I was watching It's a Wonderful Life and only caught the ending so I was confuse what was going on.
Ok, here it is...
1. George saves his brothers life when he falls through the ice on a pond. He, however, ends up deaf in one ear because of it.
2. George grows up and saves his money to travel the world, that is his dream.
3. His father is taken ill and he must take over the Savings and Loan to stop the evil Mr. Potter from taking it over and gouging the customers.
4. George marries the girl of his dreams.
5. As he is getting ready to go with her on his world tour, the depression happens and there is a run on the banks.
6. George saves the savings and loan by using his own money to stave off that panic and keep the bank in operation basically making it through.
7. World War II happens and George, because of his ear, is not drafted, instead he stays home and work for the war effort while operating the S&L. He manages to help people get their first houses and form a community in Bedford Falls.
8. All is going well for them and, by now, has a boatload of children, one of which is oddly named Zuzu, that is an indication that something bad is about to happen, and it does.
9. Georges Uncle Billy works at the S&L and is given the job of depositing the days receipts in Mr. Potters bank. (since they are a savings and loan I never understood why he had to put the money someplace else, but it did help the story) anyway, his Uncle Billy goes to the bank and spends so much time bragging about his nephew, the war hero, that he manages to lose the deposit.
10. Potter finds it and decides that he can take over the S&L by offering George a job with him since he had reported to the Banking committee that the S&L was short cash. (due of course to the lost money)
11. As everything is falling down around him George is depressed and drinking. Then goes home and proceeds to be mean to everyone including his wife and kids.
12. When his wife stops him he runs out the door and into the snow storm.
13. George runs his car into a tree that is near the bridge over the local river. He stands at the railing contemplating jumping over the rail and killing himself.
14. Through out this entire story there is an angel that hasn't yet gotten his wings. He is given the history and sent down to earth to see if he can save George from himself and thus earn his wings.
15. Seeing that George is about to end it all, Clarence (that's the angel) jumps into the river so that George will save him.
16 He, of course does save him, and in the process of drying off tells Clarence the he wished he had never been born.
17. That gave Clarence an idea, so he does whatever brand of voodoo that angels do and wipes all of Georges life away.
18. George then goes out and in the process discovers all the things that he did good in his life. He sees that many people died because his brother wasn't there to save them. (remember he was the one that fell through the ice in the beginning) Without George there he drowned. His wife was a spinster, no kids existed. His mother didn't know him. His friends didn't know him. The S&L was taken over by Potter. None of the people that he helped were able to own their own homes because George wasn't there to help them. In other words all the good he did, did not happen because George didn't exist.
19. He goes out and finds Clarence and begs him to bring him his life back because he has learned his lesson.
20. George then goes running back home and find out that his wife having found out what happened at the S&L (remember the S&L?) has rallied all the people that George had helped in his lifetime and they collected money and gave it to George so that his books would balance and all would be saved.
21. As he holds Zuzu up to the tree a decorative bell rings and she says. "Teacher says that whenever a bell rings an angel gets his wings." George agrees and winks knowing that Clarence now has his wings. And says... Way to go, Clarence! The end... along with a rousing rendition of
Auld Lang Syne! Fade out... roll credits.
I may have left out a number of details there, but, that is it in a nutshell. I might even have confused the sequence (it's been a while since I watched the movie), but the just of it is there. All that is good prevailed and everyone lived happily ever after.
, and would drag me up to bed and tell me not to wake them up again for a few more hours!
Even growing up my horse had to be stabled on my Dads friends farm. It would have been nice if he was close. To rent stable/feed around here is way too expensive.
