It's A Wonderful Life

Act 1 - Part 1

JOHN MILTON KENNEDY: Lux presents Hollywood! Ladies and gentlemen, your producer, Mr. William Keighley!

[SOUND: APPLAUSE]

WILLIAM KEIGHLEY: Greetings from Hollywood, ladies and gentlemen. Tonight, we bring you one of the season's most successful movies, a Liberty Films production, "It's a Wonderful Life"! And we present it now with its original fine stars , James Stewart and Donna Reed. Also in our cast is that fine comedian, Victor Moore.

"It's a Wonderful Life" is the drama of a typical American. It might be you, it might be me. He dreams of glory. He lives in hope. He loves and doubts. And only Providence puts a final value on his service to his family, friends, and community. Our story starts before the Second World War, when life was simple and normal.

This is the story of George Bailey, citizen of Bedford Falls, New York. George Bailey -- who, more than anything under the sun, wanted to see the world. the wonderful, exciting world that lay somewhere beyond the limits of his home town. But this story does not begin in Bedford Falls. In fact, it doesn't begin anywhere in the world. It begins ... in Heaven, where the Superintendent of Angels has just sent for an apprentice angel named Clarence.

CLARENCE: Oh, I - I'm really going down to Earth, sir? Oh, how splendid.

JOSEPH: Yes. There's a very discouraged man down there, Clarence. George Bailey. At exactly ten forty-five PM, Earth time, he'll be thinking seriously of ending his life.

CLARENCE: Oh, dear, dear. His life.

JOSEPH: Now, I want you to stop him if you can. Now, sit down, sit down. I'll tell you about George Bailey's life.

CLARENCE: Sir, if, er ... if I should accomplish my mission... may I perhaps get my wings? I've been waiting over two hundred years now and, well, people are beginning to talk.

JOSEPH: Clarence, what's that book?

CLARENCE: "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer," sir. I was reading it when you sent for me.

JOSEPH: Oh, fine book, excellent. Well, you do a good job on George Bailey and we'll get you your wings.

CLARENCE: Oh, thank you, sir.

JOSEPH: Now, listen. When George Bailey was a boy, two important things happened that you should keep in mind. One was when his young brother, whose name is Harry, fell through the ice and almost drowned. George saved him.

CLARENCE: (writes this down) "... brother fell through the ice ... George saved him ..."

JOSEPH: Ever since, George has had a bad ear. All that icy water -- you understand.

CLARENCE: "... bad ear ..." Yes, sir.

JOSEPH: The other event came a few months later. George used to work after school in Mr. Gower's drug store.

JOSEPH: One day, Mr. Gower's only son died of influenza. It was a terrible blow and poor Mr. Gower tried to lose his grief in whiskey... (fades)

GOWER: (drunk) Where you been George? Mrs. Blaine's called twice! What happened to her prescription ? You lost it, didn't you?

YOUNG GEORGE: No, Mr. Gower, here it is.

GOWER: Why you good-for-nothing! Don't you know that the Blaine girl is very sick?

[SOUND: SLAPS GEORGE]

YOUNG GEORGE: (in pain) Mr. Gower, my ear! You're hurting my sore ear!

GOWER: I'll teach you to do your job, you lazy kid!

YOUNG GEORGE: Mr. Gower, you don't know what you're doing! You put something wrong in that prescription!

GOWER: Shut up!

YOUNG GEORGE: I know you feel bad but, look, Mr. Gower! Look! This bottle you used, this bottle to make the medicine! It's poison!

GOWER: Poison?

YOUNG GEORGE: Don't hurt my sore ear again, Mr. Gower!

GOWER: Poison? Oh, George, George...

YOUNG GEORGE: It's why I didn't deliver, Mr. Gower! All I wanted was to make sure!

GOWER: (starts crying) George, George...

JOSEPH: Well, Clarence, that was George Bailey as a boy. When he grew up, he wanted to go to college, but there just wasn't enough money. So he worked four years in the Building and Loan Association...

CLARENCE: Building and Loan Association?

JOSEPH: Oh, I forgot to tell you. George's father was in the savings and loan business. He and George's Uncle Billy. George worked for his father and saved enough money to pay for the college. That summer, though, he was going to Europe. He got a job on a boat and wanted to do a little traveling before college...

GEORGE: Boy, oh boy, oh boy! It's hard to realize it's my last night at the Bailey house.

POP: Well, we're sure going to miss you, George.

GEORGE: Aw, I'm going to miss you, too, Pop. Hey, what's the matter ? You look tired.

POP: Oh, I had another argument with old Henry Potter today.

GEORGE: Oh, I thought when you put him on the Board of Directors, he would stop fighting with people.

POP: So did I.

GEORGE: Ah, I just can't understand a man like Mr. Potter. He can't begin to spend all the money he has.

POP: I guess Potter owns about everything he wants in Bedford Falls except our building and loan. That's why he hates us.

HARRY: Hey, George! Can I borrow your tie?

GEORGE: Yeah, help yourself, Harry!

HARRY: Well, where is it? In your suitcase?

GEORGE: No, I'm not wearing a tie on a boat, you know.

HARRY: Say, where did you get that suitcase, anyway?

GEORGE: Oh, Mr. Gower. It was a going away present. And, one of these days, you're gonna see that suitcase all covered with travel labels. Italy and Baghdad and Samarkand--

HARRY: You're gonna have a pretty full summer, eh?

GEORGE: I'm gonna have a pretty full life!

HARRY: Hey, why don't you come to the dance tonight?

GEORGE: What? And be bored to death?

HARRY: Well, you couldn't want a better death! Lots of pretty girls. Hey, I've got to hurry!

POP: I wish we could send Harry to college with you, George.

GEORGE: Aw, we've got that all figured out now, Pop. He'll take over my job at the Building and Loan, work four years like I did, then he'll go.

POP: He's pretty young for that job.

GEORGE: Well, no younger than I was.

POP: Maybe you were born older, George.

GEORGE: Huh?

POP: George, when you get out of college, I don't suppose you'd come back to the Building and Loan?

GEORGE: No, now, Pop, I ...I ... I couldn't. I ... I couldn't face being cooped up for the rest of my life in a shabby little office. The ... Oh, I'm ... I'm sorry, Pop. I didn't mean that, I ... but I ... it's ... it's this business of nickels and dimes and spending all your life trying to figure out how to save 3 cents on a length of pipe. I'd go crazy. I want to do something big and something important.