It's a Wonderful Life Page #26

BERT:

I hate to do this, fella.

Bert raises his gun to hit George on the head. As he does so,

Clarence darts in and fixes his teeth in Bert's wrist, forcing

him to let George go.

CLARENCE:

Run . . . George! Run, George!

George dashes out of the house and down the street, as Bert

grapples with Clarence, and they fall to the ground, wrestling.

We see Bert kneeling, trying

to put handcuffs on Clarence.

CLARENCE (cont'd)

Help! Joseph, help!

BERT:

Oh, shut up!

CLARENCE:

Help, oh Joseph, help! Joseph!

Suddenly Clarence disappears from under Bert's hands. Bert gets

up, amazed by his vanishing.

BERT:

Where'd he go? Where'd he go? I had him right here.

Ernie's hair is now standing on end with fright.

ERNIE (stammering)

I need a drink

He runs out of the scene.

BERT:

Well, which way'd they go? Help me find 'em.

EXTERIOR BAILEY HOME �� NIGHT

MEDIUM SHOT �� George runs up the path to the front door of the

house and raps on the door. He rings the bell and taps on the

glass, when his

attention is caught by a sign on the wall reading

"Ma Bailey's Boarding House."

MEDIUM CLOSEUP �� George at the door. The door opens and a woman

appears. It is Mrs. Bailey, but she has changed amazingly. Her

face is harsh

and tired. In her eyes, once kindly and understanding, there is

now cold suspicion. She gives no sign that she knows him.

MA BAILEY:

Well?

GEORGE:

Mother . . .

MA BAILEY:

Mother? What do you want?

It is a cruel blow to George.

GEORGE:

Mother, this is George. I thought sure you'd remember me.

MA BAILEY (coldly)

George who? If you're looking for a room there's no vacancy.

She starts to close the door, but George stops her.

GEORGE:

Oh, Mother, Mother, please help me. Something terrible's happened

to me. I don't know what it is. Something's happened to

everybody. Please let me

come in. Keep me here until I get over it.

MA BAILEY:

Get over what? I don't take in strangers unless they're sent here

by somebody I know.

GEORGE (desperate)

Well, I know everybody you know. Your brother-in-law, Uncle

Billy.

MA BAILEY (suspiciously)

You know him?

GEORGE:

Well, sure I do.

MA BAILEY:

When'd you see him last?

GEORGE:

Today, over at the house.

MA BAILEY:

That's a lie. He's been in the insane asylum ever since he lost

his business. And if you ask me, that's where you belong.

She slams the door shut in George's face.

EXTERIOR HOUSE �� NIGHT

MEDIUM CLOSE SHOT �� George stands a moment, stunned. Then he

turns and runs out to the sidewalk, until his face fills the

screen. His features are

distorted by the emotional chaos within him. We see Clarence

leaning on the mail box at the curb, holding his volume of "Tom

Sawyer" in his hand.

CLARENCE:

Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives,

and when he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?

GEORGE (quietly, trying to use logic)

I've heard of things like this. You've got me in some kind of a

spell, or something. Well, I'm going to get out of it. I'll get

out of it. I know how, too. I . . . the last man I talked to

before all this stuff started happening to me was Martini.

CLARENCE:

You know where he lives?

GEORGE:

Sure I know where he lives. He lives in Bailey Park.

They walk out of scene.

WIPE TO:

EXTERIOR CEMETERY �� NIGHT

MEDIUM SHOT �� George and Clarence approach the tree from which

the "Bailey Park" sign once hung. Now it is just outside a

cemetery, with graves

where the houses used to be.

CLARENCE:

Are you sure this is Bailey Park?

GEORGE:

Oh, I'm not sure of anything anymore. All I know is this should

be Bailey Park. But where are the houses?

The two walk into the cemetery.

CLARENCE (as they go)

You weren't here to build them.

CLOSE MOVING SHOT �� George wandering like a lost soul among the

tombstones, Clarence trotting at his heels. Again George stops to

stare with

frightened eyes at:

CLOSE SHOT �� a tombstone. Upon it is engraved a name, Harry

Bailey. Feverishly George scrapes away the snow covering the rest

of the inscription,

and we read:

IN MEMORY OF OUR BELOVED SON �� HARRY BAILEY �� 1911-1919.

CLOSE SHOT �� George and Clarence.

CLARENCE:

Your brother, Harry Bailey, broke through the ice and was drowned

at the age of nine.

George jumps up.

GEORGE:

That's a lie! Harry Bailey went to war! He got the Congressional

Medal of Honor! He saved the lives of every man on that

transport.

CLARENCE (sadly)

Every man on that transport died. Harry wasn't there to save them

because you weren't there to save Harry. You see, George, you

really had

a wonderful life. Don't you see what a mistake it would be to

throw it away?

CLOSEUP �� George and Clarence.

GEORGE:

Clarence . . .

CLARENCE:

Yes, George?

GEORGE:

Where's Mary?

CLARENCE:

Oh, well, I can't . . .

GEORGE:

I don't know how you know these things, but tell me �� where is

she?

George grabs Clarence by the coat collar and shakes him.

CLARENCE:

I . . .

GEORGE:

If you know where she is, tell me where my wife is.

CLARENCE:

I'm not supposed to tell.

GEORGE (becoming violent)

Please, Clarence, tell me where she is.

CLARENCE:

You're not going to like it, George.

GEORGE (shouting)

Where is she?

CLARENCE:

She's an old maid. She never married.

GEORGE (choking him)

Where's Mary? Where is she?

CLARENCE:

She's . . .

GEORGE:

Where is she?

CLARENCE (in self-defense)

She's just about to close up the library!

George lets Clarence go, and runs off. Clarence falls to the

ground, where he rubs his neck.

CLARENCE (to himself)

There must be some easier way for me to get my wings.

WIPE TO:

EXTERIOR LIBRARY �� NIGHT

CLOSE SHOT �� Mary comes out the door, then turns and locks it.

We see George watching her from the sidewalk. Mary is very

different �� no

buoyancy in her walk, none of Mary's abandon and love of life.

Glasses, no make-up, lips compressed, elbows close to body. She

looks flat and dried up,

and extremely self-satisfied and efficient.

CLOSEUP �� George, as he watches her.

CLOSE SHOT �� George and Mary, on the sidewalk.

GEORGE:

Mary!

She looks up, surprised, but, not recognizing him, continues on.

GEORGE (cont'd)

Mary!

Mary starts to run away from him, and he follows, desperately.

GEORGE (cont'd)

Mary! Mary!

He catches up to her, grabs her by the arms, and keeps a tight

grip on her. She struggles to free herself.

GEORGE (cont'd)

Mary, it's George! Don't you know me? What's happened to us?

MARY (struggling)

I don't know you! Let me go!

GEORGE:

Mary, please! Oh, don't do this to me. Please, Mary, help me.

Where's our kids? I need you, Mary! Help me, Mary!

Mary breaks away from him, and dashes into the first door she

comes to, the Blue Moon Bar.

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