George Bailey Found Dead, Suicide Suspected

movementarian ^

[Publius]

Actually, the marquee said "Watch the Skies", which was the original working title for "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" back when John Sayles was working on the script. The Sayles version had the ET's coming to earth to catch and eat people, much like that old "Twilight Zone" episode. That script ended up in the shredder and was replaced by the bliss-out script that made "Close Encounters" my favorite film.

The other title on the marquee was "A Boy's Life", which was the original working title for "ET, the Extra-Terrestrial".

[princess leah]

Do they still serve "Mulled Wine"?

[B4Ranch]

Clarence can do it.

[r9etb]

a toad in her egg nog.

LOL!

[Shooter 2.5]

Thanks for the correction. I love little bits of trivial like that.

[muleboy]

It has to be foul-play.

There is no way that anyone who sleeps with Donna Reed would EVER commit suicide.

[L.N. Smithee]

Mary should have married Sam Wainwright!

In case you are being serious and not facetious, Sam Wainwright was no longer interested in Mary, and vice versa.

Because Mary had never really made a play for George despite her secret drugstore counter declaration that she would "love [George] until the day [he died]", no one but George's mother had the notion that Mary's heart was tied to George, and not Sam. Cementing in George's mind that Mary was Sam's girl was his jealousy of Sam's continuing success, and his feeling that he couldn't be with "the prettiest girl in town" being only what he was.

George missed what he thought was his only opportunity to complete a forward pass at Mary the night of Harry's graduation party (the swimming pool incident), when the news of Peter Bailey's stroke took him away from that "very interesting situation" (we'll never know the details of that "deal" George wanted to make with Mary to return that robe). After that night, in George's mind, she returned to Sam's stable before she away to college, and he was too busy holding the Building and Loan together to pitch woo to Mary long distance.

Years later, another party for Harry was held, this one to celebrate Harry's return home, graduation from college, his secret marriage, and new job. Jealous George, drooping under the weight of the B&L and now constantly reminded of the huge void in his love life, was told by his mother to visit the newly-returned Mary. But rather than go to the Hatch house, confess his love, and be humiliated by "Sam's girl," George walked the streets and was propositioned by town floozy Violet Bick (who had carried an unrequited torch for George since they were grade schoolers), but his relatively wholesome version of wild abandonment was too fanciful for her.

George wandered over to Mary's house, where Mary was waiting and ready, thanks to Mrs. Bailey's call. Mrs. Hatch (Mary's mother) was eagerly anticipating a promised call to Mary from Sam, and was aghast that George was in the house, possibly standing in Sam's way.

Remember when Sam finally called, how Mary raised her voice in greeting him, hoping she'd make George jealous? Sam playfully suggested that George was "trying to steal my girl" meaning Mary. Of course, all the while on the other end of the line, Sam was being lovingly embraced by the brunette beauty that he would eventually marry.

In the words of George, "Am I talking too much?" I will stand by and let Mary tell the story herself:

---

GEORGE: Mary Hatch, why in the world did you ever marry a guy like me?

MARY: To keep from being an old maid.

GEORGE: You could have married Sam Wainwright or anybody else in town.

MARY: I didn't want to marry anybody else in town. I want my baby to look like you.

---

[tracer]

Authorities continue to investigate rumors that Bailey was murdered by the husband of a local school teacher who assaulted him previously in a Bedford Falls tavern....

[tracer]

"Harry Potter pushed him! ...maybe that is Henry Potter."

Horsefeathers!!

[tracer]

I do believe he killed Buckwheat. Definitely. That's all he talked about....

[L.N. Smithee]

Although I consider suicide to be a cowardly act, it should be noted that George's consideration of it wasn't due to self-pity as much as it was the evil Potter's words as George was reduced to offering the equity in his life insurance policy as security for an $8000 loan: "Why, you're worth more dead than alive!"

[Victoria Delsoul]

Sorry to hear that.

[Alberta's Child]

This reminds me of a former radio talk show host in New York named Jay Diamond, who did an on-air parody one night called "It's A Miserable Life," in which Al Sharpton is visited by his guardian angel, who shows him how wonderful the world would be if he had never been born.

What made it so hilarious was that Diamond could do a perfect on-air imitation of almost any public figure. In addition to Al Sharpton playing the George Bailey role, he had former New York mayor Ed Koch filling in as Clarence, Ross Perot as Martini, former New York governor Mario Cuomo as the Italian bartender Nick, etc.

[BradyLS]

Huh. It never occurred to be until I read this take on the Frank Capra classic: in a backhanded way, "It's A Wonderful Life" is the businessman's version of 'Shane.' Except Shane "comes back."

[BradyLS]

Henry F. Potter

Odd that he never mentioned his brother, Sherman T. Potter.

[BradyLS]

There is no way that anyone who sleeps with Donna Reed would EVER commit suicide.

Hear, hear...