Before James Stewart uttered a word as George Bailey in the holiday classic "It's a Wonderful Life," the project began its life in the hands of another Golden Age Hollywood star, Cary Grant. Originally starting off as an unpublished novel by Philip Van Doren Stern, the story was eventually printed onto several Christmas cards that Stern sent out to family and friends. Among those who eventually received one of the cards was Grant, who himself received the card from producer David Hempstead. The "North by Northwest" and "His Girl Friday" star enjoyed the story so much that he brought it over to RKO Radio Pictures, though the movie ended up being produced by Liberty Films, which brought Stewart in for the main role (via Digital Spy). Both Grant and Stewart previously starred together in the 1940s movie "The Philadelphia Story."
The film's initial box office failure has done little to hamper its reputation as a celebrated Christmas classic, with its director Frank Capra naming it the favorite of his illustrious filmography. In an interview within a DVD release of the film (via Blockbuster) he said, "That's a great film. I love that film. It's my favorite film and in a sense it epitomizes everything I've been trying to do and trying to say in the other films. Only it does it very dramatically with a very unique story."
