# Where is "It's a Wonderful Life"?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 23, 2002, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500 "2002-12-23T06:15:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![djf750](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@djf750](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/djf750)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/1 "2002-12-23T06:15:38Z")
One of my favorite movies. Remember when it was on non stop on many different stations during the holidays? What has NBC done with it? I didn’t even see it advertised for it’s one showing this year. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/2 "2002-12-23T06:17:52Z")
I saw it on network television (i guess nbc) about a week ago. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/3 "2002-12-23T06:25:47Z")
Several years ago, Republic Pictures reasserted its copyright to the film (very long story that has been covered here before). Republic then sold the broadcast rights to NBC who decided to limit its showings to either one or two per year in order to give it more of a “Big Event” feel. It’s usually on the week after Thanksgiving. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/4 "2002-12-23T06:34:31Z")
Wasn’t there some kind of copyright loophole that allowed tv stations to air it for free that’s now been fixed up? That’s why it used to be on all the time leading up to Christmas, but now it’s not. Please, correct me if I’m wrong. Just vaguely remember reading something like this some time back. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/5 "2002-12-23T07:00:41Z")
Yes, the copyright on the MOTION PICTURE had expired and it was generally believed to be in the public domain. (This wouldn’t happen anymore as copyright terms are much longer and don’t require renewals.) But Republic Pictures claimed that it still had copyright protection on enough elements of the picture (i.e. the music, the artwork in the credits, the underlying story) that the company told everyone else who wanted to broadcast it that it was willing to go to court to sue to get the rights back. And everybody else backed off. That is an exteremely abbreviated version of the story. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/6 "2002-12-23T07:11:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by BobT \* > Yes, the copyright on the MOTION PICTURE had expired and it was generally believed to be in the public domain. (This wouldn’t happen anymore as copyright terms are much longer and don’t require renewals.) That’s OK, you can always download it off made ya look I think I’ll duck and run, now . . . ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 7:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/7 "2002-12-23T07:42:51Z")
By the way, it is available on DVD. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/8 "2002-12-23T11:06:21Z")
/hijack I’ve got a copy on DVD, and it’s very obviously been transferred from a videotape to the DVD, right down to the bit in the middle where the picture rolls! Appears to be some kind of cheap, semi-professional DVD. But at least I’ve got it. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/9 "2002-12-23T12:40:42Z")
[NPR](http://npr.org/) just did a story on it this morning. Apparently, it’s not so much the copyright on the film, but on some of the things **in** the film that have managed to limit the amount of showings it currently has. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/10 "2002-12-23T14:14:26Z")
You can catch _It’s A Wonderful Life_, one of the most famous films that only became famous by losing its copyright, tomorrow night, Christmas Eve, at 8:00 Eastern on NBC. Check local listings for time and channel. ---
**Author:** ![NoGoodNamesLeft](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8797f3/32.png) [@NoGoodNamesLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NoGoodNamesLeft)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/11 "2002-12-23T14:21:21Z")
There is one really good remastered version on DVD out there that was printed from the original negative. I bought it, but don’t watch it until the 24th, last thing before bed. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/12 "2002-12-23T14:26:04Z")
I’m assuming Republic Pictures acted with a complete lack of any sense of irony, in treating this particular picture as nothing but a money-generating commodity. WWGBD? ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/13 "2002-12-23T16:04:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Baldwin \* > \*\*WWGBD? \*\* Probably try to commit suicide, as usual. Unless it was _after_ he met Clarence, then it’s a different story. ---
**Author:** ![TwistofFate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@TwistofFate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwistofFate)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/14 "2002-12-23T16:19:38Z")
Its in the Classics section of the Video store. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/15 "2002-12-23T17:21:48Z")
Maybe the Gods have been kind and all copies have been destroyed to protect the diabetic members of the population. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/16 "2002-12-23T17:29:39Z")
Good god, the syrupy voice of the little girl explaining about the bell sound makes me want to ram a mule shears through my eyeball into my brain. But hey, enjoy the movie. ---
**Author:** ![BobT](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e8cbc/32.png) [@BobT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobT)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/17 "2002-12-23T18:37:19Z")
But Donna Reed is so gorgeous in the film! Except when she’s a librarian. That of course makes her ugly. I work as a librarian and a girlfriend of mine, who loved the movie also, once joked “What would happen to you if I never existed? Would you be better looking and more successful?” ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2002, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-is-its-a-wonderful-life/144500/18 "2002-12-23T18:50:22Z")
I’d rather see Dana Carvey’s impression of Jimmy Stewart in the “lost ending” of _It’s a Wonderful Life_, where he raises a mob to storm Potter’s bank building, and then personally kicks Potter to death. Why did Dana Carvey always portray Jimmy Stewart as such a bastard? Did the old feller have a dark side I’ve never read about?q