The corny pun in our headline was jokingly coined for that special brand of magical sentiment in films by writer-director Frank Capra.
Those include Meet John Doe, You Can’t Take It with You, It Happened One Night and of course, It’s a Wonderful Life.
I’ll be speaking on the latter at Brown Library — 5:30 p.m. this Thursday; so on my regular Webb culture beat, that perennial Christmas favorite is our topic this month.
Last week, we started with performers; but now, looking over my completed research, I see more cast-notes that deserve attention. And later, we’ll get to some “urban legends” on the film.
In Wonderful Life (hereafter IAWL), the part of Uncle Billy went to Thomas Mitchell — though Capra had considered both Walter Brennan and W.C. Fields.
Fans of Hollywood’s Golden Age know Mitchell from more than 100 roles in some of the era’s treasures: High Noon, The Hurricane, The Fighting Sullivans and the sleeper weeper Make Way for Tomorrow.
As Michael Willian points out in his terrific book on IAWL: In 1939 alone, Mitchell starred in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (also for Capra), The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Only Angels Have Wings, Gone with the Wind and Stagecoach — winning an Oscar for the latter.
As for Lionel Barrymore (Mr. Potter): He’s Drew’s great-uncle (brother to her grandfather — the distinguished actor John Barrymore). By the time he reached IAWL, Lionel had become virtually disabled after breaking the same hip twice (once while making a film); so a wheelchair-bound character was right up his alley.
The town’s cop and cabbie — Bert and Ernie (see below for the legend) — are played, respectively, by Ward Bond and Frank Faylen. According to Willian, the latter had a taxi-driving role in eight different films. And Bond’s resume leaves Mitchell in the dust, totaling more that 250 titles — such as Bringing Up Baby, Gone with the Wind, The Maltese Falcon and 24 films with John Wayne (most helmed by John Ford).
Starring as George’s 292-year-old angel was Henry Travers, another veteran character actor. He’d been in such films as Dark Victory, The Invisible Man, Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt and The Bells of St. Mary’s; that latter, as it happens, is showing at Bedford Falls’ Bijou theater in IAWL. Willian points out that Travers’ name would’ve been on the poster that’s vaguely visible in some shots.
Another interesting Golden Age tidbit: 1938 to 1950 saw a run of 28 movies adapted from the “Blondie” comic strip. The Bumsteads’ firstborn, so-called “Baby Dumpling,” had been played by Larry Simms — who took a break from the series to play George Bailey’s son Pete in IAWL. (Fittingly, that Bailey boy was named after the late Bailey patriarch, to whom George says plainly in one early scene, “I think you’re a great guy.”)
And while we’re on child actors: I made two mistakes in last week’s column. One involved Carl Switzer, who appears briefly in IAWL’s high-school dance scene; Switzer, much older in 1946, remains readily recognizable from his role as Alfalfa in the “Our Gang” or “Little Rascals” movies — which I misnamed “Young Rascals.” (Um, yeah — that was a pop band with several sixties hits, including their signature cover, “Good Lovin’.”)
The other mistake was suggesting that IAWL’s cast had two Jimmy’s (Stewart, of course — and Jimmy the Raven, as the Bailey business mascot). In fact, George’s brood also includes young Tommy, played by Jimmy Hawkins — who has since penned no less than five books based around IAWL.
Incidentally, both Hawkins and co-star Karolyn Grimes (as little Zuzu, she of the wilting petals) are still alive — 84 and 85 respectively. Grimes went on to star in one of the following year’s Christmas films, The Bishop’s Wife. And while 1947 also gave us a third holiday classic (Miracle on 34th Street), Bishop has several IAWL connections — including Bobby Anderson, who plays George Bailey as a youth working for Mr. Gower. Likewise, Bishop features not only a Christmas theme, but also a wingless angel interceding in the life of a decent man who’s lost his way.
Well, we’re almost out of space — so the only urban legend I can cover this week involves Bert and Ernie, whose names apparently did not inspire the famous Sesame Street duo. This has been confirmed by SS writer Jerry Juhl; according to Wikipedia, the similarity was merely coincidence — though in a 1996 TV special (Elmo Saves Christmas), the famed puppet-pair walks past a TV that’s showing IAWL and are startled to hear George calling their names.
We’ve got lots more trivia to unwrap next week; meanwhile, join me at JVB on 12/11. It’s free — but please register at jvbrown.edu.
