Summary: No Christmas story starts out as a classic. And the road to classic status is often a long one filled with unexpected turns. It's a Wonderful Life wasn't a big success when it debuted in 1947. It wasn't until a quirk of American copyright law gave it a second life on television in the 1970s that it earned its place as a cornerstone of Christmas cinema. Movie critic and author Alonso Duralde joins in this episode.
