George Kaufman and Moss Hart play opened out by Robert Riskin (and Capra of course). Eccentric Lionel Barrymore is 'Grandpa' to his own household but also to the entire block. His grand-daughter Jean Arthur falls for James Stewart, who is the son of a ruthless businessman who needs to buy Barrymore's house to develop the block. This is all invention to the play, which takes place entirely in the house.
And what a house. It is home to Spring Byington, Samuel S Hinds, Ann Miller (terrible dancer), new arrival Donald Meek, Halliwell Hobbes, Eddie ('Rochester') Anderson and Lillian Yarbo, and Dub Taylor. Plus dance instructor Mischa Auer (loved the way he tries to cram in as many sandwiches as possible). Others are: H.B. Warner, Edward Arnold (good), Mary Forbes, twitchy Clarence Wilson and Harry Davenport as (what else) the judge. And, uncredited, Robert Greig, Ward Bond, Ian Wolfe.
The 'cute' eccentric behaviour doesn't play so well now, but the Barrymore-Arnold thing, with the harmonica as the symbol of that struggle, comes off. It won Best Picture (up against Pygmalion, The Adventures of Robin Hood, La Grande Illusion and The Citadel, amongst others) and Director (Capra keeping things often in very long uninterrupted takes). Joseph Walker's cinematography was nominated but it was up against ten other pictures, which seems a little unfair, to say the least (Joseph Ruttenberg won for The Great Waltz).
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| Arthritis and hip injury |
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