A01=Lauren & Emily Theisen & St. James
A01=Lauren Theisen
Author_Lauren & Emily Theisen & St. James
Author_Lauren Theisen
books about movies
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Product details
- ISBN 9781335000644
- Weight: 469g
- Dimensions: 156 x 235mm
- Publication Date: 19 Nov 2026
- Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc
- Publication City/Country: US
- Product Form: Hardback
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A fond and nostalgic cultural history of It's a Wonderful Life, celebrating the beloved holiday film's actors and creators, its unexpected journey from public domain to holiday classic, and what its enduring legacy reveals about America.
An indelible time capsule into the 1940s, It’s a Wonderful Life remains a cornerstone of peak American film, and one of the greatest pieces of media that America has ever written about itself. At a time when popular art was grappling with a picturesque vision of the American Dream, It's a Wonderful Life explored both its enduring qualities and hard edges, making it an exemplary piece of the post-World War II cultural zeitgeist.
Today, when view the film through the prism of its origins, It's a Wonderful Life becomes something much more poignant, a holiday classic that casts a hopeful eye toward the future. At nearly 80 years old, the film serves as a message in a bottle from 1946, and an important relic of the golden age of television. Journalists Emily St. James and Lauren Theisen offer the definitive story of It's a Wonderful Life, from its creation to its everlasting echoes today.
An indelible time capsule into the 1940s, It’s a Wonderful Life remains a cornerstone of peak American film, and one of the greatest pieces of media that America has ever written about itself. At a time when popular art was grappling with a picturesque vision of the American Dream, It's a Wonderful Life explored both its enduring qualities and hard edges, making it an exemplary piece of the post-World War II cultural zeitgeist.
Today, when view the film through the prism of its origins, It's a Wonderful Life becomes something much more poignant, a holiday classic that casts a hopeful eye toward the future. At nearly 80 years old, the film serves as a message in a bottle from 1946, and an important relic of the golden age of television. Journalists Emily St. James and Lauren Theisen offer the definitive story of It's a Wonderful Life, from its creation to its everlasting echoes today.
Lauren Theisen is a journalist and editor with Defector Media.
Emily St. James is a writer and cultural critic. During her journalism career, she served as the critic-at-large for Vox and the first TV editor of the A.V. Club. Her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Vanity Fair, and Vulture. She is the co-author of Monsters of the Week: The Complete Critical Companion to The X-Files. Her debut novel, Woodworking, was longlisted for the 2025 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. She lives in Los Angeles.Lauren Theisen is a journalist and editor with Defector Media.
