remember seeing a (fake) "Director's Cut" alternate ending.

In the final, heartwarming scene, Uncle Billy suddenly remembered what he did with the $5,000 and led a seething mob to Old Man Potters place where they ripped him limb from limb.

IMHO Capra's ending was better.

[packrat35]

That was SNLive

[cvq3842]

Great list! I do like the Patrick Stewart production also. And the Alistair Sim (sp?) Scrooge and It's a Wonderful Life are also favorites. I have the DVDs sitting here, and hope to get a chance to watch this weekend.

I would suggest Patrick Stewart's reading of the Dickens story as well. He used to perform it on Broadway a few years back - a one-man show - and he committed his reading to audiobook some time ago.

Merry Christmas!

[DemforBush]

I also greatly enjoyed the Patrick Stewart-led version of A Christmas Carol. Great acting, great production values, etc.

[apocalypto]

Absolutely those two are a must.

I am just wondering re a technical question. I saw on Shurik's journal (shuriks.com) a list of ten best films that I thought summed it up. There was also a copyright sign. I presume that meant I cannot list those films on this thread. Sorry, I have forgotten how to make a link. There were also others, such as "It's a Wonderful Life" and "Charlie Brown's Christmas" that I think are classics.

[apocalypto]

I agree. And it is much better than later remakes.

btw, Fox has had Christmas themes, Nancy Grace used today's show to honor our military men. But, as far as I can tell, not a word from MSNBC that it is Christmas. Yesterday, they had prison shows, today they had a child molestation case, right now they show a rehash of Caylee Anthony's murder.

[Basement Dweller]

You can catch It’s a Wonderful Life, here.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4867975537967299162

I’m not sure how long it will be there.

[VOA]

My mother told me once that she and her husband-to-be (and my father-to-be)
went to see “It’s A Wonderful Life” in the original release.

And that they liked it, but it had been not a roaring success.

Reading about Stewart returning (somewhat traumatized) from his
tour of duty in B-17s over Europe...I guess he was somewhat despirited
by the less-than-stellar success of the film.

But all I can say is thanks to Mr. Stewart, Mr. Capra and everyone
that made the film.
I can be pretty cynical, but I admit I got a bit misty when I saw the
film the first time during it’s “unprotected” period on TV.
Stewart’s most desparate moments during the film have the authenticity
of a man that had seen such ugly things in war that death/suicide
sounds like a perfectly rational and soothing option.

It’s a heck of a film, and amazing honest and blunt about
the struggle for an “American dream” when it runs up against the
soul-free and ethics-free bad-boys of commerce, as embodied by “Mr. Potter”.

[Mr. Bird]

The movie was nominated for five Oscars, but it didn't win any, nor did it meet its financial break-even point.

I've heard the general story several times, and don't doubt it. But, under the studio system, did a film that was nominated five times truly lose money? That's a bigger surprise, if true.

The film's history would not be sullied if it had been a hit at the time. Can anyone confirm its "flop" status?

[PapaBear3625]

IIRC the movie was "Babes in Toyland" and was an early Technicolor release.

"Babes in Toyland" was a different movie (done in 1961 featuring Annette Funicello) with a similar theme to the 1934 Laurel and Hardy movie.

[an amused spectator]

As a result, one of the great Christmas films of all time is once again protected by the law -- ironic, considering that it became a classic in significant part because it was legally unprotected. But God works in mysterious ways -- and sometimes the law does, too.

I'll never understand lawyer "logic" - other than the only way to sort it out is with a street sweeper and a drum magazine.

I can't figure out if he thinks it's a good thing that they managed to twist the law into a pretzel to get what they wanted. If the dog-in-the-manger types had had their way, the movie's unremembered and unmourned silver nitrate prints would be rotting in a backlot warehouse somewhere, and all our lives would be a little bit poorer.

I guess that Scrooge would be a lawyer in a new Dickens' America...