<Liberty Films was purchased by Paramount Pictures, and remained a subsidiary until 1951. In 1955, M. & A. Alexander purchased the movie. This included key rights to the original television syndication, the original nitrate film elements, the music score, and the film rights to the story on which the film is based, "The Greatest Gift".[N 8] National Telefilm Associates (NTA) took over the rights to the film soon thereafter.

A clerical error at NTA prevented the copyright from being renewed properly in 1974.[51][52] Despite the lapsed copyright, television stations that aired it still were required to pay royalties. Although the film's images had entered the public domain, the film's story was still protected by virtue of it being a derivative work of the published story "The Greatest Gift", whose copyright was properly renewed by Philip Van Doren Stern in 1971.[53][54][N 9] The film became a perennial holiday favorite in the 1980s, possibly due to its repeated showings each holiday season on hundreds of local television stations. It was mentioned during the deliberations on the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998.[53][55]

In 1993, Republic Pictures, which was the successor to NTA, relied on the 1990 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Stewart v. Abend (which involved another Stewart film, Rear Window) to enforce its claim to the copyright. While the film's copyright had not been renewed, Republic still owned the original film elements, the music score, and the film rights to "The Greatest Gift"; thus the plaintiffs were able to argue its status as a derivative work of a work still under copyright.[53][56] It's a Wonderful Life is no longer shown as often on television as it was before enforcement of that derivative copyright. NBC is licensed to show the film on U.S. network television, and traditionally shows it twice during the holidays, with one showing on Christmas Eve. Paramount (via parent company Viacom's 1998 acquisition of Republic's then-parent, Spelling Entertainment) once again has distribution rights for the first time since 1955.[53][57]

It's something that we see at my humble little chess club. Each year we hold a handicap speed chess challenge. Depending on the difference between your grade and your opponent's, you might find yourself 1 or 2 pawns down (which can actually be an advantage) all the way up to giving away queen odds. Or your opponent can choose a time advantage which means that you might have two minutes for the entire game and he has eight.

And that can mean that you end up playing these ferocious little ankle-biters who are much stronger than their grade. And the little monsters are usually quite good at speed chess because they play constantly online.

Picture the scene. You are playing a pipsqueak brat who can hardly see over the end of the board, with X-box honed reflexes, no fear, not yet interested in the opposite sex (so no distractions) and you are having to give away a rook or a queen because their tiddly published grade still contains all the games they lost to their school chums while they were still working out which way the horsey jumps.

And everyone in the club is gathered around your game because the kid has nothing to lose and you have everything on the line. If he loses, no-one notices. He wasn't expected to win. But if you lose your team-mates won't let you forget about it for years.

Bitter? Me? Naaahhh.

Far from having little impact it is well known and liked in its genre but to compare it with the Cubby Broccoli James Bond films doesn't make sense.

The 1967 Casino Royale also has one of the all time great movie theme tunes by Burt Bacharach!

That seems like too extreme an evaluation on both sides.

After 25...♘b4 26. ♗e2 ♘d3 27. ♗xd3 exd3 28. ♕c3 ♖f8 29. ♖xf8+ ♔xf8 30. ♕xd3 ♕xb2:

click for larger view

Black stands better, but the most likely result is a draw

After 25...♗e3 play might go 26. ♕d1 ♗xg5 27. cxd5 exd5 28. ♕xd5+ ♔h8 29. ♕xe4 ♗xe7:

click for larger view

I don't have an opinion (note the "some"), but here stockfish seems to think white has to play 31.h4 Qa1+ 32.Kh2 Qxe5+ 33.g3 h6 34.Bd2, a position white can't win and black can't lose, one I wouldn't wish to defend, and where I would think an older player would have an extra edge.

Mine too. It's a sad indictment on a film when its opening credits are far better than anything that follows.