VIDEO: Vanessa Williams Announces IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE for AFI Movie Club

Vanessa Williams announces today's AFI Movie Club selection: IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. The film ranks #20 on AFI's Top 100 greatest American films of all time, #1 on 100 Years...100 Cheers and #9 on 100 Years...100 Passions. George Bailey is listed at #9 on AFI's 100 Heroes list, and James Stewart is ranked #3 on AFI's list of the greatest stars in cinematic history.

DID YOU KNOW? Writer Philip Van Doren Stern sent out his short story "The Greatest Gift" as a 21-page Christmas card, which provided the original concept for IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. David Hempstead, a producer at RKO Pictures, ended up getting a hold of it and purchased the movie rights for $10,000. In this exclusive AFI Archive video, director Frank Capra talks about developing the film.

AFI Movie Club is a newly launched program to raise the nation's spirits by bringing artists and audiences together - even while we are apart. AFI shines a spotlight on an iconic movie, with special guests announcing select AFI Movies of the Day in short videos posted on AFI.com and social media platforms. Audiences can "gather" at AFI.com/MovieClub to find out how to watch the featured movie with the use of their preexisting streaming service credentials. The film selections are supported by fun facts, family discussion points and exclusive material from the AFI Archive to enrich the viewing experience. Audiences can continue the conversation online using the hashtag #AFIMovieClub. Learn more at AFI.com and follow us on social media at Facebook.com/AmericanFilmInstitute, YouTube.com/AFI, Twitter.com/AmericanFilm and Instagram.com/AmericanFilmInstitute.

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